ALTA: Lights and Heights

Winter cruising through the fjords of Norway is a treat. This is one of the most stunning places I have had the privilege of seeing. I would always be looking out the windows of Deck 9 around dusk, running on the treadmill as I watched the huge rock formations pass, sometimes sheltering a few houses here and there. I especially loved the way the late afternoon sun turned the snow-covered mountains pink in the fading light.

On our first Norway cruise, I had IPM in Alta, one of our stops on our Norway cruise. Though I was disappointed that I did not get to explore on this occasion, it was here that we had a major glimpse of the Northern Lights!

Apparently, the Lights were the clearest they had ever been for Cara to see in two years.

I can’t believe that within the first week of sailing through the fjords we were lucky enough to have a sighting, and what a sighting it was. The entire sky was clear, leaving an open canvas for the lights to appear. I watched for about half an hour and noticed a pattern: the lights would first emerge in a blurry wave, almost as smoky outlines of where they would travel. Suddenly, they would glimmer to life in green, pale pink, and sometimes purple. The way in which the lights ebbed and flowed reminded me of the way in which fish linger, trail away, come back, then float somewhere else, constantly in a state of motion. It was breathtaking, one of the most memorable nights of my life.

On our second Norway cruise, our whole itinerary was a bit off (What can be done, we are in NORWAY in the WINTER. Of course there is going to be a storm or seven!), so we arrived in Alta late. There was a crew drill in the morning, then, following a hurried lunch, I took a shuttle into Alta. The bus stopped at the tourism office in the middle of town, which was deserted due to the fact that it was Sunday.

From what I could gather, there was not much to do unless you had reserved a reindeer/ dogsledding excursion, or you wanted to hike. And that, ladies and gents, was what your girl had in mind.

Cara was docked at one end of a small bay, and other side of the bay rose into this fantastic-looking mountain, topped with an antennae tower. I had been told there was a trail that took you to the top, which yielded an unparalleled view of the surrounding fjords.

My solo excursion up the mountain commenced!

I soon realized that I had to backtrack along the route that the shuttle bus took to get to the trailhead; this was not the loveliest of walks. However, the pedestrian path soon became lined with beautiful trees, and I was less bothered by the traffic of the main road.

I found the trailhead and began to walk on the route most taken, based on how tamped down the snow was. I was thoroughly enjoying the solitude, hiking through the cold, sparkly nature, when I realized that if I were to be attacked by a bear, nobody would know what happened to me. Hm. Maybe I should have taken a partner with me to this remote Norwegian mountain in the wintertime. Well, you live and you learn. And luckily, at that moment I spotted a family ahead of me. Yay for family-friendly hikes!

It was gorgeous, and my heart rate was UP as the elevation increased dramatically. It was going to be a slippery descent if I was struggling to keep my footing going up! I began to realize that it was advantageous to walk in the fresh snow alongside the worn, icy path. That way, the treads on my snow boots had something substantial to tread upon. After about 45 minutes, I made it! What a drop-dead gorgeous view.

I’m telling you, Norway wins all the panoramic picture contests.

It does not get any better than this. The mountains, clouds, and ocean, mixed with the sunlight and fresh air were enough to procure some giddy laughter. I also may have cried a little, but we shall blame that on the cold.

On my way back down, something ripped my contact in half whilst in my eye (Now I was really crying haHA!), so I decided to walk back to Cara. No big deal, as I was already halfway there due to the backtracking towards the trailhead. Hopefully nobody saw my distorted face as I walked back down the mountain, one eye squinting behind my sunglasses as my other eye streamed.

All in all, Alta brought many memories to the table. Thank you for leaving a crazy-amazing impression of Norway with me!