Thursday 11 August

Today was probably one of our best days on the cruise so far. We had superb weather, a great walk to a glacial lake & a pleasant walk in the town of Rosendal to the Manor House set in beautiful rose gardens.

We started early, leaving the ship on Zodiacs soon after 8am, then boarding buses to take us along the side of the fjord to a small village (Sunndal) where we left the bus & did a 7 km walk to Bondhus Lake which is a glacial lake with a glacier above it. Being such a warm, sunny day this was a most pleasant walk & we arrived to stunning views of still lake waters reflecting the rocks, mountains & trees above it. Despite the 6 degree temperature of the water, our friendly aquatic doctor had to go for a swim (2 in fact) along with a couple of crazy expedition crew!  At the end of the walk we enjoyed morning tea at a farm house in the village.

After lunch sitting in the glorious sun on the deck, we left again for another walk - in fact we had a choice between visiting a stone park & looking at lots of rocks with our resident geologist, or touring the Rosendal Manor House & gardens. We 6 managed to do both - we spent a bit of time with the Rock Doctor (he has a pHD) then rushed up the hill to tour the Manor house. It was a perfect day for being outside so much.

Now we are leaving Norway & already the boat is rocking a lot as we begin to cross the North Sea & head for the Shetland Islands - part of Scotland. We were told tonight there have been some good sightings of Orcas along the Shetland coast so let's hope we see some tomorrow, Tilly!!