Lofoten - Laukvik - August 26

Before we continue along the coast, we drive all the way up to the tip, to Andenes. Here is the Andøya Rocket Launching Field and the Spaceship Aurora. The Northern Lights have been researched here for years. Unfortunately, the Spaceship is already closed and we only have the chance to watch an informational film about the Aurora Borealis, at least... But we would have preferred to see the Spaceship...! We drive through Andenes, where there are supposedly whales to see, but we are not going whale watching, instead we continue on to the next region: the Lofoten Islands!

In Stokmarknes, we stop again to visit the Hurtigruten Museum and the old mail ship. And once again, we were lucky... the mail ship is currently closed for renovations... what's going on here???

Well, no mail ship then, very unfortunate, we have to settle for the museum without the ship! But since there is no one here, we have the place to ourselves... or so we thought...! Not five minutes after buying our tickets, the museum is suddenly swarmed by what feels like all the passengers from the ship that just docked in the harbor, the current Hurtigruten vessel...! Within an hour, about 100 retirees rush through the museum, zack, zack, and then they are back on the ship. After the crowd leaves, Jörn and I find ourselves completely alone again and can't believe that during the one hour we were in the museum, it was invaded by a swarm of locusts...! After that, they probably closed the doors again...!

To shorten the journey, we take the ferry from Fiskebøl to Melbu. To pass the 1.5-hour waiting time, Jörn takes the dog for a walk and I go shopping for a few things at a high price. Then at 3:40 p.m., we set off and once again we are rewarded with an impressive backdrop. After about 25 minutes, we have crossed over and instead of taking the main road, we drive along small side roads along the coast and find a great campground right by a fjord.

The weather is once again gloomy and seems to think that it hasn't rained enough here... Jörn and I definitely think it has rained enough... but the weather wins. We take our familiar bad weather spots and take on the role of grumpy detectives while drinking the freshly purchased beer (at least 4.5%) empty. It was supposed to last longer, considering the price...! However, we calculated it: about 4 liters of beer cost about 280 NOK here, which would be 14 € per person in a pub back home, so you could say it's a cheap evening! We did everything right! Unfortunately, no moose for Jörn, but at least we get to see the white killer rabbit from Monty Python on the campground. Luckily, it spares us!

The next day, the weather is good again and it stays dry. It's a good time to do laundry, read, and simply enjoy the beautiful view of the fjord! During the day, a fox visits us right at our campsite... but then disappears when everyone comes with their silly cameras...! Nevertheless, it was relatively tame and not very afraid. I don't think I've ever stood so close to a fox before. He definitely knows that there's always something to eat here... even white rabbits!

In the evening, we decide to have dinner at the small restaurant on the campground. The young chef personally greets us and offers us whale meat to try in three variations: raw, marinated in a brine, or smoked. It tastes really good and Jörn chooses a whale steak, while I go for the smoked whale meat with salad. For dessert, Jörn treats himself to a rhubarb compote and I try cloudberries, which are rare where we come from and are protected in North Germany... but up here in the north, there are a lot more of them. They taste a bit sour, but delicious!

After having our fill, we take a beer with us and go to bed early. The fox and the white killer rabbit also seem to be asleep already, no sign of them anymore.