This port is located deep into the fjords and thus we had to travel for about 2 hours or 30 miles under Pilotage to get there. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, the pilot stations are dotted in central places along the coast to serve whole areas instead of just one town or fjord. The problem with Tromso is that the straightest approach is via a pilot station at the town of Hekkiningen. That route leads to a southern approach of the island on which Tromso is located and then the ship has to travel under a bridge come around the North part of Tromso island and then approach the port. That bridge is just high enough to clear with the mast but not by much if it is high water. Also the other approach is much more scenic for the guests thus we came from the other side. As most cruise ships are doing that, the pilots have established a “summer pilot station” for the cruise ships at Haja Island so it is much easier to commence that Northerly approach. Continue reading

As was the case with the distance between Oslo and Molde, being too long for a one night transit, we now had a similar situation with the distance between Molden and Tromso. Thus we spent a day at sea again. It is getting monotonous but the weather was again more inclement than predicted but luckily the wind was with us and thus we did not feel the elements as much as the day before. Everybody was interested when we would pass the Arctic Circle and that important occasion took place at 12.20 in the afternoon. On the globe the Arctic Circle is shown as a dotted line and some of my more ignorant (or more gullible) crew had been convinced by wiser colleagues that the captain had to navigate very carefully to make sure that he did not hit one of the dots. I did not do so, this to great relief but some disappointment was vented about the fact that they could not even see the dotted line. Well next time better; or maybe they will have by then found out that somebody pulled their leg. Continue reading

Due to the enormous length of the Norwegian coast and the many fjords and sounds that lead to the interior, the Norwegian pilots cannot man pilot stations at the entrance of each of these inlets. Hence there are dedicated pilot stations that cover certain areas of the coast and the ships have to proceed there to pick up a pilot. That means that a considerable detour might have to be made to board and disembark the pilot. For Molde this is very much the case. The pilot boarded at Breisundet pilot station and from there it was about 45 miles to the dock of Molde. This pilot station serves a large area which includes Alesund, where we will dock later in the cruise. As our arrival time at the dock was 0700, it meant that we had to have the pilot onboard at 0400 in the morning. That meant for me being on the bridge at around 03.15. Needless to say, that I was in bed early last night. As soon as the Renewal of the Vows were done, I closed the office door and the curtains. The latter a necessity as we are almost in the land of the midnight sun and it really does not get dark any more, just a few hours of dusk. Continue reading

Today it was a sea day as the distance between Oslo and Molde is too long to cover in one night. The plan was to sail with an average speed of 16 knots to our next destination. However the weather forecast was partly wrong again. The sun did shine but the northerly wind was not 15 knots as predicted but around 35 to 40 knots and that is near gale force. With the Prinsendam going against it with 16 knots ground speed meant that the relative wind caused it to feel as if we were in real stormy weather.. Guests who did brace the elements by walking around the deck, had to battle to the bow on the starboard side in slow motion and were then propelled with great speed towards the stern on the portside. Luckily the Prinsendam is protected at the bow by a sort of breakwater so the guests can safely walk there, even if with some difficulty. With all that wind blowing against us, I had to maintain 18.5 knots on the engines to barely maintain our needed speed of 16 knots. I checked the North Atlantic wind charts three times and this strong wind never showed up in the charts. I think from now on, I will simply look outside. What you see is what you get. Continue reading

The weather remained overcast and rainy until late in the afternoon but the weather forecast from Iceland (that is where most of the Norwegian weather is coming from) indicates sunshine for the next few days, so things are looking up. The temperature will remain low, due to a Northerly flow but that is something that I personally do not mind that much as it keeps the white hazy stuff away. Thus the guests had to endure one more day of “English Weather” as the pilot called it but as I observed lots of guests going on tour, it looked as if nobody was too much bothered by it. As mentioned yesterday the local nature looks better anyway when it is overcast as there is no glare to spoil your photos. Continue reading

With high hopes in my heart and a strong belief in the weather forecast I approached Skagen early in the morning. The ship was already moving around a little bit, while still in the shelter of the Kattegat, so I knew it was going to be a breezy day. However it was much breezier than forecasted. There was a sever gale blowing with storm force gusts. The sun was shining so the weather forecast was at least partly right. The problem was that the wind was not from the North West but from the South South West and that meant that swells could build up and they did. They were freely running along the breakwater and over the anchorage. This was going to be an issue. Skagen port control called and said that things did not look good and when I brought the ship closer, I saw the swells breaking on the breakwater. This was not going to work. Continue reading

That weather remained indeed miserable and it looked more like autumn than high summer. The locals are complaining about the fact that their summer has not started yet while normally May and June are already good months for Denmark. Luckily there are a lot of things to do in Copenhagen which are not weather related and I doubt if most of the guests came here for a day at the beach. I just hope that the weather for the coming days will be better. Tomorrow should be a sunny but breezy day, as the frontal system with all this rain is moving out of the way in the course of the evening. Continue reading

As the Baltic is a very busy sea, due to ships crossing North – South and the extensive traffic going East –West; shipping lanes have been established to avoid too much chaos. Chaos that can be created if all these ships change course at different times and then run into collision situations, just due to the sheer volume of traffic. Hence the traffic lanes, which nicely separate East from West bound Traffic and also ensures that the North- South traffic flow crosses at right angles at the right locations. Thus the Prinsendam joined the endless stream of ships in the East bound lane and shortly after midnight we changed course to the North heading for the entrance of Drogden channel. Continue reading

Travemunde is tucked away at the southwest corner of the Baltic. It is mainly a ferry port nowadays with regular services to Trelleborg and Malmo. Ferries with very German names such as Robin Hood, Nils Holgerson and Peter Pan are sailing in and out of the port on a regular schedule. For the rest it is a well known seaside resort with at the most northern end an area for the well heeled and monied people. Travemunde is also a gateway to the town of Lubeck. As this city was founded in 1143 it is the oldest Baltic port and as a result has a lot of culture and historic things to offer. Thus the reason for our call. In the same way that Warnemunde gives access to Berlin, Travemunde gives access to Lubeck and Hamburg. Thus far the Prinsendam has been the only HAL cruise ship calling here, once a year, but the company is keeping a close eye on the feedback from the guests to see if they are enjoying the call and if so, then more calls will be scheduled for future cruises. Once again the Prinsendam is indeed the elegant explorer by testing new destinations. Continue reading

To get to the Kieler Kanal (Officially the Nord Ost See Kanal) the ship sailed North from the Ijmuiden locks and followed the Dutch coast. Around midnight we turned to the North East and then passed all the Dutch islands at its extreme North. These islands are called the “wadden eilanden” and are encircled with shallow water area’s and extensive sand banks so we stayed away from them. If those banks were not there, then the islands would make nice places to visit for the cruise ships as they are quite quaint and very “Northern Dutch”. From there we entered the wide estuary of the river Elbe and with about 2 knots of flood current in the back we sailed towards the pilot station. Continue reading