A few minutes ago I remembered the trip to the North Cape I had last year. When reviewing the images I had of that trip in my Flickr gallery, I stopped at a series of photos where there were fish drying outdoors.
Leaving Honningsvåg, we hit the coast and one of the revolts of the route appeared one of the many triangular wooden structures that would set outside. Fish were hung there to dry in the air, straight out of the sea, and just gutted. They are cut in two and hung separately: the head in "clusters" and the body and tail individually.
The fish remain three months drying in the sun and then the process is finished indoors. In those first months, the fish (mainly cod but also other species), loses 80% of water, nutrients and flavors are concentrated giving pieces of the highest quality.
Once off the bus, we saw these extended "stairs" on a small hill near the water. In that corner some fishing boats, small pier, a reservoir for the final drying, a minimum clustered office. Quite a production unit for one of the most famous products of Norway stockfish or dried fish. We walked between the structures, we went down to see the fish well. No expected strong smell, we were just accompanied by the gentle breeze and the sound of birds in the sky.
The pieces laid for drying are aimed at two distinct markets: the European and American.
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