North of the arctic circle: Svartisen and Lofoten (15-19th June 2015)
This will be a bumper posting.
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| approaching Svartisen (black ice) |
Since crossing the arctic circle the
weather changed like magic. We arrived in Halsa (66º 44’.6N 13º32.8E) knowing
that we would need to wait another day in bad weather before the long awaited
high with associated good weather would settle in for at least a week.
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| Svartisen glacier |
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| up to here and no further |
The path was very
well marked with white arrows painted on the rocks, but at one point they
stopped and there was writing on the rock, which said ‘stop here’. We
philosophically pondered that it is not necessarily getting there that counted
but the way to the glacier, a three hour round trek.
We were very aware that the weather that
had become settled for a while might not last more than a week, and we started
getting itchy feet about crossing over the Vesterfjorden to the Lofoten. Even
if settled weather means north-easterly winds, the idea of seeing the Lofoten
in good weather made us decide to cross under engine from Støtt (66º 55’.5N 13º
26’.1E), a small very sheltered harbour, to Reine (67º 56’.2N 13º 05’E) 60nm in
a northerly direction.
The visibility on the 18th of
June was so good that you could already see the snow covered peaks of Moskenesøya from the start.
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| mainland panorama |
We watched the Svartisen glacier and the
majestic mountains on the mainland fade into the distance as the Lofoten and
Ofoten islands grew closer. Most of the day was a smooth ride until at around
17:00 the wind picked up to 14kn which stopped us in our tracks. From 6 kn we
slowed down to 3kn and the waves were quite unpleasant. It was time to bear off and put the sails up. This could have meant beating against the wind the last 15 miles, but fortunately the wind died down almost as quickly as it had come. It was 21:00 when
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| approach to Reine, Moskensøya |
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| anyone for stock fish? |
we arrived at our
stunning destination in Reine. There was a very strong smell of fish
coming from the harbour. Reine is a very big producer of stock fish (bacalao).
In the olden days, the dried fish had to go to Bergen first before it could be
exported because of the Hanseatic trading post which controlled it.
As long as the NE wind prevails it will be
difficult to continue towards the other harbours along the coast, which we
would like to visit in the Lofoten as they all are situated to the ENE.
Where best to be than here! It is Midsummer
today and still quite cold, around 10ºC. With the cold winds blowing from the
mountains it feels more like 5ºC…
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| currents in the maelstrom |
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| Maelstrom without wind |
Reine is a place that thrives with outdoor
activities. Yesterday we came across the Coast Adventure centre, which was
advertising to explore the Lofoten sea. We ventured inside and yesterday they
were preparing a trip in a semi-rigid inflatable rib for 12 passengers (and two
250 hp engines), leaving at 17:00 coming back at 23:00 to go through the
Moskenstraumen, the race which has a lot of tales attached to it and which
inspired Jules Verne’s Maelstrom.
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| preparing for the ascent to the cave |
It was also going to stop in coves, which
used to have thriving fishing villages until they were all abandoned soon after
WW2 because life was so tough out there. Last but not least we were going to
visit a cave with some 4,000 year old paintings. It did not take long to
persuade us to join the adventure.
What we didn’t know is that to get to the
cave we would have to walk through rough terrain and climb rubble fields for
over and hour to get there! Although we were the oldest participants I think
that we managed to keep up just fine. Just once did anyone offer to give me a
hand and I must say that I was slightly taken aback…
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| life style choices |
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| eagle ascending |
It was a memorable adventure! It was an
exhilarating experience to rush through he race with a rib. They provided us
with survival suits and life jackets and even if the wind was so cold we didn’t
feel it at all. Therese, our guide, was very well informed and passionate about
her lifestyle choice.
Today we are spending the day writing,
Stephan is proof-reading drafts that had been sent to him by e-mail. Who knows
when we will be able to leave, but one thing is certain: we have reached our
dream destination! Now we have to consider turning back...
from the point of departure to our current whereabouts