THE tolling sound of a distant bell rouses me from my slumber. I peel my eyes open. ‘Where am I?’ The room is dark and warm and smells of oiled oak. And then I remember. I’m in Arctic Norway, onboard a Swedish former minesweeping vessel called HMS Gåssten.
The tolling sound is getting louder and louder, now interspersed with a bellowing voice that I recognise as Simon Idsø—the boat’s chef. ‘Orcas,’ he cries. ‘Wake up, there are orcas.’ I exit my cabin—once home to the ship’s ammunition—and scurry onto deck. To the left of the bow bolts of golden light have successfully broken through leaden clouds; to the right, the water’s surface is interrupted by one onyx dorsal fin after another, a symphony of orcas rising and falling. Minutes pass before I realise that I’m not the only one on deck—my group stands silently, in bemused awe.
Our journey begins sometime before the orcas’ arrival in Henningsvaer, a quaint fishing village on the south-west of the Lofoten archipelago. Gåssten’s Royal Navy-blue hull see-saws back and forth on its mooring. Built in 1973, Gåssten spent 26 years sweeping the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia for mines before serving the UN as a coast guard vessel. Now, the last ship in her class still afloat, gentle adventures around Lofoten seems a fitting retirement for her. As she lies at anchor, skrei cod dries on wooden racks along the harbour’s edge, as it has done for centuries (the technique preserves the fish and means it can be stored almost indefinitely and shipped long distances), its distinctive scent passed around by the breeze.
Denne historien er fra October 04, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra October 04, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Happiness in small things
Putting life into perspective and forces of nature in farming
Colour vision
In an eye-baffling arrangement of geometric shapes, a sinister-looking clown and a little girl, Test Card F is one of television’s most enduring images, says Rob Crossan
'Without fever there is no creation'
Three of the top 10 operas performed worldwide are by the emotionally volatile Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, who died a century ago. Henrietta Bredin explains how his colourful life influenced his melodramatic plot lines
The colour revolution
Toxic, dull or fast-fading pigments had long made it tricky for artists to paint verdant scenes, but the 19th century ushered in a viridescent explosion of waterlili
Bullace for you
The distinction between plums, damsons and bullaces is sweetly subtle, boiling down to flavour and aesthetics, but don’t eat the stones, warns John Wright
Lights, camera, action!
Three remarkable country houses, two of which have links to the film industry, the other the setting for a top-class croquet tournament, are anything but ordinary
I was on fire for you, where did you go?
In Iceland, a land with no monks or monkeys, our correspondent attempts to master the art of fishing light’ for Salmo salar, by stroking the creases and dimples of the Midfjardara river like the features of a loved one
Bravery bevond belief
A teenager on his gap year who saved a boy and his father from being savaged by a crocodile is one of a host of heroic acts celebrated in a book to mark the 250th anniversary of the Royal Humane Society, says its author Rupert Uloth
Let's get to the bottom of this
Discovering a well on your property can be viewed as a blessing or a curse, but all's well that ends well, says Deborah Nicholls-Lee, as she examines the benefits of a personal water supply
Sing on, sweet bird
An essential component of our emotional relationship with the landscape, the mellifluous song of a thrush shapes the very foundation of human happiness, notes Mark Cocker, as he takes a closer look at this diverse family of birds
