Winter harbor in UK or Norway

[TJ D]

Thanks, Boatman.

I see on their site that there is no 'residential' mooring. I guess we'll have to define that, but we'll shoot them an email.

There are certainly plenty of places to look at.

TJ

[monstads]

If you were to do Norway, I'd highly recommend Bergen as a destination. Don't know that much about the sailing community there (don't live there at the moment), but the sailing forum links posted earlier should get you in touch with someone who could help answer questions.

What I would say though, is that the winter storms can be pretty bad. There's a hurricane force storm going on right now, for instance (~110mph winds, 20 meter waves..)

Hurricane warnings posted along coast

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by monstads

. . . What I would say though, is that the winter storms can be pretty bad. There's a hurricane force storm going on right now, for instance (~110mph winds, 20 meter waves..) . . .

Par for the course! That's the North Sea! Nordsee ist Mordsee! A fearsome piece of water.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by TJ D

Thanks, Boatman.

I see on their site that there is no 'residential' mooring. I guess we'll have to define that, but we'll shoot them an email.

There are certainly plenty of places to look at.

TJ

That usually means year round.. as transients they'll likely do a 3-6mth deal with you.

[Zai]

Norway is one fantasic coast, with very many very well protected small boat harbors.
I live in Kristiansund, which is just a bit south of Trondheim and I see and talk with many transients who find themselves on this coast.
The small boat harbor here has very good facilities, washing machine/dryer showers and a very short walk to many restaraunts and a grocery store right across the road.

Both the winter and the summer are special in their own way. Summer would definetly be a better time for cruising around.

[Kaptah]

Originally Posted by Zai

Both the winter and the summer are special in their own way. Summer would definetly be a better time for cruising around.

Maybe a stupid question but is there any ice during the winter? There marinas are probably on more sheltered spots on the fjords so are they ice free for all winter?

I live in Helsinki and here we need to get the boats on hard every winter because of ice.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Kaptah

Maybe a stupid question but is there any ice during the winter? There marinas are probably on more sheltered spots on the fjords so are they ice free for all winter?

I live in Helsinki and here we need to get the boats on hard every winter because of ice.

The North Sea, and indeed the Norwegian Sea, don't freeze in the winter, because of the warm North Atlantic Current.

Unlike the Eastern Baltic Sea where you are, which freezes solid most years.

[savoir]

The stuff you learn on the internet. I had always assumed that all of Norway froze over through winter.

By the way Dockhead, thank you for that reference to the Finnish canals. I had no idea that such a thing even existed. One more for the bucket list.

[Kaptah]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

The North Sea, and indeed the Norwegian Sea, don't freeze in the winter, because of the warm North Atlantic Current.

I knew that the ocean / open water won't freeze, but the question is really about the sheltered bay, fjords and marinas. I am planning a trip way up north to Lofoten and possibly beyond sometime in the future. I am tempted to leave to boat to there for one winter to give me to summers to explore the region. If I can leave the boat to water it would simplify the logistics quite a lot.

My boat is fiber glass so I would not like to have it on the frozen marina even though some people seem to do that e.g. in Denmark or Germany.

[Zai]

In some of the longer fjords there is ice, but for example Svolvær, Henningsvær and most of the places to leave a boat in the Lofoten or Vesterållen are ice free.
However in 2000 I was doing some diving work in the Vesterållen and in Sortland I had to move the boat daily for a short while in order to keep a channel open to the slip. There was fresh water running off into the marina, which froze on top of the sea. It was also one of the coldest winters for the prior 70 years too.
There are plenty of places to leave a boat and the locals will be helpfull regarding which is best.
Unbelievably beautifull in the early spring when the sun is beginning to show up again.
Here a little farther south on the west coast we often don't even have snow in the winter. This year we had the first snow middle of January and it was gone last week. Today it is snowing a bit again, the temperature is right at freezing. This week it is forcast for rain and just above freezing.
I am out diving and fishing all winter for example, just have to keep an eye on the weather. :-)

Hope this is helpfull


P.S. Tromsø has quite a good sized sailing fleet and is know as the Paris of the north.

[ausnp84]

Originally Posted by Kaptah

My boat is fiber glass so I would not like to have it on the frozen marina even though some people seem to do that e.g. in Denmark or Germany.

I knew a family who overwintered in Toronto most years. They used agitators in the water just beside the boat to keep things moving around, and thus stop freezing.

Maybe a thought?

n

[Arne Henriksen]

Aside from Zai's examples, you really shouldn't worry about ice - up the coast that's no problem in a normal year.

As for sailing possibilities, here's a couple of pictures and a small video from todays trip, just outside Trondheim. Around 0C, sun, nice weather. :-)
Vintertur | Tiarora

You might also check out Blog - Barba - they are proving that you really don't need to lock down your sailboat in the winter, even in Norway.

[Juanona]

Late to the thread, but my wife and I have wintered at Ipswich Haven Marina the past two winters. It's a convenient pace to hop off for Norway (we cruised to the Lofotens Islands last summer - spectacular!) and the Baltic which we'll cruise this summer. Fairly reasonable, around $3,000 for our 12 meter boat for 6 months. Nice facilities, very secure in a locked harbor, an hour train to London or convenient 3-hour bus direct to Heathrow. Nice town with enough to keep you interested for a season or two.

We would love to winter in Norway or the Netherlands next year but are worried about Schengen, so will likely end up back in the UK. May look at the Solent as has been suggested on this thread. If anyone knows of cruisers getting extended stay permits in Norway or Netherlands please let us know! We do a fair bit of flying in and out and I think airport officials might check our time in Schengen more carefully than if we were simply living aboard.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Juanona

Late to the thread, but my wife and I have wintered at Ipswich Haven Marina the past two winters. It's a convenient pace to hop off for Norway (we cruised to the Lofotens Islands last summer - spectacular!) and the Baltic which we'll cruise this summer. Fairly reasonable, around $3,000 for our 12 meter boat for 6 months. Nice facilities, very secure in a locked harbor, an hour train to London or convenient 3-hour bus direct to Heathrow. Nice town with enough to keep you interested for a season or two.

We would love to winter in Norway or the Netherlands next year but are worried about Schengen, so will likely end up back in the UK. May look at the Solent as has been suggested on this thread. If anyone knows of cruisers getting extended stay permits in Norway or Netherlands please let us know! We do a fair bit of flying in and out and I think airport officials might check our time in Schengen more carefully than if we were simply living aboard.

I fly almost every week around Europe and between the Schengen Zone and the UK, carrying a U.S. passport. I haven't been checked once for Schengen time at passport control. However, since recently the airline companies are checking for Schengen time when you check in or board. They haven't actually gone through my passport, but they ask me. I guess the immigration authorities have gotten them up to that.