Tromsö

Posted by Sven Thunéll on December 6, 2015 in Travel | 0 comments

After several years of nagging, Fredrik finally got his wish granted as Fejs decided to go to Tromsö to shoot whales over the weekend .

We ended up driving some 2500 km to get there and back again, but it was well worth it. At Kiruna we made a coffee stop and of course tried to take a night time picture of the mine (cold as h*** due to the wind).

LKAB Kiruna

Then on to Björkliden where we rented a cabin. The plan to shoot northern lights went out the window as the weather gods provided us with a thick blanket of clouds. In the morning it had lifted somewhat and gave us a nice view of Abisko and Lapporten.

Lapporten

The journey continued in a rapid pace.

Finally there and hungry as hell. Time for pizza.

Johan outside Peppes Pizza

Food really lightens your mood =)

Johan attempting a burly look =)

This time of year the sun never rises over the horizon and the light is somewhat apocalyptic.

Selfie girls

Part of Tromsö Harbor

We were fortunate to borrow a cottage, not far from Tromsö, from Fredriks uncle Tor. Thank you Tor! After a good nights sleep it was time to go on our prebooked Whale safari. The ship was pretty big and we were only eight guests on board, so there were plenty of space. A nice cabin with two big tables and padded benches provided a comfortable trip out to see. Of course we were more outside than inside on this trip.

Dramatic light and cold wind

Inside of the ship, Johan and Fredrik.

The lovely distortion of a 16-35 mm =)

From Left, Johan, Fredrik, Göran

It didn’t take long for the Killer whales to show up and soon after the fountains made by Humpbacks was showing some distance away.

Killer Whale

Humpback Whale

Both Killer whales and Humpback whales moved in family groups, protecting their young.

Baby Killer Whale between (probably) mother and father.

After nearly five hours of varying light cold winds, it was time to turn home. To our great surprise they served waffles with jam and cheese for lunch =)

mmmm….

Home to port well after dark, tired but happy to have seen so many whales. Must have been hundreds of them.

Home port

Ostsee star

Tired but not to tired we decided to go in to Tromsö to try and snap som night photos of the city. Finally after much searching we finally found som northern lights or Nordlys as it’s called in Norway.

Göran trying to find the right angle.

Tromsö Arctic Cathedral

Tromsö City Harbor

All in all this was a great trip only to short. There is much to explore in Tromsö and we could easily have gone out on whale safari for two days in a row if we only had time.

A highly recommended place to go to, just remember to bring warm clothes.

/Sven