Day 20: Senja to Andenes
88 km and 563 m climbing
I forced myself to stay awake till midnight in the hope to observe the Northern Light. The view over the lake was wonderful at this moment of the day, when fog layers are formed on the water and small kano was heading for the middle of the lake. However no green magic in the sky. So i went to bed with a buzzer at 2 o’clock. When I opened hopefully my tent at 2:00, i only could see a dense mist hidden the total environment. At least, i tried.
At 6:30 I double checked the ferry times, and was awake all of sudden. My memory appeared to be wrong, the ferry would leave at 11:00 instead of 12:00. I made my plan days ago, but missed to remember this one correctly. The ferry was 50 km further , and i could not afford any delays or hickups any more. The race was on!
Gryllefjord ferry
45 min before the ferry would leave, i arrive at the last steep hill. I could see the road zig-zagging over the steep cliff. The finish would be a hard one.
However, when i reached the start of the hill, a hidden tunnel appeared around the corner. What a lucky discovery. 1 km downhill and i arrived in the village of the ferry, Gryllefjord
30 min before departure I arrive at the ferry quai to embark on a 2 h trip over open sea and through whale area.
The view on the sharp coast line is impressive, the clouds gave it a golden shine over the dark blue mountains.
At the start i spot a dorsal fin, a whale i say. The German co-passenger look in the direction i am pointing. “ja, aber das ist ein Delphin” they correct me. I promptly respond: ” a dolphin is a small whale'”. They seem to find this funny.
The rest of the trip I stay on the top deck but could not observe any whales anymore.
The first thing I did upon arrival in Andenes, is visiting a whale excursion center. I make a booking on the first boat with a free spot for me. Which is 17:00 this evening. So i have time enough the find a spot for my tent and have some food. The excursion will take 2-3 hours on a speedboat. Better to have something in your stomach.
Andenes Camping
The camping of Andenes is located on a brilliant spot. A white sandy beach, green grass hills and a view on the shark teeth like mountains. For sure the best view on a camp site this trip.
Whale2Sea Andenes
The reason why there are so many whales near Andenes, is the presence of a kind of underwater canyon. Where the Gulf stream pushes nutrious water upwards and life is flourishing. This attracts the whales and especially the deep divers like sperm whales which could dive up to an amazing 1800 m depth.
So we embark for an evening trip of about 50 km in total to scan the area around the underwater canyon. In the morning a group of 15 pilot whales was observed in this area. And otherwise we will look for the Moby dick type of sperm whales.
We spot 3 different sperm whales. Our guide is a French PhD student, she listens with a microfoon under water to define the direction. The fountains give away their final location. We can approach them till 20-30 m. A big ribbed and rubber like creature is floating near us. Releasing meters high fumes.
And then the guide screams the sign: he is ready to Dive!
They wave with their tale and than they are gone for another 30-40 min to the dark depts of the canyon.
The boats turn and start to look for another whale.
The evening sun brings the colors alive of the islands. At the harbour, we spot a sea eagle.
Back on the camping, i have a pic nic Besides my tent on the dunes. With a superb sun set. On every hill somebody is sitting to watch the end of magnificent day. I hardly can believe how lucky i am with the weather.
