Month: February 2017

Post 112 13 February 2017, 1000 Mile Walk Challenge 

Now two months into the City of Culture year, I decided that I would pop over to nearby Hull and see what changes had occurred and what was to come.

Coming out of the central Princess Quay Car Park (up to 5 Hours for only £4) I was a bit surprised to be confronted with a huge blade of a wind farm. However, I think it works due to the different shapes created in the historic square and the contrast between the ultra modern and the much more elegant older buildings.

I then went to the Ferens Art Gallery, which opened in 1927, was given to the city by the local MP and industrialist Thomas Robinson Ferens. In 2015 it was announced it would have a £4.5 million makeover in time for 2017. Well worth a visit with works by the 14th-century Pietro Lorenzetti, sculpture Ron Mueck, Frans Hals, Canaletto, Henry Moore, Mark Wallinger. Later there will be the Turner prize 2017 and photographs from the Sea of Hull commission from there.

After lunch I went, via the Arctic Corsair,

 

to the Hull and East Riding Museum, a short walk away. This traces history in the area as far back as Neolithic Man.

The site of one of the oldest dogs was identified!

There were also wooden warriors who were censured in Victorian Times and had their ‘parts’ removed! Ouch.

Some Celtic information and maps backed up my theory, based on my DNA, that my ancestors had moved from Europe to Ireland, before they moved to Northumberland to spread Christianity; which was halted when the Vikings arrived. I need to draft a letter for confirmation of this theory to Professor Alice Roberts, TV Presenter and Author of the compelling series and book, The Incredible Human Journey, which provides evidence to indicate all our ancestors walked out of Africa. That is the ultimate long-distance walk.

They may well be of the Hibernia tribe.

A particularly well preserved era was that of Roman times with some wonderful mosaics.

I then had a cup of tea and homemade carrot cake for £2.90 (how low is that) in a local cafe, before going to the nearby Wilberforce Museum and Home.

Slavery is a black stain on our history, but if their is any consolation it is that this northern Christian campaigner led to the abolishment of the heinous slave trade.

I then headed to the Maritime Museum, via the Land of Green Ginger Street.

Until 19 March there is a audio visual presentation of a Bowhead Whale.

Having just returned from Norway and been well above Trondheim and the Arctic Circle, I was intrigued to see this map of the early 1900s showing that ferries from Hull only went as far north as Trondheim.

Miles Walked 3.2

Average Pace 14.48 minutes per Mile.

Maximum Pace 6.2 Minutes per Mile

Calories burnt and replaced by the cake 420

Steps 5,700

Elevation Gain 27.4 ft

Minimum Elevation 16.6 ft

Maximum Elevation 39.3 ft

 

Post 111: 28th January 2017 1,000 Mile Walk Challenge 

Heading back both south now we were due to arrive in Tromso, ‘the Gateway to the Arctic, the Arctic Ocean City and the Paris of the North’, at 8am. It is one of my favourite cities.

This photograph was taken at 7.12am as we approached the City.

One could be fooled into thinking that the Northern Lights were welcoming us, but in fact it was the ships beam identifying a boat ahead.

 

Reflections of Arctic Cathedral.

After breakfast I decided to go for a walk with John and Christine.

We passed a boat with a hot tub and had it not been fully booked we would have been tempted to go on the trip! A definite for our next visit!

From the bridge over the river we could view our ship.

We headed up past the Cathedral to the hills above the beautiful valley of Tromsdalen. Spikes were essential.

On the return I called into the Arctic Cathedral, which was completed in 1965.

We arrived back at our ship to find the Hurtigruten Nordnorge ‘parked up’ behind us.

My main intention of the day was to have an early dinner and head up to the top of the Mount Storsteinen, on the Fjellheisen Cable Car, in the hope of catching the Northern Lights. There were no other volunteers!

I left at 4pm and after a bus and short walk was heading up the cable car in somewhat windy conditions. A certain amount of swinging of the car occurred. I have seen extremely fit Norwegian ladies run up this mountain in the past!

The view from a very windy viewing platform is one of the best I have ever seen, even without the Northern Lights.

A slideshow using various lenses shows more of the views, including my ship and Nordnorge below:

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A corporate party arrived in various cable cars and then their food. Unfortunately, I was not invited to it, but did meet some nice Bulgarians and Romanians and others and chatted to the cable car operator on each of his arrivals,  until finally leaving at 9.30pm. A truly international gathering.

There were no Northern Lights!

The Mountain Trolls had the last laugh.

Miles Walked 6

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Post 110:  11 January 2017,  1,000 Mile Walk Challenge 

According to Age UK’s index of well being cultural and physical activities are the most significant factors in the quality of life for the over 60s.

What to do?

Monday: the City of Culture Hull for a couple of museums and whatever else is on.

Tuesday: a 10 mile walk on my 51st long-distance walk.

Wednesday: to the cinema to see Toni Erdmann. This is about a father who visits his management consultant (human resources) daughter who is living in Bucharest. Funny that as my daughter goes to Bucharest soon for a few days human resources work!

Now what can I do on Thursday?

Chris Bonington, Britain’s most celebrated mountaineer at 82 has it right when he says ‘that he is motivated by sheer enjoyment’, adding ‘I sincerely hope I can get into the hills into my nineties’.

I agree Chris……….

Here I go……..

 

 

Post 109 27 Janaury 2017. 1,000 Mile Walk Challenge

This morning Celia, myself and our friend Annabelle had decided to go on our own excursion to the Alta Museum of Rock Art. We got the shuttle bus from the ship to the centre of Alta to await the bus to the museum. The skies were very interesting with iridescent effects. See slideshow:

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We left Alta on the main E6 road and the scenery was breathtaking with much snow about.

We got off the bus to find the paths to the Museum were somewhat icy. Time to put micro-spikes on, for those who had them.

Our hopes were raised when we saw the Museum was European Museum of the Year in 1993 and set in a stunning location.

On entering we thought there was a roof leak, but it turned out it was a piece of art that in certain light conditions portrayed a fish on the floor.

Now that’s what I call a fish!

The highlight of the museum is the portrayal of the variety of rock art that exists in Alta. The Rock Art was made over a long period of time, from approximately 7,000 to 2,000 years ago. That meant some of it was more than 4,000 years B.C. (Before Christ).

The art was made by people who lived from hunting and fishing, which is reflected in some of the motifs. Animals and humans engaged in different activities, as well as boats, are among the most common motifs. The most frequently depicted animals are reindeer, elk and bear.  There are many artefacts of more recent times too.

Walk through the museum with me…………

We then went out onto the balcony to admire the stunning views (the landscapes of course!) and do some holiday posing.

The Museum truly deserved its accolade and it was kept in pristine condition as though it had only opened that day. The staff were most helpful too.

After a coffee and a delicious, waffle, jam and cream, it was a bus trip back to the centre of Alta for a few more photographs in the setting sun.

Wow that’s really cool. 

The return to the ship

The nearby airport,

The sunset from the ship..

and finally night-time.

Miles Walked 2

 

 

 

 

Post 109:  26th January 2017 (continued) , 1,000 Mile Walk Challenge

After lunch I took an Arctic Tours coach trip to the sight where the Tirpitz was bombed in the Second World War. It was then a very short uphill walk over snow and ice to where Tirpitz was anchored and bombed. Light was already beginning to fade as sunset was at 1.34pm and we arrived at 1.56! 

The Tirpitz was the heaviest battleship ever built by a European navy and exceeded her sister ship the Bismarck.

It was meant to prevent a possible break out of the Soviet Baltic Fleet and in 1942 sailed to Norway to act as a deterrent to a Soviet invasion. Whilst there it was used to intercept Allied convoys to the Soviet Union, and two such missions were attempted in 1942. In 1943 the Tirpitz, along with the Scharnhorst, bombarded Allied positions in Spitsbergen.

I arrived on the spot just in front of where the ship is shown in the photographs, above where the road, tunnel and bridge now exist.

1943 Kajford.

The bomb craters now.

These are the views from just above the bomb crater.

After scrambling down the hill very gingerly so as not to slip on the ice and snow, I resumed the coach ride to the museum a few miles away in Kafjord. The timber building dates from 1880. It has one of the largest collections of photographs and artifacts from the Tirpitz.

What really hit me at the museum was that even the standard issue underwear had Nazi emblems on them. There was no escape for sailors from the Nazi influence.

There are also Iron Crosses on display,

and the Tirpitz Captain’s dagger. The Tirpitz was finally capsized on 12 November 1944, near Tromso, when British Lancaster bombers dropped 12,000 pound ‘Tallboy’ bombs on it with direct hits. Up to 1,204 men were killed.

Emerging from the Museum on very icy paths, the lovely white Kajford Church, surrounded by glistening snow, could be seen. It was built by two Englishmen in 1837 and restored in 1969.

The first industrial development in the Arctic started at Kafjord in 1826 when a coppermine was opened by Englishmen including Cornish miners. Mining continued for 50 years.  Some videos of the excursion showing winter driving conditions in Norway are on my Facebook/You Tube.

Arriving back at our ship after a very memorable excursion and day, there was just time before dinner to take some photographs of Alta at night.

 

 

 

Post 108: 10 February 2017, 1000 Mile Walk Challenge

Having recently spent two weeks in the Arctic in search of the Northern Lights, I had resumed my ‘bread and butter’ walking through my local village in order to continue with my 1,000 mile challenge.

Yesterday came as a bit of a shock as on a quiet lane, where it is surprising to see more than two dog walkers a day, I was confronted by loads of men walking towards me dressed in a myriad of outdoor clothing as though they were in the Arctic. They had tripods, huge scopes, hats, gloves, large boots, the lot. What was going on?

The last time my village had an invasion like this was when a hoppoe happened to fly in from Afro-Eurasia a few years ago. On that occasion traffic jams occurred, all due to a medium sized bird of about 10 inches.

This time it was worse as it was only 6.5 inch bird that was causing a twitcher invasion. They had come from afar as Burnley, Redcar, Leeds and such like. The bird being sought after was a mega rare Pine Bunting. I read that only about 50-60 have ever been spotted in the UK.

Due to strong easterly winds it had been blown in from Siberia, or somewhere like that, and it had decided to land in Yorkshire. After getting over the initial shock, it had taken up residence in my village with the local Yellowhammers.  This was not as daft as it seemed as their are strong similarities.

Apparently twitchers were falling off their chairs in astonishment at the news.

Now I think twitchers get their name as when such a rare sighting is electronically communicated to them, via their apps or whatever, they begin to twitch until such time as they can can get a confirmed sighting of the bird of their dreams. This can be an extremely painful experience for them if they are stuck at work or have parental duties that they can’t delegate to a long suffering wife or partner.

On seeing the tiny bird some were speechless.

Now it is one thing to spend hours outside in the Arctic or on the deck of the ship as I did in the previous two weeks to see and photograph the Northern Lights (see previous blogs),

but to spend 13 hours in the cold looking for a 6.5 inch bird and then to spot it for 10 seconds only seems a bridge too far for me.

Having said that, today I got my big lens out, binoculars,and cold weather geared and decided to do a bit of bird watching on my walk today. So here it is:

No not THE PINE BUNTING but its mate the Yellowhammer.

There is always another day. I am just beginning to twitch, but have cured it with a glass of red wine. ……………………

Miles Walked 4.7

Calories 532

Steps 9,700

Average Pace 19.03 Minutes per Mile

Maximum Pace 7.55 Minutes per Mile

Elevation Gain 64.7 ft

Minimum Elevation 36.5 ft 

Maximum Elevation 74.6 ft

 

 

 

 

 

Post 107 26th January 2017, 1,000 Mile Challenge

We were due in at Alta for 10.00am. As a completely new location for me to visit and explore, with a lot of sightseeing to do, I did wonder how I would fit some ‘boot’ walking in.

However, I was on deck just after 7.00am as arrival in Alta seemed fairly imminent, even though it was not due until 10.00am. Despite sunrise being at 9.46am, there was some light with a strange redness. The ship was ahead of schedule.

Sunset was due at 1.34pm!

After 10.00am it was possible to get a shuttle bus from the ship into Alta, so I decided to have a walk around the town and seek out the The Northern Lights Cathedral Alta Church. A walk along the main street led to the Cathedral.

What a sight!

The concrete exterior with its titanium cladding was totally unique and unlike any other church or building I had ever seen before.

The interior altar wall is treated with a blue glaze to accentuate the figure of Christ.  The entire room is made from concrete with massive oak floors, chairs and moulding; the walls have vertical moulding strips with LED lighting behind them. This provides a warm and healthy atmosphere and light with good acoustics.The figure of Christ is cast in bronze and placed on a bronze plinth.

The organ has 29 stops and approximately 1800 pipes.

Inside the “tower-room” is a 7.5 metre high gilded Jacob’s Ladder.

The outside of the tower has 12 gold plated refiefs, one for each of the 12 disciples. The symbols have been deliberately simplified into nearly iconographic signs.

This breathtaking church was consecrated on the 10th February 2013.

Leaving the church I had time to to do a snow star in about four feet of snow. Two problems – it was quite hard and crusty on the top and at my age it was somewhat difficult standing up again! See slideshow:

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I was also able to say hello to Kristian Birkeland whose theories of atmospheric electric currents elucidated the nature of the aurora borealis, The Northern Lights. 

It was then a quick dash back to the bus and ship along snow covered paths and roads for lunch.

Miles Walked (with boots and microspikes) 1

 

 

 

 

 

Post 106: 25th January 2017, 1000 Mile Walk Challenge 

On the previous day we were the first cruise ship of 2017 to cross the Arctic Circle in Norway. Many more will eventually follow in the spring and summer months.

The Captain had made the correct decision to head for the shelter of Ofotfjorden, in order to avoid the force 10/11 storm and a dangerous narrow passage to Harstad.

I awoke at just before 8am to look out of my cabin to see a ski slope lit up and apparently suspended in mid air in the distance. Was I dreaming?

There was also a huge bridge all lit up.

A very surreal start to the day!

There were the bright lights of Narvik too and the mountain, so it wasn’t a dream.

I got up fairly quickly to do some early morning photography, before the sunrise which was due at 9.25am. Given that sunset was due at 2.19pm it was going to be a short day!

At 2.08pm I took this picture

At 2.13pm this one.

At 2.19pm it went dark again!

Despite strong winds and roughish seas still, between sunrise at 9.54 and sunset at 2.19, I somehow managed to walk 3 miles around the deck.

Miles Walked 3

Weather: Partly Cloudy Skies

Air Temp: 4 degrees C/39 degrees F

Sea Temp: 5 degrees C/ 41 degrees F

Wind: Force 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Post 105: 24 January 2017, 1,000 Mile Walk Challenge

Today was a sea day, when we would cross the Arctic Circle.

There was time to walk a couple of miles around the deck before breakfast. With all the delicious and tempting food available on a cruise ship its essential to get some walking in on the deck. The promenade deck on MS Balmoral is timber and so trainers are ideal – 4 times around the deck equals one mile. There is always plenty to see when in the islands area of Norway. There are literally thousands of islands. The Norwegians are great bridge and tunnel builders and fortunately, due to their lucrative oil, timber and fishing industries, can afford to build magnificent bridges and tunnels to islands with a tiny population. It is always a good idea to carry a camera when walking around deck as you never know what you will pass or see.

We passed Rorvik at 8.52am. This is the capital of a large island group called Vikna, which consists of almost 6,000 islets, skerries and islands and is home to many birds. There are about 3,700 inhabitants living on seven islands. There is much fishing, fish farming and farming in this area.

The last sighting of a sea serpent was made in 1926 by two boys fishing for mackerel on the northern side of Vikna. It was 200 metres long  and had 60 humps. Unfortunately, the boys did not have a camera. I wasn’t going to make that mistake!

Soon after leaving Rorvik, Leka a large island featured in the Norwegian Sagas, was passed to our left.

In 1932 a 3-year old girl called Svanhild was carried away by an eagle and taken to its nest on a mountain, 300 metres above the ground. She was later rescued and continued to live in Rorvik. She kept the dress she was wearing when she was taken. I did not get any pictures of white tailed sea eagles on this trip, but here is one I took on  a trip on MS Polarlys (Hurtigruten) in 2012.

With an 8 foot wing span it could lift a 3 year old. Magnificent birds.

Hope my grandsons takes note if they go to Norway and stay close!

After breakfast a small coaster passed us going south.

We then passed Torghatten (Hat Mountain), the mountain with the hole in it.

After lunch a Hurtigruten ship, MS Kong Harald, passed us going southbound at 1.57pm. Time for a quick wave.

The Seven Sisters Mountains were passed (see separate video on Facebook/You Tube).

With sunrise at 9.25 and sunset at 4.54, light seem to be already fading when we passed under this bridge at 2.30pm.

So that by 4pm the light really was going.

So how could we find the Arctic Circle, which we were due to pass at about 4.20pm?

Fortunately, the ship had its high intensity beamed light to seek it out.

 

I have a much better picture I took in July 2014, which is in my lounge at home

It was shortly after this that a force 11 storm was forecast and instead of carrying on in danger through narrow channels to Harstad, we diverted to Ofotfjorden, to ‘sit out’ the storm near Narvik.

Miles Walked 2

Weather: Cloudy Skies With Drizzle

Air Temp: 4 degrees C/39 degrees F

Sea Temp: 7 degrees C/45 degrees F

Wind: Force 5

 

 

 

 

 

 

Post 104: Winter Norway, 22 January 2017, 1,000 mile walk challenge 2017

Today was a sea day so the only walking I could do was around the deck.

4 laps around the deck is 1 mile.

Miles Walked 4 

Cloudy Skies

Air Temperature 6 degrees C/43 degrees F

Sea Temperature 9 degrees C/54 degrees F

Wind Force 3

 

23 January 2017, Alesund Norway.

We arrived early at the wonderful town of Alesund, with its art nouveau architecture. Walking would be limited as we had an excursion booked to go on the Rauma Railway and see the Trollstigen Mountains.

 

Arriving by coach at the Trollstigen Mountains looming over 1,555 metres into the mist, we searched for the Trollveggen, which at 1,000 metres is Europe’s tallest vertical overhanging rock face.

 

We then headed for lunch at the lovely Bjorli winter resort.

After lunch we were able walk a little around the hotel.  Microspikes were essential.

Finally, it was time to board the Rauma Railway to go through the beautiful and dramatic Romsdalen Valley to Andalnes.

The views from the train are spectacular.

We arrived at Andalsnes after a breathtaking journey. Note the coach is a chapel.

There was an interesting coach drive back to Alesund with many dramatic bridges and tunnels to go over and through.

 

Sunset was at 4.09pm and so arriving back at the ship it was now time to do some night time photography, which I love doing. From a berthed ship, with various lenses and with a tripod it is possible to get some good results.

 

 

There was just time now before dinner to continue with the 1,000 mile walk challenge, 2 miles around the deck!!!

Phew what an amazing day!

Miles Walked 2

Weather Cloudy Skies with drizzle

Air Temperature 6 degrees C/43 degrees F

Sea temperature 7 degrees C/45 degrees F

Wind Force 5