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Arrive
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Day 1 Board in Ålesund
Board HMS Gåssten in Ålesund and set sail with drinks and canapés, weaving your way through the tight and picturesque channels heading for a nearby anchorage for the night. Perhaps enjoy an evening swim, paddleboard or some fishing before dinner.
Overnight: HMS Gåssten
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Day 2 Into Hjørundfjord
Wake up to the sound of the crew pulling the anchor and take breakfast as you steam through the last of the archipelago islands and narrows before crossing Storfjord to the entrance of the mighty Hjørundfjord. Enjoy the wonderful scenery on all sides as you steam gently down to Sæbo, a little village of turf-roofed houses flanked on all sides by the jagged peaks of the Sunnmøre Alps. In the afternoon, you might like to head on an e-bike foray, riding a loop that brings you up above the fjord. On your return, work up a sweat in the sauna, followed by a plunge into the cool blue waters of the fjord on which it floats.
Overnight: HMS Gåssten
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Day 3 Bjørke & Cycling the Skjåstaddalen Valley
After breakfast, a quick trip to pull up the pots and creels from last night is always a revealing highlight! Today head for Bjørke, a peaceful little village right at the head of the fjord. After passing the tiny little hamlet of Finness, a cluster of enchanting red and white cabins, barns and farmhouses, arrive in an almost completely sheltered bay surrounded on all sides by towering peaks. This is a particularly good place for fishing and paddle boarding and there is a fantastic e-bike route up the Skjåstaddalen valley from Bjørke, which you might like to try.
Overnight: HMS Gåssten
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Day 4 Hiking Above Urke
Perhaps enjoy a bracing fjord dip before breakfast before pulling anchor and heading for the small farming community of Urke and its charming little cottages perched precariously on piles of perfectly balanced rocks. Once safely tied up alongside, there will be time for a short but steep hike up Leknesnakken, a small peak right on the peninsula of Norangfjorden. On the way up, you will pass the ruins of an old homestead and the bear pit where one of Norway's last bears hibernated over winter. Once on the summit, you will be rewarded with spectacular views both up and down the length of Hjørundfjord, but also all the way to the east along Norangsfjorden.
Overnight: HMS Gåssten
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Day 5 In the Shadow of Slogan
After breakfast, meet Erling, a friendly local farmer, who will bring his tractor and specially adapted trailer to the pier. Board the trailer and set off behind the tractor, weaving your way through the old village of Urke and her hillside farms, up steep farm tracks to the mountain lake at the top of the plateau. Here we wave goodbye to Erling and continue on foot, heading for Maudekollen, an easy hike weaving through young birch forest alongside a fast-flowing mountain river, passing amongst other things a Messerschmitt engine from WW2. Once on the final ridge to the summit you will be in the shadow of Slogen, one of the most iconic peaks in the whole of Norway, from where you will just be able to make out HMS Gåssten, tiny in the distance, moored to the pier. On returning to Urke, we will ensure that local villager Anders comes to open up the tiny little village pub for some well-earned refreshment.
Overnight: HMS Gåssten
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Day 6 Kayaking to Øye & E-Biking to Norangsdalen
This morning, take to the kayaks with your guide and paddle along the fjord to meet the boat at anchor in Øye. After a quick swim and a lunch on board, the e-biking trip up the valley and into Norangsdalen is an absolute must, with the added option of a snorkel in a lake with a sunken village submerged beneath the gin clear waters! On returning to Øye, enjoy a well-earned glass of the locally brewed beer and a snoop round the museum-like rooms at the world-famous Hotel Union, once frequented by royalty, famous explorers and authors such as Kaiser Wilhelm, Karen Blixen and Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle.
Overnight: HMS Gåssten
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Day 7 Disembark in Ålesund
Weigh anchor and head out of Hjørundfjord and back to Ålesund.
Overnight: HMS Gåssten
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Depart
