Reine, north of the Arctic Circle in the Lofoten islands, was recently voted the most scenic village in Norway. When we first saw a photograph of the town years ago, the idea that we’d visit in our own boat seemed at best fanciful. So it was a real thrill to be anchored beneath Reine’s signature…
Archive | M/V Dirona RSS feed for this section
Værøy
The natural beauty of Norway’s remote Lofoten islands attract over a million visitors a year. Many come to make the islands’ often-challenging hikes for the spectacular views. We made our first Lofoten hike at Værøy, about 15 miles north of Røst. From an anchorage off the once-abandoned fishing village of Måstad, we climbed 1,480 ft…
Røst
Dirona crossed the Arctic Circle just north of Træna on an open-ocean run to the famed Lofoten group of islands. Conditions were calm enough to anchor and launch the tender for a picnic lunch at the lighthouse on Skomvær, the southernmost island in the chain. As we continued north to anchor for the night in…
Træna
The dramatic Træna archipelago lies just four miles south of the Arctic Circle. Within the group, Sanna is perhaps the most spectacular, with several peaks jutting near-vertically up to 790-1000ft (240m-300m). A pitch-dark 1650ft (500m) underground tunnel leads through the inside of one to a NATO radar station perched atop, with fabulous views to the…
Torghatten
Torghatten is a famous landmark in Norway due the hole through right through the mountain. A hiking trail leads up and through the hole and back down the other side, and you also can hike over the top to the summit of Torghatten. We did both. Below are trip highlights from May 15th through 17th,…
Stad
Stad, a headland on Norway’s southwest coast, is one of 24 areas listed in the Norwegian Coastal Pilot as likely to have rough seas in certain wind and tide conditions. Stad is considered the worst and is so notorious for dangerous conditions that an escort service is provided for small boats and funds have been…
Nesahaugen
Before arriving in Fjærland, we had planned to hike up to the Flatbrehytta Mountain Cabin, 3,280 ft (1000 m) up at the head of Fjærlandsfjord. But the Fjærland information center said the trail wasn’t passable yet due to snow and suggested Nesahaugen instead for great views. Below are trip highlights from May 9th, 2018 in…
Tender NMEA2000 System
Frequent readers of this blog know we like NMEA2000 and have become very dependent upon Maretron N2KView at the core of our monitoring and control system on Dirona. The screens above are our underway and at rest monitoring displays for Dirona. They are repeated in the pilot house, salon, and master stateroom. Knowing how much…
Jostedalsbreen
Jostedalsbreen, at 188 sq miles (486 sq km), is the largest icecap in mainland Europe. The icecap extends close to Fjærland at the head of Fjærlandsfjord, a northerly arm of Sognefjord, Norway’s longest fjord. From the guest dock at Fjærland we made an easy bike trip to Jostedalsbreen at Supphellebreen Glacier. On the way back…
Flåm
Flåm is a small village at the head of Aurlandsfjrod, a branch off Sognefjord, the longest fjord in Norway. The village is the terminus of the Flåm Railway, considered one of the world’s most scenic railway trips. It’s also the main embarkation point for boat tours of UNESCO World Heritage site Nærøyfjord, and is home…
