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The Kvanhovden lighthouse on the exposed west coast of Hovden opened in 1895. Much of the old path there has survived, hugging the rugged shore as it winds around the rocks, with the standard Norwegian lighthouse metal pipe guardrails still in place. Today the lighthouse is automated and the original path now is part of…

Last summer, our pilot house and master stateroom HVAC units stopped working. Since we’d just got out of the yard in Stornoway Scotland, it was just about 100% certain that the two failures were correlated, and caused by air in the system. We bled the pump and there was air. But when we tested the…

The coastal town of Floro, roughly midway between Sognefjord and the headland Stad, was founded in 1860. Today Floro is the administrative center for the area and supports diverse industries with branches of several national and international companies, including Westcon, EWOS and CHC. Westcon is a major shipyard company, with facilities along the Norwegian coast,…

The town of Forde lies at the head of 19-nm long Fordefjorden, the next major fjord system north of Buefjorden. Forde is the commercial, industrial, and government center for the region, with good shopping opportunities for us to buy a little more winter gear. We spent four nights exploring the fjord and approaches, including a…

Buefjorden is the next major fjord system north of Sognefjord. The fjord extends about 9 nautical miles from the North Sea into mainland Norway, splitting into three branches, from south to north: Afjorden, Skifjorden, and Vilnesfjorden. We visited all three in our continued detailed exploration of the Norwegian coast. The weather seemed to transition from…

Sognefjord is the longest and deepest fjord in Norway, extending 110 nautical miles from the sea with depths reaching 4,291 feet (1,308 metres), and is second longest in the world. The fjord is a popular tourism destination for its impressive natural beauty. Notable is the branch Naeroyfjord, pictured above, that was named a UNESCO World…

In 1936, Lifjorden was the site of Norway’s first fatal civil aviation accident. Classified as a “controlled flight into terrain”, the crew of the seaplane Havorn didn’t realize they were off course in a thick fog and flew the aircraft directly into the 2,513-ft (776m) cliff Risnesnipa, pictured at left above, killing all seven on…

Hoyanger, at the end of Hoyangsfjorden in Sognefjord, has several good hiking trails. Notable among them is Trappene (The Stairs), where 1,268 steps follow a hydropower penstock up to a height of 1,200 ft (360m) with wonderful views, and a tunnel, en route. With the run only 1,300 ft (400m), the grade is an incredibly…

With the short daylight hours of the Norwegian winter, we were underway in the dark for much of the time, particularly when making trips in longer waterways such as 110-nm Sognefjord, Norway’s longest fjord. This is more difficult than during the day, but can also be more enjoyable with beautiful night views. From Skjolden at…

At the extreme head of 110-nm Sognefjord, the longest and deepest fjord in Norway, stands the dramatic metal sculpture Jonsok in the town of Skjolden. Created by Wisconsin artist Kati Casida, the sculpture symbolizes the bond between Norwegians and their family members who emigrated to America. We continued our detailed exploration of Sognefjord, and the…