Having
managed to reach Ålesund from Bergen, we crashed out before getting up early next morning to address
the engine problems. To our surprise
and delight we had ‘parked’ next to a manned lifeboat station. Fortunately, following the advice in the Norwegian
Cruising Guide, we had joined the Norwegian Lifeboat Service
(Redningsselskapet) before leaving the UK.
We therefore had no qualms about asking their advice. All we wanted was the number of a diesel
engineer on the island. What we got was
their Chief Mechanic, Magnus Skoradal from the Faroes, who came across to
investigate!
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| Redningsselskapet to the rescue |
Between
us we eventually concluded that the best option would be to fit the new fuel
pump when it arrived next day with Al and Lynn, then give it a proper test by
way of the next stage of our cruise from Ålesund to Trondheim.
 |
| Progress to date |
Next
morning we met Al and Lynn at the nearby ferry dock. They had flown to Bergen and taken the Hurtigruten to join us.
These large coastal steamers sail up and down the 2,500 nautical miles of
coastline. They carry freight, mail and
passengers and call into 34 of the major ports en route. Al and Lynn’s trip from Bergen to Ålesund took 12 hours compared to
the 3 days it had taken us by yacht!
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| Hurtigruten arriving in Ålesund with Al and Lynn on board |
After breakfast, Mike and Al set to and replaced the fuel pump which he and Lynn had brought out, before
running the engine for 3 hours to test it. The general feeling was that it was running better, but we recognised that
only a lengthy sea trial would tell us if the problem was resolved. For the rest of Sunday we shopped,
looked around the town and had a sort out of gear. Ålesund was rebuilt in Art Nouveau style in the early twentieth century following a major fire. Its waterfront is lined with
old brightly coloured wharves.
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| Island Drifter on town quay, Ålesund |
Previously
we had been in email contact with Alain Denis from France, a friend of Jean
Francois Brodin whom we met in Ireland in 2011. Alain and his wife Joce, who have
been to Svalbard before, are sailing back there on a friend’s yacht this
year. We expected them in Ålesund on Sunday and sure enough
Alain duly appeared and introduced himself. That evening he came back to show us his
photographs and log and to discuss the Lofoten and Svalbard islands. We found his briefing most helpful.
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| Meeting Alain Denis for the first time |
We
left early on Monday morning with the intention of making a long day’s passage
in order to get a good start to Al and Lynn’s week. Having had four days of
fairly dull damp weather we were most encouraged when by midday it became sunny
and warm. The absence of any strong,
adverse wind combined with the excellent weather enabled an enjoyable passage
along the notorious Hustadvika – an 18-mile stretch of coast outside the skjægård. It would have been a perfect trip if the engine problems not
reoccurred, although to a lesser extent than previously.
That
evening we berthed on the ‘guest’ pontoon in Kristiansund (not to be confused
with Kristiansand in southern Norway). Much of the town had to be rebuilt after
it was badly damaged in WW2. Even so, some older buildings still exist
including the Klippfisk (dried fish!) museum. For some unknown reason Mike and
Al seemed particularly enthusiastic about visiting this, while Helen and Lynn
sorted out a problem with the Mifi at the Netcom shop.
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| Kristiansund's Klippfisk Museum |
After a morning in
Kristiansund, during which time we also managed to purchase some new
tubing, we headed through a rocky approach to Grip, a tiny island which was home to a small fishing community. It is now uninhabited except for summer holiday residents. We went in particular to see the old wooden stave church, one of only 24
remaining in Norway. Berthing was a bit
tricky, since all the tyres on the quay were occupied by nesting
kittiwakes. As it turned, they did not seem unduly concerned by our presence.
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| A precarious perch on Grip's quay |
After an hour looking around (Grip's not that big),
we left along another narrow channel through the rocks and made our way
towards Nordvågen, a pretty little anchorage surrounded by pine trees and meadows. Lynn caught our first codling there.
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| View out of Nordvågen anchorage at sunset |
The four of us spent most of
the following day replacing all the fuel pipes with reinforced clear piping in
a bid to identify the cause of what we now believed was an air leak in the
system. Although time was getting on,
we then chose to make a 2-hour sea trial to another anchorage in order to test the
engine. We reached Fornesvåg on the south coast of Hitra without any
apparent problems. There was very
little swinging room in this anchorage so we put down two anchors to
restrict our movement with the tide changes.
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| Not much swinging room in Fornesvåg anchorage |
Next day it was Lynn’s 60th
birthday, which we celebrated with enthusiasm at different stages throughout
the day.
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| Happy Birthday, Lynn! |
Nevertheless, we needed to
keep moving, so from Fornesvåg we continued north-east inside the islands
of Smøla and Hitra into the Trondheimsleia.
At one stage we had a particularly good sail poled out. Unfortunately, however,
the engine problem occurred yet again just as we were entering a new
anchorage at Vingvågen. A disappointment
but nevertheless an improvement and at this stage we still think it is caused
by air in the fuel. Fortunately we’ll
be going into Trondheim, Norway’s third largest city, where we should be
able to get the right-sized jubilee clips, which hopefully will overcome the
problem. Time will tell!
Vingvågen is home
to a German-owned fishing camp. On the bunk-house walls there are photos of simply enormous halibut –
bigger than the fishermen holding them.
 |
| View from anchorage, Vingvågen |
The evening was devoted to
Lynn’s birthday supper. Initially a generous quantity of pink prosecco was
consumed, before a starter of fenalår – air-dried lamb – was washed down with
Aquavite, followed by reindeer casserole.
 |
| The Pink Ladies! |
The meal (being eaten in the
cockpit since it was so warm) was interrupted by the sight of a golden eagle
swooping down on to a crow’s nest and snatching a chick before tearing it apart
in a nearby tree. The distraught
parents and two other pairs of crows mobbed it in vain (although it did take
quite a few blows to its head and back).
From Vingvågen we continued sailing
north-east along the Trondheimsleia before turning south into the
Trondheimsfjord where we stopped overnight in Raudberg – an old Viking
anchorage now home to the local boat club.
For supper Helen cooked bacalao using the klippfisk (dried salted cod)
we’d bought in Kristiansund. It had to be soaked in three changes of water for
24 hours to get rid of the salt. It met with everyone’s approval.
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| Bacalao, Island Drifter style |
It was only another 12 miles to Trondheim’s guest harbour,
where we arrived on Saturday morning, just in time to walk into town to find a couple
of large chandleries where we were able to purchase proper rubber tubing and
jubilee clips. During the afternoon
Mike replaced the temporary clear fuel pipes, while Al, Lynn and Helen visited
the Niadros cathedral, Scandinavia’s largest medieval building. Trondheim is the country’s third largest
city and used to be the Viking capital. Much of the city was destroyed by fire
in the seventeenth century and was rebuilt with broad avenues to create
firebreaks with grids of smaller streets. Much of these survive with attractive
narrow terraces of colourfully painted wooden houses.
 |
| 18th-century cobbled street, Trondheim |
Before leaving for the
airport for the flight home, Lynn cut Helen’s hair! Last year, a Norwegian haircut set her back £50 – and it was no
better than Lynn’s handiwork.
 |
| Never mind, it'll grow out! |
We now plan to continue
north-east to Bodø, the next major town before the Lofoten Islands, one of our two
objectives on this cruise.
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