At World’s End…

Here we are. After 14 weeks of traveling from the southernmost point of continental Europe, we arrived at the northernmost point of the European continent: the North Cape!… Symbol aside, the day and the hike to the lighthouse were truly exceptional, with seals and two whales playing peacefully a few meters from the shore, not to mention our surprise discovery of the village of Gjesvær…

There are places on earth which have particular symbolism (the highest point of a region, the lowest point, the furthest east or west, etc., etc.). The North Cape is one of these places: the northernmost point of the European continent, at 71°11’6” N. Beyond, only a few islands remain (more precisely Svalbard, also belonging to Norway) and the vast Arctic Ocean, all the way to the North Pole…

It’s a strange feeling to be there, just a meter or two from the ocean, and to think that straight ahead there is nothing but water, partly frozen, until more or less to the same latitudes on the other side of the globe, somewhere between Alaska, Yukon and the Canadian Northwest Territories.

It took us 14 weeks to get here from the other end of the continent: Cape Tarifa, Spain, the southernmost point of the European continent. Getting here was of course a symbolic goal, but sometimes symbolism meets reality and it creates an exceptional, simply unforgettable moment…

But let’s start with a little clarification. There are in fact two North Capes: the one you reach by road and which marks the end of the E69, where you find a visitors center, a huge parking lot transformed into a UN refugee camp by dozens of vans and motorhomes, two or three sculptures placed there more or less randomly and the famous metal globe that can be seen in most of the photos on the internet. This is the “business” part of the North Cape, where just parking costs 17 EUR (regardless of the length and with a maximum of 24 hours), and the simple act of breathing or walking on the edge of a cliff to get to the famous globe costs 7 EUR per person (an exception to the Norwegian Constitution’s right to nature and to wander freely, I suppose)…

Then there is the true North Cape (some say “geographic North Cape”), located on the peninsula right next to the other, and indeed slightly further north. This is the Knivskjelodden, the “real” North Cape, the end of the European continent (at least, heading north), at one more degree of latitude (71º11’6”N), where you can only arrive after walking 9 km in the tundra. No need to say that even if the hike is easy, it limits the crowds and the type of “public” who come here…

And yet, the North Cape is really there. Not only from a geographical point of view, but also by the beauty and wilderness of this small peninsula, at the edge of Europe. A lighthouse has been planted there, to guide ships that venture onto these raging waters, as well as a small discreet monument which confirms, in Norwegian, that one is indeed at the northernmost point of the European continent.

We were lucky enough so that, when we arrived near the peninsula, the clouds dissipated, leaving only mist over the sea, which enveloped the cliffs to the right (the tourist North Cape). There, at the end of the world, and after a few mandatory photos, we sat on a granite slab, in t-shirts, in the sun, watching a seal fighting as best it could against the seagulls who were trying to steal its fish, and two whales (minke whales?) playing quietly along the shore, coming to breathe on the surface or passing upside down, their all-white arms sticking out of the water like a fin… If we add to that our first Atlantic Puffin (in flight) and a mother Golden Plover who literally blocked our way by whistling and ruffling feathers to protect her chicks, right next to us, we can say that we saw more wildlife in 9 km at the end of the world than in the last two months!…

The true North Cape was definitely there, at least for us, and we had the chance to see it in the best conditions (weather and wildlife-wise)…

So it was with a little pang in the heart that we returned to the parking lot. The initial idea was to go back to the mainland that same evening, but we ultimately preferred to enjoy the moment a little more and look for a place to sleep on the island of Magerøya. After all, the goal was achieved, so… it was time to savour the victory…

We headed somewhat by chance to the village of Gjesvær, on the west coast of the island, and there we discovered a postcard worthy of the Lofoten Islands. A small fishing village clinging to a rocky strip, between ocean and fjord, with a bar of islands just in front. We settled on the edge of the fjord and this morning, after a good night’s rest, we went to visit the village. There, we learned that the island in question, Gjesværstappan, is in fact a Ramsar site housing probably the largest colony of Atlantic Puffins in the world, in addition to a whole host of other Arctic species. Also by chance, we came across a boat which was going to tour the islands with a few tourists. So we decided to embark with them and spent an hour and a half around Gjesværstappan, surrounded by thousands of Puffins, Guillemots, Gannets, Razorbills and other White-tailed Eagles. The Puffin colony alone has more than 300.000 individuals, and it is calculated that the island is home to around 1 million birds, all species combined, not counting migrants. It was simply incredible to be there, in the middle of a flock of Puffins and Razorbills flying above our heads like a swarm of bees or mosquitoes and then, looking down, to see that the sea ​​was also covered with thousands of birds floating and fishing quietly, as if our boat was part of the ecosystem… The Eagles were circling slowly around the island, looking for an isolated chick and, on the other side, a small group of seals were resting quietly on a rock…

During these two days at the end of the world, we could finally see the Norway we had imagined: wild places, far from the crowds, where nature seems to retain its rights. So yes, it was a little hard to resign ourselves to getting back on the road, this afternoon, to return to the continent… We took the Nordkapptunnelen in the other direction, we went back down to -212m under the Barents Sea, and we went back to the other side with a heavy heart, leaving behind us these wild places like Knivskjelodden or the Gjesværstappan islands. The adventure continues, and we still have many countries and things to discover, but the North Cape and the island of Magerøya will undoubtedly continue to populate our dreams for quite a few kilometres…

Knivskjelodden & Tourist North Cape

Gjesvær & Gjesværstappan

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At the end of the world, as anywhere else, LEAVE NO TRACE!

– Always travel on public ways and respect the signs.
– Limit noise and interfere as little as possible with wildlife.
– Respect the other users.
– Leave rocks, plants and other natural features as you found them and respect historic sites.
– Take your waste with you and throw it into the appropriate containers, in the nearest village.
– Do not camp inside protected areas and do not make any fires.