Stavanger Area Part I

Next morning, we awoke to overcast skies. Our exploration of tiny Kvitsoy island took us through the charming fishing hamlet, past the iconic lighthouse, and into the treeless, windswept hinterland. A well-marked trail led us through rock strewn sheep pastures. Every so often, we climbed over wooden ladders straddling stone walls that bordered the pastures. Birds of many stripes squawked and screeched as we went. Soon, the sun chased the clouds away and another gorgeous afternoon was under way.

After a brief stop at the island yarn shop, we returned to Windleblo and made ready to depart. We exited through a narrow channel to the east and after a brief bit of motoring into a northwest wind we set sail on a beam reach in a fresh 25 knot wind. Our next destination -- Talgje Island. Mark and Marilyn had given us the inside skinny on a small cove cut into the island's southwest corner. After a sporty three hour sail, during which Dawn took on much salt spray as helmsperson, we snaked our way through some islets to find the hidden cove. It was unoccupied. As we were beginning to set anchor, our compatriot vessel, Swallow, hailed us on the VHF radio. Chris and Anne had caught up with us from Egersund. A party barge was in order!

After a slick bit of maneuvering by Chris, we tied the boats together, held fast by two anchors set at a right angle on the cove's sandy bottom. We cooled off with a swim, and then got to the business of gin and tonic, which Martin and Dawn supplied. Chris grilled lamb chops for dinner. The cove was so idyllic -- sandy bottom, pristine shore, turquoise water -- and the company so pleasant we resolved lay over for a day.

Saturday started out much like Friday with overcast skies. Like Friday, the clouds soon burned off and the sun came out. The afternoon high was around 70 degrees Farhenheit. We launched the dinghy and rowed ashore to explore. A sometimes well-worn, sometimes invisible footpath led us through mossy, fern bordered woods and majestic rocky shores as we traversed a nature preserve. An hour later, we left the preserve, picked up our pace, and covered three miles over dirt and macadam roads to the marina, where we found a small grocerty store. We bought and consumed a picnic lunch. Returning to the boats, we washed off the trail dust with a swim and enjoyed another delightful evening in each other's company. Chris showed off his gourmet cooking skills by serving a divine Swedish meatball dish.

On Sunday, the party barge disbanded, and we set sail in a gentle southerly breeze for Nedstrand, a small hamlet a few miles north, which promised water and power replenishment. The two new Hallberg-Rassy's attracted quite a bit of interest as we tied up at Nedstrand quay. Making new conversation is quite easy with these beautiful boats as icebreakers! We had a great visit with Todd, an expat from Carbondale, Illinois, who now lives with his Norwegian wife and two six-year-old twins near here. He told us of the good life in his adopted home. He and his family are getting to know a 33-foot Bavaria he recently bought. We took a brief walk around the village and once again enjoyed each others' company over a dinner of chicken korma skillfully prepared by Jocelyn.

Monday, we plan to head south for Stavanger for a last evening together before we bid a fond farewell to Dawn, who returns to Vienna Tuesday. Martin will leave us to help Chris and Anne sail Swallow to Bergen and then across the North Sea to the Shetland Islands. We will stay in Stavanger until John arrives Wednesday morning. Then, we'll head north, hopefully catching up to Chris, Anne, and Martin before they leave Norway for one more shared anchorage.