Lysefjorden 2019

The old ferry "Riskafjord" entering Lysefjorden.

Brattalia.

From the power station, Flørli

The café , Flørli power station.

Room for rent.

The tourist cabin, Flørli

Towards Skåpet tourist cabin.

Towards Skåpet tourist cabin.

Skåpet tourist cabin.

Skåpet tourist cabin.

Flørli guest harbour. After trekking.

The power station, Flørli

The ferry calling at Lysebotn

The new harbour, Lysebotn.

Sandnes, Gandsfjorden

Visitor berths, Sea chart, Natural harbours

Albin Express, heading towards Gandsfjorden.

58°51,186'N 05°44,712'E. Sandnes: To be honest, it's far easier to take the train from Sandnes to Stavanger, then sailing your own boat the eight nautical miles, approximately, from the head of Gandsfjorden. This is why – among yachters married by force to a harbour near Sandnes – Gandsfjorden has a somewhat stained reputation. Or to be more specific: The distance run before reaching the archipelago off Stavanger and the Ryfylke fjords, will cost them at least one an a half hour, and homewards the fjord seems to be even more outstretched, for some mysterious reason. If you are a visitor, though, you don’t need to be concerned about these local everyday worries. Instead you can enjoy what the Gandsfjord – and the town of Sandnes – has to offer. With a little luck you can steer on course both in and out of the fjord. Apart from the last distance, the fjord is relatively wide. In case of easterly winds, the high mountain on the eastern shore, will course some turbulence and gusts, fun – if your are in the right mood. A strong headwind is worse because waves will build up. Still it's seldom impossible to beat against the wind.

If you wish to let go your anchor before reaching Sandnes, several places can be recommended. In the mouth of the fjord lies the amusing island Usken (Uskjo): Leirvågen, sheltered by the islet "Snekka", (58°57,536'N 05°48,829'E ) is a perfect anchorage and a nice swimming spot. Vadholmen on the east shore is a recreation area with public pier, sheltered from all winds (58°57,338'N, 05°50,319E). Stora Marøy is suitable for smaller boats (58°57,774'N 05°46,935'E). At approximately 58°55,484’ N, you’ll find a small nice and popular beach – Vaulen. Here, the best anchorage probably is in the bay, inside of the small tongue of land. You’ll find safe anchorage also in Gauselvågen, six cable lengths to the south, but be aware of shallow water. Some shallows are marked with unofficial sticks. South in the bay, you’ll fins a nice “Robinson”-islet, Gauselholmen. If your draft is moderat, it should be possible to make fast to a small stone jetty on the western shore. You’ll probably have the whole islet for yourselves. If this doesn’t suit you, try Dalsvågen on the opposite shore of Gandsfjorden – the small cove has a nice, sandy beech. Another popular swimming spot is Holmavigå – one nautical mile to the south.

"Mrs Robinson and Man Friday" enjoying their twosomeness at Gauselholmen, Gandsfjorden.

Dalsvågen is a nice cove with a small sandy beech.

The town of Sandnes is situated at the head of the fjord. It has a roomy and excellent guest marina (58.51.144N 5.44.543E). Previously, Sandnes (Eng.) was often considered to be an ugly town, especially the port area. Today this is not the case at all. A culture centre and several restaurants and cafés, lies only a stone’s throw from the guest marina. Here, if you are lucky, you can also admire the veteran boat, Oscar II (No.).

The guest harbour.

Sandnes has several good art galleries.

Sandnes is known first and foremost to be a town of shopkeepers – forthcoming and friendly. The town also was the home of Norway’s most important bicycle industry, but the production is now moved from Sandnes, after more than 100 years. Due to natural recourses, Sandnes also had an important pottery industry. This too is history for the most part. Potter Stein Em. Simonsen though, maintain the tradition, and has a shop in the main shopping street, Langata. One of the newest attractions in Sandnes is the Science Centre. It has gained enormous popularity both among grownups and children, and is highly recommended.

Links:

Potter Stein Em. Simonsen

Science Centre, Sandnes (recommended!)

Sandnes Culture Centre

-(No.) - by the guest marina.

KinoKino

-centre for art and film.

Hiking, Sandnes

Cykling Map

-Sandnes (No., pdf)

Stavanger

Map , Guest harbours in Stavanger (summery), Guest harbours/Port of Stavanger, Guest harbours Region Stavanger,  Tourist info. office Stavanger, Tourist info. Region Stavanger, Ship chandlers: Maritim Båtutstyr, Leirvikbrygga 6. Jama Marina, Sandvikveien 8, Hillevåg.

  Stavanger offers several guest harbours in or within walking distance to the city centre. Vågen and Børevigå (see links above) are run by the local authority, others are private (most of them are run by local yacht clubs). See Bekhuskaien/Badedammen, Stavanger Motorbåtforening Hillevåg (inside of bridge! - 9 m), Stavanger Seilforening - Stavanger Sailing Club). From the sailing club, you must walk (30 min.) or take a bus, crossing the city bridge. The Vågen harbour (summer only) is exposed to winds from the northwest and swell from ships. In summer there is always a lot of people in the streets around the bay, and the evenings might become noisy. If you prefer more rural surroundings, a day or two in Lundsvågen is an alternative (see also the posting Lundsvågen).

Guest harbour, Vågen (summer only)

Vågen (the city  bay)

The waters off Stavanger probably are among the best in the world for those sailors who enjoy intra-costal waterways, archipelagos and fjords. But Stavanger is worth a visit also for other reasons. As a center for the Norwegian petroleum industry, the city has gained an international character, but still has retained much of a small town's charm with narrow streets and small, white-painted wooden houses. The city has a rich cultural life, and the region offers a varied landscape with many opportunities additional to sailing (see Region Stavanger, and The Tourist Office).

Summer life at The Hansen corner, Skagen.

The Norwegian Petroleum Museum, Stavanger.

Stavanger, my recommendations:
Art/Sculpture/Sightseeing. Explore the city trough Antony Gormley’s Broken Column.
Map, Broken Column (pdf).
http://www.antonygormley.com/

Blue Promenade

Stavanger Art Museum
Stavanger Consert Hall (No)

Stavanger Cathedral

Tou Scene. Avant-garde, music, art, dance (East district)
The student society - "Folken"
Stavanger Jazzforum (No./Eng.)
Stavanger BluesClub (No.)
- in the pub "Ovenpaa", Skagenkaien, Vågen.

Ullandhaug district
University of Stavanger
Stavanger Botanic Garden
The Iron Age farm/Museum of Archeology
Organic farming, Ullandhaug (No)

Stavanger museum
(The Natural History exhibition, The Canning Museum and The Children Museum are especially nice for children. The Maritime Museum is just by the harbour, Strandkaien.)
Stavanger Culture Centre, Sølvberget
The Norwegian Petroleum Museum, Stavanger.

Stavanger Culture Centre, Sølvberget (No): library, literature, art, cinema, cafés

Stavanger Antikvariat (No), Tidegeilen 4, Second-hand bookshop
Løvås Second-hand shop, books, comics

Lagård graveyard / famous persons (pdf)

Bathing/Swimming:
Nearest beaches: Godalen (Badedammen - the swimming pond, under the city bridge - and Emmausbukta not listed), all on the south-eastern shore, towards Gandsfjorden. Vaulen, farther south is nice. Take your boat (chart), a bus (nr. 1 stand 8, nr. 2/3 stand 10), or the train to Mariero station, north of the beach.

Swimming pools (No.)
Stavanger svømmestadion (Gamlingen), is an outdoor pool (No.). 15 min. walk from city centre.
Vålandsskogen (forest) nearby is nice for walking or jogging.)


Sandnes
Sandnes (Eng.): 13 min by train from Stavanger. 1 hour by sailboat, at least. Sandnes has a charming town centre, perfect for shopping or eating out. Sandnes has an spacious and excellent guest harbour. But the water unfortunately, does sometimes smell.
Potter Stein Em. Simonsen
Science Centre, Sandnes (recommended!)
Sandnes Culture Centre (No.) - by the guest harbour.
KinoKino - centre for art and film.

Hiking/Cycling
Hiking, region Stavanger
Hiking, Sandnes
Hiking Randaberg, see post Tungenes lighthouse
Cykling, Map/region Stavanger (No., pdf)
Cykling, Map-Sandnes (No., pdf)

Public transportation:
Bus service, routes Stavanger, (bus stand map), Train, Airport, Airport Express Coach
Bus: Stavanger-Bergen - Stavanger-Kristiansand -  Kristiansand - Oslo
Fast boat - Stavanger-Bergen, Ryfylke

Famous writers and artists from Stavanger

Alexander L. Kielland
(The statue on the marked square)
Some works:
Garman & Worse (1880)
Skipper Worse (1882, exerpt)
Available at: Amazon
Costomer Review
Tales

Sigbjørn Obstfelder
Two poems in translation:
Regn/Rain
Jeg ser/I look

Lars Hertervig
Painter. See also the posting Hattarvågen/Borgøy
(Several works and exibition catalogue at Rogaland Museum of Fine Arts)
Some works
Essay on Hertervigs paper works (No.)
Trond Borgen: Et indre eksil. Lars Hertervigs papirarbeider:

Magnus Vigrestad (No.)
Sculptor, among other works, the statue of Kielland on the marked square.

Lundsvågen Hundvåg

Guest harbour / small boat harbour, map, sea chart

Lundsvågen. An Alo 28 set afloat.

Lundsvågen. 59°00,04’N 05°45,34’E. Stavanger offers several guest harbours in or within walking distance to the city centre (see Stavanger). If you prefer more rural surroundings, a day or two in Lundsvågen's guest harbour  is a recommendable alternative. Normally maximum stay is tree days, shower/toilet and longer stays to be agreed upon. Lundsvågen is one of Stavanger's largest small boat harbours, and normally there is plenty of berths for visiting boats along the guest pier.

Junk-rigged Oslo dinghy "Broremann". Guest harbour behind the pier.

A disadvantage with Lundsvågen is that the bus connection (from Kisteneset to Hundvågkrossen and downtown) is meagre, but if you're willing to walk only 10 minutes, you'll reach the main road where the buses towards downtown runs frequently. One advantage with Lundsvågen is that there are always many people in the harbour, so if you like to chat with local yachters, you will have plenty of opportunities. In addition, Lundsvågen is situated far out in the fjords, and therefore is a good starting point for your sailing trips around islands nearby or towards central or southern Ryfylke. If you need some exercise after weeks in your boat, Lundsneset, close by, have nice footpaths along the shore.

Free breeze. An Albin Alpha 29, approaches Lundsvågen.

Sailing logger Nortun AE 87 of Stavanger, privately owned yacht, landing in Lundsvågen.

Stora Marøy

Natural harbour,  Map , Sea chart,   History (no) 

Stora Marøy

58°57,78'N 05°46,80'E. Stora Marøy lies in the mouth of Gandsfjorden, near Stavanger to the southeast. The island really is a gem, but is visited mostly by small boats since the more flashy ones are deterred by the landing conditions. The waters to the northeast and east of the island, between Litla Marøy and Stora Marøy, really are foul, but it is still possible to anchor. Several places along the shore, you’ll find anchorage points. Still, your best bet is in the little bay to the northwest. Here you’ll also find a small jetty.

Stora Marøy has an interesting cultural history. It has been utilized for rabbit breeding and as a quarantine station for animals. A small farm was run until the year 1958, and fields, stone fences and ruins are reminiscences of this. In recent years, environmental activists in Naturvernforbundet i Rogaland have worked hard to restore the landscape. Vegetation is cleared away, and animals are put out to grass, to keep shrubs down.

All in all Stora Marøy is a charming and popular island. In the northeast there even is a cove with a beach, and in the summer, a free ferry takes visitors to the island from the small craft harbour on the mainland, just across the strait. An old farm road surrounded by grassy banks, leads you from the jetty, towards the former farmyard near the island's summit. From here you have a great view towards Sandnes in the bottom of Gandsfjorden, and towards the fjords and mountains in the east and north.

The Marøy ferry

View towards Ryfylke.

Visiting Marøy.

Map by: http://rogaland.naturvern.no/

 

Åmøy's rock carvings

Small craft harbour , Map , Recording: Åsmøy's rock carvings , iPod (No.)

59°02.10'N 05°44,70'E. On the southern shore of Austre Åmøy you can gaze at the "greetings" from sailors living here 3,000 years ago. Åmøy has one of the largest Bronze Age rock carvings in Norway. The smooth, coastal rock slopes are shattered with religious, political and social symbols; boats, circles, footmarks, human figures, fish and animals. The Carvings are situated near a small harbour where you may make fast. Beware of shallow water towards the shore. You can also moore in the inlet east of the harbour, in Litlevåg. The carvings are protected, and it is forbidden to steep on them or cause damage. In the Bronze Age, Åmøy was a religious assembly point and the Åmøy fjord an important sailing lane. The carvings give evidence of cultural contact and trade with people further south in Europe.

The small craft harbour. Guest pier furthest in. Watch out for shallow water.

  

Litlevåg, north of Vågholmen.

Traditional stone boathouses.

Melingssjøen, to the west of the harbour, is nice for hiking. Act considerately regarding infields, livestock and environment.

Bru / Landscape art

Quay,  Map 

59°02,39'N 05°40,00'E. The island Bru is part of Rennesøy municipality, and is located approximately 4 nautical miles northwest of Stavanger, on the east side of the city fjord – Byfjorden. Immediately inviting with green and rolling fields, it also tempts boaters with a sheltered archipelago off the southeastern shore, towards Line and Åmøy (see Linehamn). Soknasundet between Bru and Sokn is, unfortunately, blocked for sailboats due to a bridge.

 The concrete qay is public.

Among the attractions on Bru is a cultural footpath, developed by artists and writers during Stavanger’s year as European Capital of Culture, 2008. The 1,8 miles long path, named "Horizons and Fragments", twists and turns trough beautiful and varied cultivated land wit sheep, cows and horses. Please show consideration, and do not leave litter about. In addition to beautiful landscapes and seascapes, you will experience 15 works of art, integrated in the landscape. Arriving Bru by boat, you are free to moor at the inner side of Bru quay. If you ask for permission, a private rocky pier might also be used by smaller boats. The quay has a small fish and shrimp marked.