Viking, North Utsire, South Utsire – Northwesterly 2 to 4, backing southerly 4 to 6. Slight or moderate. Showers. Good. This is the shipping forecast issued by the Met Office for today. Such familiar, poetic and generally sonorous words, yet
With southerlies winds forecast and us wanting to go north, there was little debate about heading off. To have the wind aft of the beam for once was such a novelty, we grabbed it and headed off first thing in
After an entertaining evening on the jetty at Flørli, we headed off the next morning to check out Stavanger. The wind, not surprisingly had gone round one hundred and eighty degrees, so we had to motor back down the Lysefjord
The weather followed its usual pattern when we were in Tananger, which basically meant staying for a day while another band of strong winds blew through. With 30 knots over the deck in the harbour, this proved a good decision.
After a day waiting for strong winds in Egersund, we carried on north again up to Tananger. The wind was forecast to fill in around 11am, but, as the saying goes – “the economy depends about as much on economists
We had a rest day in Kirkehamn, partly because we figured this would be nice (it is a beautiful spot) but just as much because the weather imposed it on us. Strong northwesterlies, when you want to go northwest are
Today we rounded Lindesnes. This, as the southernmost point of Norway, has a fearsome reputation. It is very exposed to the wind and with two major currents meeting there it could be said to be a very confused place –
The next major passage is to round Lindesnes. This has something of a reputation in moderate to strong winds. It is the most southerly point of Norway and with rapid shoaling around it and the meeting of different currents, plus
After another day in Kristiansand, going to an organ recital in the cathedral and then spending far too much time and money in a chandlery, we moved on again today. We left Kristiansand fairly early hoping for an easier ride
Just outside Lillesand is the Blindleia. This translates literally as Blind Alley and does give a clue to the nature of the passage! It is well-marked, but does require constant checking of the chart. Right at the Lillesand end though