Lofoten, Norway
At 5.30 AM our Expedition Leader announced an early start to the day. It was way too early for some, but those who struggled from their comfortable berths saw something spectacular. The captain was slowly bringing the National Geographic Explorer into one of the most scenic fjords in Norway, Trollfjorden. As you approach, the entrance is hidden, but suddenly a small narrow opening can be seen, just wide enough for our ship to slip in. Slowly our captain took us to the far end of the fjord and skillfully put the ship’s bow right up to the cliff face, close enough to have a flower picked. It was an adventurous start to a long day.
During lunch we dropped anchor at Reine, one of many small fishing ports and villages along the coastline of the Lofoton Islands. Although there are many quaint villages in Lofoton, Reine at its location between huge cliff walls may be one of the most scenic. The fisheries around Lofoton has been and still is the economic base for the about 30,000 people living here.
In January to March the cod come in to the Lofotenfjord from the Barent’s Sea to spawn. Everyone who owns a boat will be out fishing. This has been the main income and export to mainland Europe for more than 1000 years. The cod is “the fish” as it is easy to preserve by drying: only protein, almost no fat. The wooden racks we saw along the cliffs are still used to air-dry the fish. The dried fish were easily shipped far away. In southern Europe the dry cod is known as bacalou, which means “dry fish”. A Portuguese has never seen nor tasted fresh cod!
The fishing season here at Lofoton is almost endless. When the cod move out in late March after spawning the islanders turn to whaling. Beginning in the 1920s the fishermen mounted small harpoon guns at the bow of their vessels to hunt minke whales. This whaling was closed in mid-1980 but the Norwegians did major research to find out about stocks. In 1996 this small scale whaling, for the whale meat and not as before for the oil, was opened again under a strict quota system.
Through summer the Sei (Pollack) comes into the fjord system to spawn and by late September the fall spawning herring occur in abundance. Not to mention other good fish in the area, halibut, uer… This is by far one of the most productive ocean areas in the world. Luckily our Hotel Manager, together with his crew, was able to buy some of these tasty wonders from the sea for our table.
After our zodiac cruise through Reine harbour we sailed a few miles further south along the eastern side of Lofoten to visit the small fishing village, named Å (the shortest place name in the world!). Here we were able to get a full introduction around the fisheries and how tran (= cod liver) oil and dry cod was preserved and exported. Today even the cod head has become a major export product for West Africa to make tasty special fish soup. Nothing is wasted!
You would think as we arrived back from Å for an early dinner that our long day was at an end but we had more to offer. In the very far south to Lofoten you find two isolated islands, Rust and Vaerø. We made a brief after-dinner landing at the former fishing village of Måstad, on Vaerø. This isolated outpost no longer has people living year-around; nowadays the fishermen’s houses are used for summer cottages.
Some preferred to end this day by making a zodiac cruise. Everybody who ventured out was able to see the large White-tailed Sea Eagle. We started this voyage way up north under the Midnight Sun. Now, as we approach the Arctic Circle, nighttime has returned to our lives. The last Zodiac back returned in fading light led by the lights from the ship. Good night!
