Jewel of the Seas — Norway; Nordkapphallen (North Cape Vistors Center)

We’re now at our northernmost point in this excursion from Honningsvåg. We’ve reached the Nordkapphallen, otherwise known as the North Cape Vistors Center. We reached Nordkapphallen on 25 June 2022. So, just how north are we? The Arctic Circle is denoted on maps at 66º 34′ North, and Nordkapp reaches almost 5º beyond that — at 71º 10′ 21″ North. Since the summer solstice for 2022 began just the day before, we’re up here at a time during which the sun will not set again for another forty days, or on August 1. Our first view of Nordkapp was at a nearby outcropping upon which is a marker denoting the visit in 1873 of Swedish and Norwegian King Oscar II. This was at a time during which the Swedish and Norwegian monarchies were united (for more information see: Dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway)

From this point look northeast for your first view of the North Cape Globe, which supposedly marks the northernmost point of Europe. In actuality, a rocky outcropping some 2.5 miles/4.2km to the west northwest is the true northernmost point.

Before we head over to the Nordkapp Visitor Center, let’s take in the views here at the Oscar II monument:

In the distance you can even see the true northernmost point:

But everyone loves cliffs and cervices, right?

Time to set out on foot for a closer look at the Northkapp Globe. The following photo was taken with a telephoto from the Oscar II memorial site:

Trekking over, you’ll come across this scene, which I also posted at the top of this article:

On Wednesday I’ll take you up close to the globe, inside the visitor center, and show you other sights here.

Слава Україні! (Slava Ukraini!)