Crossing the Arctic circle!

16/06/25

As the forecasted, we woke to the sound of rain pitter-pattering on the cockpit floor above us.  It was grey outside but the visibility was good and we anticipated reasonable wind for the day and so it was time to put on our waterproofs and get going!

We cast our lines and slipped out of the marina, with our course mapped northwards.  The wind was fickle at times, impacted by the topography of the land around us - stronger when passing the fjord openings, weaker where we needing to weave between skerries - and whilst it was a bit like playing hokey-cokey with the sail configuration, it certainly made the time pass quickly and further honed my skills with sail trimming.  A particular success was when the genoa (foresail) needed to be unfurled once more and the skipper was quite content to leave me to it to do it single-handedly whilst he finished required boat admin work!

The rain continued but our spirits were high - we were rapidly approaching the arctic circle.  We passed the island, Vikingen, which has Arctic circle landmark on it, with the distinctive island of Hestemann in the background (the troll who was chasing the Maiden of Leka on horseback and had forgotten about sunrise and therefore was turned to stone mid-pursuit... see our Torghatten post to make sense of this!).  The island, however, lies a few degrees south of the Arctic circle itself and it would be another 10 minutes before we crossed the actual line of latitude.

Arctic Circle monument with Hestamanen behind

Cue some quick celebratory dram preparations!  It is customary to make sure to thank Neptune (the Roman god of the sea) and Njord (his Norse counterpart) and request safe onward passage, therefore four drams were prepared and we were all set!

2 yards north of the Arctic Circle!

At 1243 and 012° 58'E longitude, we crossed the magical line of 66° 33'N  and entered the arctic circle!  Stuart duly toasted the Gods by providing two drams to the sea below and we celebrated, enjoying the other two, with big smiles and accompanying whoops of delight!  It really did feel like a huge milestone for us and a fantastic way to celebrate nearly two months now of adventuring and revelling in life on board!

Arctic drams

Celebrations complete.... where to now?!  We had only plotted a route to that point!  Albeit we knew that we had plenty of options to consider.  Given the conditions, however, and that we had achieved another 20 miles that day, we decided to explore and berth in the pretty little harbour of Selsøyvik, just a short distance further north and continue the celebrations.

Selsøyvik

We glided alongside the pontoon and secured Evolene for the night.  We hooked up to the shore electricity and quickly started the dehumidifier to convert the forward cabin into a makeshift but very effective drying room.  Berthing paid (£18 for the night), we settled in for a truly decadent afternoon of watching a movie (A Man Called Ove - would thoroughly recommend it), eating popcorn and sipping fizz!  

We are now officially bluenoses*!


* A sailor who has crossed the Arctic Circle

 

Location: 5VC65226+MQ

Comments

  1. SeanJune 26, 2025 at 11:30 AM

    Be sure and pour a wee dram on Evolene's bowsprit - thank her for getting you all there safely, too! Congratulations and welcome to the Bluenosers. Any plans to become shellbacks? ;-)

    ReplyDelete

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