After the battle of Narvik in 1940 the Ofot Fjord was littered with ship wrecks. A number of ships ran aground when they ran out of ammo and fuel, and for many years they were more or less above water. I remember back in the sixties, we used row out and have look at them. Some of them were miles away, but during the fair summer nights with midnight sun we often stayed outdoor for days. It was a lot of rowing, (and we always had the feeling that we were heading against the wind) it made our arms and backs strong. The only ship from the Narvik battle visible today is the Z2 "Georg Thiele", which was run ashore in the Rombakken, the inner part of Ofoten Fjord. On a business trip last week I took a detour and paid it a visit, it was 35 years since the last time I was there. That was in the spring of 1973, on a military exercise we marched by (or may be CLIMBED would be the right word!). The terrain is difficult with steep slopes down to the fjord, deep gorges and boulders you have to climb over/under. I can't recall how she was back in 1973, but the wave action and the ice breaks her down slowly. I found a picture taken ( not by me) in 1992, and you can clearly see the different position on the bow today. RAM
