Sailing in the Land of the Midnight Sun

Hellllooo, Norway! Or as they say here, Hejjjjj! Despite noticing that our mast looked like it was leaning to the aft somewhat, the rigging, engine, bow thrusters, and sails worked in tip-top shape.

When a sailboat goes into storage, the mast and rigging are removed, the sails are folded and shelved, the batteries unplugged — everything goes into winter hibernation. Then, the mast, rigging, sails, lines — all have to be mounted again for the vessel to launch.

Christopher, nicknamed “Krille” (Norwegian for shrimp), head of the Strömstad Marina workshop that dismantles the boats for storage and rebuilds them in the spring, said the team faced a barrage of work over the winter. A lot of Swedes work in Norway because the wages are higher, and a lot of Norwegians bring their boats south to Sweden because the prices are lower. In Strömstad, the marinas are filled with Norwegian flagged boats.

In Skjærhalden, the sunny welcome gave way to a nasty storm that blew through. Star Mist bobbed and bounced, straining all our lines in the marina, but she got a good rainshower wash in the downpours. And a local bakery delivered cinnamon pastries through the gale!

When the skies cleared, we decided to sail across the Oslo fjord to the western archipelagos of Norway. The American weather model warned of heavy 25 mph winds, but the European models indicated moderate winds of 12-15 mph, so we decided to push off the dock for the 21-mile, four-to-five-hour crossing.

While European wind forecast was correct and the winds were mostly friendly, six foot waves tossed Star Mist around, as well as upsetting our tummies. My sweet Gero’s stomach rebelled. Seasick. Once that ocean nausea sets in, it’s very difficult to shake off until you’re on land. Fortunately my stomach stayed (mostly) stable, so I helmed us over the waves.

Up, down, slice, spray! Surfing the waves is fun, something like mogul skiing, only you can’t stop to take a break.

The waves keep coming.

We arrived on the island of Tjøme at the Havna Hotel and Marina, and soothed our stomachs with a cold Carlsberg on the hotel’s sunny terrace. Nothing tastes better than a cold beer after a rough sail. Time to relax and recharge for the next leg!