Hitra Island, Norway
Throughout the morning we sailed southwards along the mid-coast of Norway. We weaved our way through some tricky narrow channels and soaked up the lovely scenery. It was a beautiful sunny day, which was a refreshing change that the Hotel Manger and galley team took full advantage of by offering lunch out on the back deck.
Just after lunch we stopped for a chance to explore Hitra Island, a new landing for the National Geographic Explorer. We were welcomed ashore by two locals who live on a neighboring small island; Amy Lightfoot and Per Johnson. National Geographic photographer Sisse Brimberg first met this couple during an assignment about Vikings she did a few years ago and helped set up this chance for the ship to visit with them.
Amy kindly showed folks around the island of Hitra as we walked through heath land and into a bit of forest. There were lots of lovely wildflowers scattered around and it was a great chance for a good leg stretch.
There was also an opportunity to explore the area by Zodiacs and Per guided us through some of the shallow inlets and told us a bit about the various islands history. Most of these islands had year round communities until the 1950s when there was a campaign to move people closer to towns. Now most of the houses are used only in the summer.
After everyone was back onboard, Amy gave a fascinating presentation about her research into Viking textiles. She was involved with a project recreating a Viking sail from the local sheep that used to be found on Hitra Island.
After dinner, it was Per’s chance to tell us about his experiences living in Svalbard as a trapper during the 1960s. He had some wonderful slides and better stories about his time there.
Today was a rare day when we had the chance to explore a new landing site and hear more about the area’s local history by two remarkable people who were so welcoming and really made our visit very special.
