Steve and Cathy's Blog

Fortunately, Steve is up early to upload photos, and has the chance to take some pictures of Sirena’s entry into Tromso. As can be seen from the map above, the city itself is actually situated on an island, and there are several fjords by which to reach the city from the Norwegian Sea. We approach from the northeast, and we spend over two hours traveling down one of them until we arrive at the scheduled time of 9am.

Our excursion, Tromso Highlights & Northern Lights, won’t begin until 2:10pm, so we spend the morning in Horizons as extensive crew safety drills take place. It rains on and off all morning, so we have no compulsion to disembark and walk around the city.

Tromso is an important city in Norway, and rightfully refers to itself as the Capital of the Arctic, being 217 miles above the Arctic Circle. Here is some basic info, taken from Wikipedia: “Tromsø lies in Northern Norway. With a population of 76,974, Tromsø is the 12th most populous municipality in Norway, and its population has increased by 14.4% over the previous 10-year period. It is the largest urban area in Northern Norway and the third largest north of the Arctic Circle anywhere in the world (following Murmansk and Norilsk in Russia). The city center of Tromsø is located on the island of Tromsøya, but the urban area also encompasses part of the nearby mainland and part of the island Kvaløya. Tromsøya is connected to the mainland by the Tromsø Bridge and the Tromsøysund Tunnel, and to the island of Kvaløya by the Sandnessund Bridge.

“The municipality is milder than most settlements on the same latitude, due to the effect of the westerlies reaching this far north, as well as the North Atlantic Drift, a branch of the Gulf Stream. 

“Tromsø experiences a boreal climate as winter temperatures are just cold enough to qualify and the summer season is short. However, precipitation amount and pattern, with maximum precipitation in autumn and winter, as well as lack of permafrost, are atypical for subarctic areas and more typical for oceanic climates. Owing to the ice-free Norwegian Sea and the westerlies bringing the mild air ashore, winter temperatures in Tromsø are moderate and extremely mild for the latitude.

“The lowest temperature ever recorded is −18.4 °C (−1.1 °F) in February 1966. That is extremely mild for a location this far north, as it is about the same as the record cold for the entire state of Florida—about 40 degrees latitude further south. At the airport the all-time low is −20.1 °C (−4.2 °F) in February 1985.The “midnight sun” is above the horizon from 19 May to 27 July (71 days), and the period with continuous night lasts a bit shorter, polar night from 28 November to 14 January (48 days). The sunniest January (1985) recorded just 9 sunhours, while the sunniest February saw 97 sunhours (2018).

“Tromsø is the largest fishing port in Norway. Secondary to fishing, the University of Tromsø is a center for Arctic research. Tourism has exploded as an alternative economic resource in recent decades.” For instance, it is the city to which the Lofoten fishermen send their catch for processing and export, and last year that amounted to 42 million pounds. (We will be in Lofoten tomorrow).

Out to the dock at 2:10pm to board our bus and meet our young guide Max. It’s a three-hour tour, and is pretty straightforward. The first stop is a half hour away at the top of a hill overlooking one of the fjords. It seems like a time-killing exercise, because, frankly, it isn’t that spectacular as Norway scenery goes (Don’t we sound spoiled? Well, we are. Norway is unbelievably beautiful). And it’s really windy and cold. It’s a quick stop, and we head back into the city. 

Stop two is the Arctic Cathedral. It was built in 1965, and is quite beautiful. It is also swarming with other tourists when we arrive at 3:30pm. It’s impossible to get reasonable photos, and Steve takes a couple inside and we both leave to be outside. More mobs, which is not a complaint but a reality we are contributing to. 

Back in the bus for the drive to the last and most anticipated stop: a visit is to the Northern Norwegian Science Center located on the campus of Arctic University of Norway. The highlight is the 25-minute film of remarkable video of the Northern Lights. 

Here is a brief description from https://nordnorsk.vitensenter.no: “Featuring the aurora in science, history and arts; Extreme Auroras is a documentary and a visual feast. Filmmaker and photographer Ole Salomonsen lives above the arctic circle in northern Norway. Join him in his five-year long passionate pursuit of the perfect northern lights display; nature’s most spectacular light show.

“No other natural phenomenon does better justice to being displayed in a fulldome theater. When the story of the aurora is told and visualized with some of the strongest and most extreme auroral displays recorded in the latest years, you will feel immersed in the arctic wilderness, witnessing this awe-inspiring natural wonder.

“Extreme Auroras is a light show like you have never seen before.”

Sounds like hyperbole? It isn’t. It’s a spectacular film, and Ole Salomonsen must have spent hundreds and hundreds of patient hours to bring these incredible images to the screen. If we do not have the opportunity to see them “live” on our cruise, this is a worthy substitute. We thoroughly enjoy every minute. But, alas, our time in Tromso is up.

On our way back to the ship, we spend a few minutes checking out the downtown area as our bus maneuvers through the streets at rush hour. Our guide Max has done an excellent job of introducing us to his city, and we tell him so as we leave the bus.  

Sirena leaves for Leknes, Norway for the 200-nautical-mile sail to the Lofoten archipelago. We eagerly anticipate this visit because we have heard it is a special part of amazing Norway.