Venture Expedition...or is it? Edinburgh to Tromso

[kej1]

Too bad it’s not a true expedition cruise but it seems you are having a good time!  Nice photos!

 

[BOB999]

6 hours ago, BasandSyb said:

We are onboard and haven’t seen any excursions for Tromso - assumed there were none given it’s a turnaround day. Just checked the source app and nothing showing. 
 

Highplaneddrifters - agree with you about this cruise being betwixt and between.

 

Couldn’t fathom the rationale for the Ullapool visit.

 

Sorry, meant that I was boarding in Tromso.  The excursion I was talking about is in Skarsvag.

[BasandSyb]

The excursion prices are indeed extortionate. Think about us poor Aussies who only get 65c to the US$ 😵‍💫

[highplanesdrifters]

8 hours ago, BasandSyb said:

Couldn’t fathom the rationale for the Ullapool visit.

 

Ditto. There is so much around Shetland really worth exploring.  We were there just after Covid and had our minds blown. I'll see if I can dig up that trip report. A proper expedition. 

[highplanesdrifters]

1 hour ago, BasandSyb said:

The excursion prices are indeed extortionate. Think about us poor Aussies who only get 65c to the US$ 😵‍💫

 Yikes, that is painful.

[highplanesdrifters]

The Expedition excursion waiting game - play by play 

 

Fair Isle 

 Home to Jimmy Perez's father.  In the real world it is home to some famous knitters that will be hosting us at their Community Center with teas, cakes and jumpers for purchase. We have two possible landing sites for the morning landing near the Community Center.  Dry landing on a concrete jetty near the center, but subject to tides and swells. Or a protected wet beach landing further from the community center. 

 

Picture postcard day, so perfect it  feels like a CGI production.

 

 

 We are in the first group so pressure is on to be ready.  Zodiacs launched, yay.  Even better, they are now unloading the blue barrels for life vests.  Landing party is climbing hills and marking paths. Don't want to crush the Puffin nests.Time to gear up all systems go.

 

 Fifteen minutes later....zodiacs hanging by the jetty, red jackets still climbing up the hill. Another fifteen minutes later, uh oh, blue barrel being moved down the hill. But just one barrel, maybe they want it closer to the zodiacs.  Pause.  Never mind landing doomed here come the rest of the blue barrels. Delaminate. Off to try the next landing site.

 

In the meantime the scenery is soothing the soul. Craggy cliffs with caves, moody clouds, and yellow nose gannets zipping by are keeping us entertained. 

 

 

The zodiacs have zipped ahead to the next landing site. Remember that cloud bank off in the distance. Well it's here as is the wind and swells are increasing. Can the Captian give us a lee?  We will now have a wet landing, but how wet?  Will we able to box walk to shore or are Bogs necessary?

 

 

Never a good sign, Zodiac hauling lines being dropped. Wait, EL Lucqui just jumped in a zodiac.  Nevermind they hooked up and are lifting zodiacs. Lucqui is back and has advised us to go enjoy ourselves and enjoy the scenery on Bow or Constellation Lounge.

 

 

How's this for a slice of heaven?

 

 

What what? Hold on to your horses and suit up.  All systems go. YAY!  

 

Stay tuned for an amazing excursion. 

 

[highplanesdrifters]

The wind died down and the clouds scattered. Off we went.

A relatively easy landing with a box walk to shore. No wet toes although we were advised to wear our Bogs. 

 

 

A few rocks but not bad at all.

 

 

Welcome committee. 

 

 

Round trip 5km to the community center. With so much to see and limited time we hitched a ride with a local. 

 

Treats and charming locals.

 

 

We spent some time with the John Best. At 88 he is the oldest resident.  He spun a few yarns and we listened with delight. 

 

 

The museum and church did not disappoint. 

 

Quite a few shipwrecks.  I'm glad we were not one of them.

 

 

The famous jumpers.

 

 

A church for all denominations.

 

 

Must hurry now, off to see the puffins. A bit of a hill to climb.

 

 

A few feathered friends along the way.

 

 

 

How's this for an erratic?

 

 

Lets pause to talk about the amazing job the Captian and Lucqui did getting us on land.  Look at that parking job. Crazy he pulled that off. Locals said they had never seen anything like it.  We were not anchored, dynamic positioning kept her in place. Wowza!

 

 

We plopped ourselves down next to Brent at the top of the hill. The wind stopped and sun kept us warm. He told us stories.  Happy place.

 

 

Bring on the Puffin show.

 

 

We spent the next hour plus lazing in the grass watching these fun creatures come and go from their burrows.

 

 

 

 

The weather and excursion God's smiled upon us today.

 

 

 

Due to the late start our time on Fair Isle was extended. We were all grateful.  It did cause our afternoon landing to be canceled. It was the smart move. Glad they went with the bird in the hand...or should I say Puffin in the burrow.😄

[galeforce9]

I love these reports and photos.  Your commentary is great. I met John and chatted to him outside of the village store in July.  We were in shetland for the tall ships races and flew across on a day trip.  What an amazing island. I’m so glad you got ashore.  

[reposado]

On 5/29/2024 at 9:53 AM, highplanesdrifters said:

 

Thanks for the compliment.  I wasn't sure how live I would make this thread and didn't want to make promises to folks on the internet that I don't know.😁

 

You're too humble I'm going on the Greenland Venture cruise soon and your post on it was one of the most informative I've found. 

[highplanesdrifters]

3 hours ago, galeforce9 said:

I love these reports and photos.  Your commentary is great. I met John and chatted to him outside of the village store in July.  We were in shetland for the tall ships races and flew across on a day trip.  What an amazing island. I’m so glad you got ashore.  

 Oh @galeforce9 that sounds incredible.  Could you hijack and tell us more?  We have been here a number of times and are planning at some point to return with a more extensive Faroe Islands visit. 

[highplanesdrifters]

1 minute ago, reposado said:

 

You're too humble I'm going on the Greenland Venture cruise soon and your post on it was one of the most informative I've found. 

Oh Greenland,  yes please! Can't wait to return.   Which itinerary are you doing? Can't wait to hear your stories.

[highplanesdrifters]

Shopping tip -

PSA. 

Tired of all the scratchy things?

Looking for fine woolen products?

RAM uses fine Merino wool mixed with silk and other wools. She combines traditional with modern designs. They hold up nicely with no pilling.   My first stop in town.

 

 

 

[galeforce9]

2 minutes ago, highplanesdrifters said:

Shopping tip -

PSA. 

Tired of all the scratchy things?

Looking for fine woolen products?

RAM uses fine Merino wool mixed with silk and other wools. She combines traditional with modern designs. They hold up nicely with no pilling.   My first stop in town.

 

 

 

We own about seven of these.  Can’t stop adding to our collection!  Hope you got some good colourful designs.  

[Techno123]

In Tromso you can walk over the Bridge to the cathedral and if you keep going up, there is a fabulous walk in the hills behind with lovely views of your ship if she is docked in the same place as the Ovation was last July 😁

[BasandSyb]

Great pics. Fabulous day. I finally got all my puffin pics. The weather gods were on our side. Jimmy Perez’s’ house was the crown jewel. Thanks for your post.

[markandjie]

Love the play by play. You had me at the edge of my seat that the excursion might not go. So envious you have Lucqui! I feel like the EL makes a huge difference when it comes to those tight timelines and close weather windows. 

[kej1]

Sounds marvelous!  Things are looking up.  I believe Lucqui  was on our Quest trip to Antarctica and South Georgia. in dec2017/jan 2018.  If the same he was fantastic on that trip and sounds like he will be doing well on this one too now that you are in expedition mode!  Wonderful photos.  I was remiss in not posting many on our trip but my husband is the photographer and is just now really pulling them all together.  Thank you for sharing!  

[highplanesdrifters]

7 hours ago, Techno123 said:

In Tromso you can walk over the Bridge to the cathedral

 

Great info, and it doesn't cost $375.

[highplanesdrifters]

17 minutes ago, kej1 said:

Sounds marvelous!  Things are looking up.  I believe Lucqui  was on our Quest trip to Antarctica and South Georgia. in dec2017/jan 2018.  If the same he was fantastic on that trip and sounds like he will be doing well on this one too now that you are in expedition mode!  Wonderful photos.  I was remiss in not posting many on our trip but my husband is the photographer and is just now really pulling them all together.  Thank you for sharing!  

 

You did such a great job of taking us with you and we're a big help for our upcoming one in September.  Would love it if you posted a few pics on your thread.

 

You also gave us a heads up on the Seabourn expedition issues and price gouging for excursions. 

 

We were on the Quest Holiday Antarctica/South Georgia 2017/2018.  Iggy was the EL but Lucqui may have been on the ship.  Small world if our paths did cross.😄

[highplanesdrifters]

3 hours ago, markandjie said:

Love the play by play. You had me at the edge of my seat that the excursion might not go. So envious you have Lucqui! I feel like the EL makes a huge difference when it comes to those tight timelines and close weather windows. 

So true, EL can make or break it.  That along with the Captian and how well they work together. Yesterdays parking job was amazing. 

 

Lucqui is one of the greats for sure.  The team seems quite lite both in quantity and depth so he has his work cut out for him on this leg. I do however like the fresh faces. Lots of eager youngsters with happy attitudes.

[Sucellos]

Thank you for taking us along your trip. Some of the excursions prices seem completely crazy! If you need any input/tips for your upcoming stop in Trondheim let me know. Depending on your interests, there could be a number of different activites or places you could check out that would not involve an extortionate amount of money just to have somebody pointing you in the right direction or holding your hand while doing it. 

[highplanesdrifters]

31 minutes ago, Sucellos said:

Thank you for taking us along your trip. Some of the excursions prices seem completely crazy! If you need any input/tips for your upcoming stop in Trondheim let me know. Depending on your interests, there could be a number of different activites or places you could check out that would not involve an extortionate amount of money just to have somebody pointing you in the right direction or holding your hand while doing it. 

 

Thank you !  I would love some Trondheim tips a new port for us. Your timing is excellent as I was just try to make a plan.  I'm happy to spend money on a good tour.  Just don't want to give it to Seabourn at this point.🤣

 

Here's what they are offering. Nothing set my heart on fire.  

 

[highplanesdrifters]

We just had a decent stop in Lerwick which I'll report on later. We left port around 4.   I was getting grumpy about the lack of expedition in this spectacular bird area and said " I cant believe we're not even doing an Isle of Noss drive by, jeeesh".  

 

Well Lucqui pulled a rabbit out of his hat. Not only are we going, but they are dropping zodiacs.  Our third time here.  First time in a zodiac. Yippee.

 

Stay tuned Gannet Snow Globe here we come. 

 

 

 

[galeforce9]

Trondheim - great for a stroll around. The old cathedral, walk up to the castle for good views, the colourful old warehouses. You can also catch an old regular service tram up to a lake area above the city and have a stroll. 

[Sucellos]

Wow, that price for a bike tour around town is just crazy, even as a guided tour. If you would like to bike you can also rent city bikes all over town (https://trondheimbysykkel.no/en)

First: You'll fnd a lot of info on the official site: https://visittrondheim.no/en/

 

I have marked some of the things I mention with numbers in this map:

Some of the street art is quite cool, so I'll include a map even though the tour didn't trigger you.
Map with street art in Trondheim
You'll dock (Map: 1) like 100 meter from one of my favourites, a 500 m2 (5400 sqft) piece of this angel girl watching over us. (Map: 2)

(Photo credit: Trondheim Street Art Festival)

 

The Nidaros Cathedral (Nidaros Cathedral) (Map: 3) is a nice place to visit if old churches are your thing and is probably considered one of the main classic tourist attraction here in town. It also includes some good exhibitions, including the Norwegian Crown Regalia. A short guided tour of the cathedral in english seems to be planned at 11am. 

If weather is bad, lunch buffet at classic hotel Britannia (Hotel Britannia) (Map: 4) could be a nice break while you're in town, or stroll over to Trondheims "old town" Bakklandet (Map: 5) and find a cozy more informal place for lunch. Or just stop by either "Hevd" or "Godt Brød" (You'll find them on a couple of locations, check google maps) for a delicous pastry on the go. 

(Bakklandet. Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

You can visit Munkholmen (the Monk's Islet) (More info about "Munkholmen") by taking a short shuttle boat trip. Usually there are a guided tour in english there as well. Se the web page for more info. 

 

Hope you will enjoy it and let me know if you have any questions.