Destination Nordkapp

As I made my way north on the homestretch to Norkapp, I could not help but notice the sure signs that many around me were traveling to the same destination. Some even advertised their plan on the rear windshield of their vehicles! For many Europeans, this is a rite of passage. And these fellow pilgrims were not only traveling as I was. Many of them were traveling via bicycle. Naturally, I was incredibly impressed with these hardy souls.

After camping at an exceptionally beautiful and private pullout on the E8 post-Segla mountain hike, I started strong and enthused but quickly realized that I was completely exhausted. I had managed to maximize all waking hours since I had arrived in Norway and my body and mind had finally had enough of the grind.

After only a few hours of driving, I found a campground to rest up and settled in for a much-needed nap. When that proved unsuccessful, I decided this would be the perfect opportunity to do my first load of laundry. That plan was quickly compromised as Lyngenfjord campground did not have a washer and dryer! Not to worry. I have water, soap, and a sink. I got to work.

A short walk from Lyngenfjord Camping near Djupvik, Norway

Later that afternoon I went for a walk along the edge of Lyngenfjord and was propelled out of my tired state when I became completely mesmerized by everywhere I looked. I just could not believe that I could spin in a circle and everything my eyes landed on was worthy of becoming a gallery photo. The mountain range across the fjord was spotted with glaciers and dozens of waterfalls falling all the way to the ocean surface. It was then that I wondered if when Norwegians travel to other countries to experience novel natural landscapes, do they find themselves shrugging and questioning “That’s it?”.

A few days back I had driven through a small town that had a gigantic waterfall as a backdrop. This beast was likely a few hundred feet wide and fell thousands of feet off of a jagged cliff. The sound of crashing water permeated the entire town. I could hear it while driving with my windows rolled up. What struck me was that it wasn’t even a tourist attraction. Just another epic waterfall in Norway. Nothing to see here. Unbelievable.

As I made my way north the following day, the landscapes only continued to impress.

It was at this point that I started to consider how I wanted to approach Nordkapp. I decided that I was still far enough away, that it probably made sense to camp short of it and allocate the next day to exploring it instead. With that plan secured and legs in much need of a good stretch, I stopped in the town of Alta and made the maiden voyage on my foldable bike, eventually that is. First I drove back and forth in town about 5 times looking for a place to park. Not because there was nowhere to park but because my brain was shorting out! There was something odd happening to me. Perhaps exaggerated by fatigue, I was having a hard time making even basic decisions. Eventually, I parked in a used car lot not because it made any sense but because it was a Sunday and another camper had done the same. Seeing that they were stowing away their foldable bikes after exploring the town I decided to follow suit. They eyed me as I got out and copied their plan. If I had not seen such a literal example of what I had in mind, I might still be in Alta trying to decide on a place to park!

The fresh air and exercise were incredibly invigorating and I felt re-energized to continue on in search for a campground. I opened Google and did a quick search for campgrounds between Alta and Nordkapp. It was then that I noticed there was a campground at Nordkapp. As I continued driving the thought of camping on the northern tip of the European continent, waking there the next morning, and exploring with a mug of coffee in my hand won me over. So I drove and drove and drove and eventually pulled into the parking lot, where it was permitted to camp. Despite my fears, there were plenty of spaces available.

There I was, tucked in for the night at the far reaches of the European continent with dozens of bikers camped in tents outside and hundreds of motorhomes from all over Western Europe to enjoy it with. I had driven more than 3,400 km (2,100 miles) over two weeks to reach this point. It felt like a huge accomplishment!

The evening I pulled into Norkapp, Norway. *See humans for scale*.

Lessons from: Destination Nordkapp

The main parking area at Nordkapp is free to park and camp in. There are restrooms available for use but no other services: water, dump station, power, showers, laundry, wifi.
There is no entrance fee to Nordkap. It is completely free to park and walk around anywhere outdoors.
If would like access to any of the indoor facilities at Nordkapp: the restaurant, museum, and gift shop it will cost $32 USD/adult, $9 USD/child. I did not opt to pay this fee and remained outside. Something about having to pay money to visit a gift shop was annoying to me but then again I did park and camp for free.
Almost all campgrounds in Norway have washers and dryers that can be used for an extra fee. I found they cost about $5 USD for the use of each machine. As an alternative, washing clothes in your vehicle works, but just okay. I did find that it is impossible to extract as much water as the spin cycle on a washing machine does. Coupling that with the cooler and sometimes damp weather in Norway, you may end up with musty clothes instead of fresh ones. I did!

Something interesting: Camping with Europeans

My fellow campers were from the Czech Republic to Finland and everywhere in between. The vast majority, however, were from Germany. I met only a handful of Americans during my 34 days in Norway, zero at campgrounds.

What was it like to camp with Europeans? Really peaceful! There was a great amount of respect for personal space. I never heard any loud music or loud noises of any kind. Everyone seemed very friendly, but they did keep to themselves unless approached, and then they were happy to engage. Getting an early start was not really a priority; basking in the sunshine was! But the single most notable aspect that blew me away was that no matter how cold it was, there was a strong preference to eat, relax, and socialize outside their campers.

Case in point, the morning I spent in Nordkapp. Despite the frigid 45° F (4° C), folding tables were out, beanies on, down jackets zipped up, and tables set as many gathered around to enjoy breakfast in the great outdoors.

A look behind the curtain.

Although I joked about my inability to decide on a parking spot in Alta, this marked a turning point in realizing not only that I was operating in a perpetual state of decision fatigue but that it made complete sense and I had to work to avoid getting frustrated with my overworked brain.

As it turns out the mantra of passing by that which I did not love only aided in certain types of decisions I had to make each day. And though this helped tremendously with not feeling regret about the sites that I chose to pass up, it was only a drop in the bucket to the number of decisions I had to make each and every day traveling alone in a foreign country.

In Norway, I learned that we take for granted how much processing our brains are constantly achieving because when we are in a place that we are used to and that is therefore predictable we don’t even notice all the decisions we are making each day. It is not until you transport yourself to a foreign land where things are less predictable that the decision fatigue sets in and it can become paralyzing.

And though it was frustrating at times and baffling at others, I did learn to be patient and try to laugh about the absurdity that it sometimes presented. Once when I was grocery shopping, I picked up a package of ground beef, carried it around, then decided to put it back, only to then pick it up again, only to then put it back. I ended up not buying it, and no doubt thought as I was driving away, I should have bought that.