Monday 15th September
While repairs are being made to the ship we have had an opportunity to explore the Rock Art of Alta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This is the largest known collection of rock carvings in Northern Europe made by the indigenous hunter-gatherer people of around 6200 – 2000 years ago. These carvings show animals that were hunted, the hunting techniques and the people themselves. They may have a symbolic meaning but for us they are a window into life in the past in the Far North. The people who drew/carved these lived on the edge of glacial meltwater lakes and either the lakes receded or the land rose because of the lack of the weight of ice from the Ice Age and today show life along several edges of these lakes, all at different levels. The area is surrounded by small forested areas but most stunningly by the taiga bushes and berries forming a green, yellow and red carpet with some of these growing in joints in the rocks.
It is anticipated that overnight we will go by coach to the North Cape for breakfast as we had planned then rejoin the boat at Hammerfest.