On Tuesday the weather forecast was for bright, sunny but windy weather, so we went into Stavanger on the bus with a view to maybe walking to Pulpit Rock. In the event, by the time we got there it was overcast and cold as well as windy so we abandoned the idea of an 8km hike combined with a ferry and bus journey to get to the start and opted for a tripper boat down the fjord and look at the rock from below. If we were very impressed we thought we might tackle the walk on Wednesday, if the weather was better.

  Park in Stavanger

  The marina in the harbour – hard to see why anyone would find it a desirable place to stay. Sometimes there are up to 4 cruise ships in port

Before the boat trip we tackled the maritime museum and also spent some time wondering why cruise ship passengers seemed so incapable of dressing appropriately for the conditions. We spotted flip flops, skimpy tops and lots of shorts but the temperature was only about 10C and there was a vicious northerly wind blowing.

Inside the maritime museum. I couldn’t resist snapping the stuffed dog because it really looked real; not sure what role the gnome played but the machine is a very early typewriter – we couldn’t quite work out how the letters were selected on the tablet.

During the cruise we not only got rained on heavily but also experienced the katabatic winds that blow down the sides of the fjords. Pulpit Rock looks much better in the tourist photos from above showing all the people crowded on top, although we couldn’t see anyone there that day.  On the return journey we went inside for hot chocolate and muffins in attempt to restore circulation.

A forewarning of things to come

  Entrance to Lysefjord – the road goes straight into the rock in a tunnel

    Vagabonds cove. Apparently legend has it that a group of ne’er-do-wells outwitted the tax collectors by climbing up and throwing rocks at them – wonder if that would work at home!

    We were told a farmer kept his goats on this very small piece of grass at the bottom of a cliff but I suspect the boat trip companies keep them there to entertain the customers, who were given bits of apple to throw for them. The goats certainly knew what to expect because as soon as they heard our engines they were charging down to the feeding place.

  After we’d gone the birds were in to pick up anything that fell short

     Approaching pulpit rock

    It looks as if the whole chunk is about to break off but we were told it had been checked by geologists and pronounced safe.

     The boats go in close to the waterfall so the trippers can feel the spray – as if we weren’t all wet enough already!

  Pulpit Rock in the clouds on the return journey

When we were back on dry land we visited the canning museum. A tribute to the Norwegian sardine industry and also took in the cathedral on our way back to the bus.

  The machines that made the cans and their lids

    They were actually smoking sardines while we were there and we were offered a taste

     Street views

     The cannon are associated with the tower and were pointed directly at the cruise ship terminal

       Is this the look we should adopt when we get old??

   This pulpit in the cathedral dates from 1658, and was created by Andrew Smith, a Scottish woodcarver and artist who moved to Norway and produced several elaborate works along these lines for the cathedral.

  and this guy was watching over the fishing harbour at Tananger as we walked back from the bus