Torghatten - the mountain with a hole through it!

Sunday 22^nd May 2011

We made an early start from Kristiansund, fuelling up at a 24 hour self-service pump close to the Guest Marina.  The early part of the day was calm with rain but later it cleared and we had a good sail.

An interesting looking lighthouse.
   

It was one of those days for pushing on, we past the spot James had earmarked to stop in the mid-afternoon, on these occasions we start at about 5 pm to look at our route to decide how far we might go in the next 2 – 3 hours, then we turned to the harbours book to try and find something suitable on our way, on this occasion it came up with the almost enclosed harbour of Kuringvagen at Stokksund, which has a Kro (Inn) overlooking it.

The Kro (Inn)

We tied up at 20.30 some 13.5 hours after leaving Kristiansund, so we sat down to a quick supper, then I took a walk around the place, there was a fisherman’s hut with fish strung up to air dry all around it, then up on the hill I could see down to a supermarket and ferry terminal.  The club house showers and loos were open but although I tried 2 doors to the club house I failed to try the third which lets one in to collect an envelope to put the berthing fee of 125 kr into an honesty box, however, the other English boat already berthed there told me where to go.  We seem to be seeing far more English boats than we ever did on our Baltic trips of 2008 & 2009.  We have seen one Northern Irish boat twice so far but the others have all been different and I think at nearly half of the places we have visited we have come across another English boat. 

Yesterday, I heard that my father had had a minor heart attack on 17^th, but after a day in hospital had discharged himself before they could do an angiogram, so I was pleased to speak to my sister who had been to visit at the weekend as to hear how she had found him and my mother, who has high blood pressure.  James had suggested that I fly back from Bodo next week for a few days but for the present, I am being told that is not necessary.

Distance motored / sailed: 83 nm

Monday 23^rd May 2011

Twelve hours after tying up we were on the move again, it was another mixed day of motoring and sailing, at times it was sunny enough to sit out in the cockpit with jackets on, not something we have done much of yet!  As the day wore on we knew we would not make Torghatten - the Island with a hole in it, so stopped short of it by 12 miles and went into the south harbour of Vennesund, whose main claim to fame is as a busy ferry route on highway 17, we watched a fair being transported in two goes.  There was one floating pontoon with finger berths for small fishing boats and a hammerhead with no mooring rings or cleats which we had to use, just before the roadway.  Luckily we were blowing on so James had time to lie flat on the pontoon and pass our warps around the joints to the floats and our springs around each end of the hammerhead.

After supper I had a walk around to the ferry docking area and campsite, I got some good photos of the reflections in the water.  On the other side of the road was the north harbour also with a short pontoon for small boats.

10 pm - Reflections of Vennesund  

Distance motored / sailed: 98 nm

Tuesday 24^th May 2011

We awoke to the sound of wind and we were now being blown hard on to the pontoon, having checked the weather forecast on the internet we decided to leave and with lots of fenders at the bow James managed to reverse out of the berth.  Once back to sea we were pleasantly surprised to find the sea not as rolly as the day before and we had a good sail to Torghatten, where we did the tourist bit of taking the boat to the spot at sea where you can view the hole through the mountain. 

“According to Norse legend there was once a giant troll called Hestmannen (‘the horse man’) who became besotted with a beautiful ogress, Lekamoya, when he glimpsed her bathing in the sea with her 6 sisters.  He decide to steal her away at midnight (night is the time when trolls come out).  As he galloped southwards, the seven sisters saw him and fled as far as Alstahaug, where they flung themselves exhausted to the ground.  When Lekamoya fled on, Hestermannen raised his bow to shoot her: if he could not have her, then no-one else should.  The King of the mountains, Lekamoya’s guardian, deflected the arrow with his hat.  Dawn broke, the rising sun turning the trolls into the mountains of Hestmannen near Melfjord and the seven sisters into the Syv Sostre range on the island of Alsten (seven small mountains).  The king’s hat became Torghatten – the mountain with the giant hole!”

Torghatten, mountain with a hole

After viewing the hole from the sea we decided to tied up at Moyhamma, another small yacht club with a single pontoon, where we were able leave the boat and walk to the Mountain and then follow the route 160 meters up to the hole which is also 160 meters long, 35 meters tall by 15 – 20 meters wide.  It was certainly spectacular, the size of a small cathedral.  James did not feel able to cope with the walk down wooden steps to the bottom and then up a bit again for the view out to sea over islands from which we had first viewed the hole but I did it and felt it was worth the effort.  We both felt a great sense of achievement.  The GPS showed that we had walked a little over 5 miles but it did not take into account the steps need to get up the Mountain to the hole which is a 100 meters from the top of the mountain.  

Proof we made it to the top!

View from other end of the hole!

View looking down the way we walked up the mountain, I am just visible amongst the rocks.

On this walk as with others the woods were full of Wood Anemones and the marshy areas with Kingcups and up the mountain were a lot of violets.  In one spot I saw a number of purple orchids but the overriding flower here is the dandelion, every where we go there are fields of it, verges and gardens are full of it, so I have decided it should be the National Flower of Norway!

Moyhamma

By the time we got back from our walk the forecast gale was approaching, so as Moyhamma was very sheltered and we were blowing off we decided to stay put.  Electricity and water are both included in the 100 kr fee for the night, once again put into an honesty box – not another soul was seen.

Distance motored / sailed: 18 nm

Wednesday 25^th May 2011

Once again we awoke to the noise of a howling wind and rain pattering down, so it was a slow morning, but in the end the wind seemed to be calming down, so we opted to leave and try and make some inroads into the 100 miles to the Arctic Circle and Svartisen Glacier that James wants to make our first target.  However, after just 12 nm of good sailing the wind increased to force 6 with gusts of 7 in rather exposed sailing fairways, so James decided to turn back to Bronnoysund, which is Norway’s geographical midpoint on the coast.  We took the opportunity of having a Coop Mega opposite the guest harbour to replenish fresh food supplies.  It has rained on and off for most of the afternoon and evening.  The Swedes we met in Kristiansund turned up this evening and the harbour master came to check if we needed keys to the shower block.  The berthing charge is 100 kr plus 50 kr for electricity, into an honesty box.  We found the fair that we saw on the move from the ferry at Vennesund is setting up here, opening tomorrow for the weekend!  Hopefully, the wind will have dropped tomorrow so that we can make an early start heading for the Arctic Circle.

Distance motored / sailed: 14 nm