Sailing to Lofoten in the Arctic Winter - Sailing Free Spirit

Join us in this episode sailing in the arctic winter making our way from Tromso to the Lofoten islands experiencing the harsh conditions and beauty of this awesome place. I'm Jasmine and these are my parents Guy and Joe and this is our home Free Spirit. Come join us on our adventures. After spending the last month or so exploring and sailing with whales and orca in the Kvenangen fjord we headed back to the city of Tromso. Located in Norway at 69 degrees north Tromso has a well-protected harbour. We planned to leave Free Spirit here for the darkest months of the winter whilst we visited friends and family and return again at the beginning of March to continue sailing. Already the days were getting darker and darker and the sun never rose above the mountains. With Free Spirit well tied up and some lovely new friends of ours looking out for her we left for Cornwall. When we returned so too had the sun but the cold still persisted. Despite being so far above the arctic circle the waters around Tromso never freeze solid and only thin sheets of ice formed on the surface. We spent a week or so exploring and getting on with some boat jobs before we would set off again. The woods on the edge of the city were beautiful to walk through. Slowly the snows began to melt and it was time to set off for another year of adventures. We let loose the mooring lines and set out. It was daunting heading out this early in the year most sailing boats were still tucked away safe at harbour. We encountered numerous birds as we wound our way through the channels. We would spend the next week making our way south towards the Lofoten Islands. We stopped off in several anchorages along the way and took the opportunity to get into our kayaks and explore. One morning we awoke to the beautiful sight of reindeer passing by. As we set out again the winds picked up allowing us to hoist the sails. explored the outside of Senja but unpredictable weather forced us to take the inland route. After several days of travelling we made it to an anchorage just east of Lofoten and were welcomed with a flurry of snow. We would spend a few days here slowing down and absorbing the beauty of this place. We watched from the deck as eagles hunted for fish. The brief moments of calm were often interrupted by snow storms. But below decks we felt warm and safe in our cozy little home. We spotted a group of elk wandering along the shore. This really felt like a wild and beautiful place. We set off to explore this frozen landscape. There were no other human tracks in the fresh snow, only those of wild animals. Coming from Cornwall where it rarely snows this felt like another world. So in the bright sunlight the snowy landscape was all the more mesmerizing. So there were surprises around every corner. So the next day we set off to the Lofoten to find a new place to explore and escape from the coming winds. we pulled into a lovely place called Gulvika where we would spend Easter. It's amazing how quickly the landscape can change. So from the surrounding hills the faint calls of black grouse could be heard. At this time of year the males are getting ready to attract a mate. Practicing dancing and displaying with their tails fanned out, hoping to catch the eye of a female. So in this landscape of ice and snow every outing was filled with wonder. So so in the clear nights the aurora lit up the sky above us. We sat in the falling snow and watched the wildlife enjoying the shelter of the bay. We set off once more heading for Svolva, the main town in the Lofoten islands. Svolva is a lovely little town with everything you might need as well as sculptures and artwork for all to enjoy. We met up with friend and celebrated local artist Rune, also known as Sol Soldat, meaning sun soldier. He was kind enough to show us around his present studio and gallery, a former hotel. We were honoured to be given a private tour of his workspace and were impressed by his striking art. He also runs workshops for schools and local youth. The changeable weather persisted. In calm conditions I was hoisted up the mast to do some maintenance checks. The area around Svolva is dominated by wooden structures used for drying fish, a technique that has been practiced for more than a thousand years and historically represents the economic mainstay of this whole region of Norway. Today mainly just the cod heads are hung up to dry for more recent African markets. The sheer scale was overwhelming, hundreds of thousands of fish heads swayed above us in the arctic breeze. Please like and subscribe. A huge thank you to all my wonderful patrons for helping to support the production of these videos. If you'd like to help, as well as getting early ad-free videos, then click the link in the description and join my Patreon account. Thanks for watching! Next time the spring thaw begins. We leave the Lofoten sailing to Helgeland and begin to explore this incredible place. It's a nice headdress you got there, mum. Um, yeah, just the one. Further back.