1: IPSWICH TO NORWAY (8 – 25 May 2013)

We are back in Norway on our annual ‘summer’ sailing cruise.  This time we plan to push north up the Norwegian coast into the Arctic Circle to the Lofoten Islands and hopefully, ice permitting, to Spitsbergen in Svalbard, 400 miles north of mainland Norway. We expect to be back in the UK by mid-August.

Our proposed route is shown in the chartlet below. We intend to ‘cruise’ north up the Norwegian coast inside the skjægård (the numerous islands off the coast sheltering the mainland).  On our return we plan to sail off the respective coasts of Norway and the UK directly to Ipswich.

Proposed route

We were three weeks late leaving the UK, since initially we had engine repairs that needed properly testing and then Helen trapped a nerve in her neck and had to receive some pretty intensive chiro and physio treatment. Even now, she is not fully recovered.  Eventually we left Ipswich on 8 May.  Prior to doing so, Helen had shown Jorja, our most faithful Blog follower, where we were going.

Our most faithful follower, Jorja, pointing out Bergen

During the winter we had worked periodically on our boat while housesitting for Mike’s brother and sister-in-law who were travelling in Africa. Apart from that done on the engine, most work this year has been a series of minor repairs and a large amount of servicing. 

Re-launch April 2013

As it happened, the weather during the delay was not good, mainly because of northerly winds that would have been on the nose and severely restricted progress! On the day we left the winds kindly changed to the south (as forecast) and we therefore took the opportunity to sail the 560 miles up to Shetland in one passage. It took four and a half days. It was quite windy at times, but it was well worth doing so to make up some of our ‘lost’ time.  However, as we approached Lerwick, we were able to pole out in a pleasant following breeze and bright sun.

Approaching Lerwick, sails poled out

 

On the way we’d had to pull in to Eyemouth for a couple of hours in order to remove a radar reflector which had come loose on the mizzen and was beating the life out of it. Going up the mast at sea in a Force 7 would have been decidedly dodgy.

Helen removing the radar reflector

In Shetland we were delayed for a couple of days by a severe gale that blasted its way up the Norwegian Channel.  We used the time to repair the genoa, which was partially damaged on passage, and to have a major sort-out after what was in effect a sea trial from Ipswich.

We left Lerwick as the tail-end of the gale passed in order to catch a 36-hour weather window before the next gale was due. Unfortunately, we were caught out by the second gale, which arrived earlier than expected and tore our mainsail. 

Main sail torn in gale

Since the sail was 14 years old and well worn, we decided to order a replacement from Crusader, the original maker, who held all the measurements on file. On the passage to Norway we also began to have problems with the engine which kept cutting out, so that in the end we had to make our way into Bergen with a rather odd combination of sails and the engine when we could get it working.

Heading into the skjægård near Bergen

We arrived in Bergen on Friday 17^th May – Norway’s National Day.  Coinciding this year with Whitsun, it made for a 4-day public holiday.  For a city that expects 260 days of rain a year, the weather all weekend was an atypical heat wave! As a consequence, the harbour and adjoining hostelries were packed out and the atmosphere was vibrant. When we arrived, there were so many boats that we had to raft seven boats out from the quay. Two days later we found ourselves on our own on the wall.

Island Drifter on the Zachariasbrygge, Bergen

We spent two days of the glorious weather emptying the fuel tanks, cleaning them, and then filtering the diesel back, in the hope that this would solve the engine problem.  For a while we were assisted by an enthusiastic Norwegian sailor, who was visiting Bergen for the weekend.

Putting back one of the fuel tanks after cleaning

On the Saturday evening we were joined for supper by Sverre and Gunhild Faugstad whom we first met in Lerwick in 2011 and then again in Bergen at the end of our Scandinavian cruise last year, when Sverre showed us the restoration work his team is carrying out on the Mariakirke.  One of the two towers has now been renovated but even so the church still won’t be open to the public until 2015.  

 

The Mariakirke, Bergen: one tower unveiled

To our complete surprise, Rudi Fortson, a barrister and the legal adviser to the Countess Owners' Association, appeared on the quay one day.  He was as surprised to see our Countess as we were to see him!  Rudi was cruising the fjords on P&O’s Ventura, on which his son is the Third Officer.

Rudi Fortson on surprise visit - a small world indeed!

Crusader Sails really pulled the stops out.  Having been phoned on Friday afternoon, they changed Monday’s work schedule in order to make our new sail, dispatched it that evening and it arrived with us by noon the next day.  It fitted perfectly.

Since we are due to meet up with Alan and Lynn at the end of the week in Ålesund, we left Bergen as soon as we’d bent on the sail, and pressed north across the fjords, which run east to west, and through the sundets (channels), which run generally from south to north.  The views throughout were spectacular: soaring mountains on either side capped with snow; narrow channels with vertical rock faces, and clusters of holiday homes which dwindled the further north we sailed.

Alversund - a narrow sundet

Unfortunately, our engine problems kept reoccurring throughout the passage to Ålesund.  This suggested that the fuel and the tanks were not the cause. We discussed the situation with Lindsey, our diesel engineer in Ipswich, with Steve Grover, who built the boat, and with the Lifeboat engineer in Ålesund. The general consensus of opinion was that the problem was either air being sucked into the fuel system, the fuel pump – or both.  Since we were able to manage the situation in transit by bleeding the system at intervals, we chose to keep going to Ålesund in order to meet up with Al and Lynn on time.

On our first night after leaving Bergen we couldn’t make our intended objective because of the very strong head winds, so pulled on to an old quay festooned with tractor tyres, part of an abandoned derelict fish farm and outbuildings.  It had the saving grace of being well sheltered – and free!

Moored on derelict fish farm quay, Krakhellesund

By the second night we had made good progress and reached Måløy – the traditional departure point for sailors wishing to round the notorious Statt headland.  We were incredibly lucky because after a week of northerly gales a favourable weather window appeared next morning and by leaving very early we made the 30-mile passage round Statt in negligible winds. Even so, the seas were surprisingly large and turbulent. We now understand why Statt is respected by Norwegian sailors, whose RNLI equivalent escorts convoys of small boats around the point.

On the final stage of the passage to Ålesund the wind dropped down to a F2 and we ended up sailing most of the way on the lightweight genoa since by this stage the engine was stalling at more frequent intervals.

Lightweight genoa comes into its own

We were therefore somewhat relieved to make it into the small picturesque harbour of Ålesund.  The town was rebuilt in Art Nouveau style after a major fire in 1904. We found a snug little berth rafted on to another yacht and now await the arrival of Al and Lynn, who are bringing with them a new fuel pump – and equally importantly two litres of Jameson’s!