Norway land of fjords

Crossing the North Sea was not as bad as we had thought. We encountered heavy fog but managed to avoid the fishing fleet and oil rigs, arriving in Ålesund after a 27 hour passage in the early evening. After a very relaxed check in at the police station the next day we explored the town. Ålesund is built up on a chain of islands and the small marina is right in the center of town. The buildings are quite different from any other Norwegian town, having been rebuilt in Art Nouveau style over 3 years in 1905 after a major fire destroyed the town center. The old lighthouse on the harbor wall had been incorporated into a local hotel as the “honeymoon suite” and we saw that pixies still live here, the evidence being a pixie sized garbage can waiting on pavement. The view from the top of Mt Aksla showed how the town was fitting into available space and from old photographs, how it had spread. The walk along the spine of the main island of Nørvøya was lovely with spring flowers and stunning views of the mountains and fjords to the south.

After a couple of days in Ålesund we leave to explore our first fjord. The most famous, Geirangerfjord, was to the south of Ålesund, but was 52nm of travel to get there, it also was likely to be full of cruise ships and tourists (not like us!). Instead we chose to visit Norangsfjord and the settlement of Øye at its head. This was equally stunning scenery and by virtue of a 13m bar across the fjord, was inaccessible to cruise ships. It was May, and still spring in Norway. The mountains were capped with snow and the waterfalls were full of meltwater. The journey in was only 29nm, but with the wind against us and swirling down the mountain sides, it took all day to motor to our destination.

We were joined at the dock in Øye by Peter and Finn on Supertramp and the next day hiked the mountain Slogen, rising high above Norangsfjord. We first passed the Union Hotel, built in 1891 and visited frequently by Kaiser Wilhelm II in his steam yacht in the early days of toursim, it looked like the decor had not been touched since. The hike was incredibly steep, but we were rewarded with the most amazing views. We were unable to reach the summit as unstable snow packs blocked the trail, probably for the best.