I was immensely grateful to my son Tom and his friends who did such a good job of sailing Spellbinder up from Shetland to Bodø and the Lofotens. It was a real achievement for him and his various crew and his excellent recent guest post relates the fine time they had on their initial cruise around these fantastic islands, which are well north of the Arctic Circle.

I rejoined Spellbinder in Liland, having flown into nearby Narvik airport with friends and regular crew Neil and Clare. Tom had single handed from Narvik marina and met us having done the yacht laundry and having prepared cod and chips for us – cod his crew had caught.

We bad farewell to Tom the next morning, and headed into a brisk headwind down Ofotfjord while researching and learning about the Norway campaign of 1940, which is fascinating. We arrived at Lødingen and found a berth, exploring the town and finding out whether there was a place to watch the World Cup Quarter Final. We were not particularly into football, but it was England v Norway and we wanted to taste the vibe. We found the one bar which was hosting it – and, rather outnumbered, we had quite a good time.

We all left before the end, feeling a bit tired, but the lack of noise coming from the bar confirmed that the match had gone our way.

Lødingen wasn’t particularly pretty, but the next place really was. We sailed up into Trollfjord, a narrow and very spectacular fjord – one of the best known in Norway. We were able to find a mooring beside a hydro power station and enjoy the spectacular surroundings.

Tom and his friends had walked up to some huts above the snow line, and we set out to do the same, gaining extraordinary views as we ascended a steep, and in places difficult path.

On arrival I made use of a sauna and we enjoyed being up high in the mountains. The Norwegians have a very good system of refuge huts and there were several up there.

We enjoyed our first trek and the next morning headed out into the fjord to allow others to slip their lines.

It was a fabulous spot. We had to leave though, and headed towards Svolvaer, taking in an anchorage en route, where we saw plenty of white-tailed sea eagles.

Svolvaer is a bit of a hub and with the weather set to deteriorate, we got alongside and hunkered down, socialising with the crew of Queen’s Ransome III. I had to get back to the UK for a flying visit to attend Tom’s graduation, so I left my crew to their own devices.

On my return (delayed overnight owing to SAS cancelling a flight) I met up with Mark and Lucy and their family – fellow RCC members on board their Oyster yacht Calbhaigh. Spellbinder then headed out south west down the wonderful Lofoten chain, impressed by the towering mountains which drop straight down to the sea. Our destination was Henningsvaer, a great little town with a couple of great bars and a football pitch carved out of the rock.

The place had a couple of bars which we enjoyed pre and post dinner on board. It was an interesting place, to which we will return.

Our aim the next day was to find a remote anchorage at Aesoya, in a cutting in an island off the coast. This we did, deploying a fore and aft anchor to try and keep us straight in a confined space.

The breeze got up, blowing us about a bit, so we decided to leave and attempt some more fishing, using a recommended lure I had bought in Svolvaer. It didn’t take long to bring up 2 fine ling (a variety of cod), which went into a fish bake that evening.

Buoyed by this success, we headed down to the delightful Nusfjord. This enchanting place, framed by steep cliffs, is a bit of a museum to the past, with lots of red painted fishermen’s huts which are now tourist accommodation. Neil went for a row on a German couple’s boat and we enjoyed the amazing scenery.

It was a pretty dramatic place to spend the night, and we enjoyed walking around the various museum houses, bakery and bars.

Reine, one of the more touristy places in the islands, was our next destination. The main aim of going there was to walk up the Reinebringen. It’s a steep, 1900 step ascent, snaking with tourists, but the reward at the top is a fabulous view. It was quite hard work but certainly worth it. I’ll let the photos do the talking.

From the top you certainly get a great perspective of the Lofoten mountains, and we were blessed with clear weather.

After our hike we sailed down the chain, looking in at Sorvagen and then spending an hour at the delightfully named Å, the village at the end of the Lofotens where the road ends. Like Nusfjord, it had a museum feel to it, and showcased life in the Lofotens as it used to be.

Vaerøy was to be our last night in Lofoten. It’s a spectacular, steep-sided island to the south west of the main chain, and you have to sail past an area of infamous troubled water to get there. It is here that the original maelstrom was named. We saw it in the distance, but kept clear, despite the chartplotter telling me we were going through it.

We found a berth for the night and wandered around, finding a bar where we took a passing interest in the World Cup Final.

We sailed back to Bodø across the Vestfjorden, getting in before the rain set in, and enjoying great views from the 17th floor of the Skandic Hotel.

The Lofoten Islands are really magical, as Tom discovered. We are planning to return again next week for more. I leave you with a couple more photos. Finally, a big thank you to my crew Neil and Clare, who were such fine company!