Norway - Lofoten?

[Anjulis]

I am looking for a place to sail for a week (charter) and someone suggested Norway - Lofoten.

I never sailed in cold places so can someone tell me how it works? Do charter boats there usually have some kind of heaters? If yes, are they electric, requiring me to spend nights in marinas to connect to shore power? How cold does it get anyway? I know that the average in July is 10-12C but must feel colder on water.
What is the best marina to charter and depart from?

[Pete7]

Not Norway, but charter yachts in Scotland will have diesel heating. We needed it at the end of September as the nights were a little chilly and it helps to dry the boat out.

Water temperature wasn't a problem and I did go for a swim in one loch, aptly named Loch Drambuie which you need afterwards. Bracing I think is the way I would describe it

Norway is on our bucket list, more so than the Med.

[Anjulis]

Thanks for the reply but I am looking for info on Norway, not Scotland.

[Pete7]

You will be aware that the Gulf Stream flow out of the Caribbean up past Florida. Well it eventually reaches all the way across the Atlantic to NW Europe keeping temperatures considerably warmer than the same latitude of say New Foundland. An astonishing feet of nature keeping Scotland and Norway's West coast ice free during the winter and warm in the summer. Hence my point about Scotland and answering you query about heating on yachts.

Pete

[merrimac]

Bodø is the nearest (big) marina, possibly with bareboat charter boats, and with an airport.

[Manateeman]

You have nothing in your profile about you experience. Norway is both a beautiful and dangerous area for sailing. If you are comfortable in Kodiak Alaska, you’ll enjoy it in Norway. I’m not talking about the cold.
Take a look at commercial fishing vessels in Norway. Tanks. We look like a kayak next to them.
I’d consider a voyage on a commercial fishing vessel.
This isn’t Ken, Barbie and the cat sailing.
The ice bears are very intelligent. They will see you long before you see them.
Truly a beautiful country and wonderful people.
Happy trails.
Captain Mark and the manatee crew

[merrimac]

Don't worry, there are no ice bears in Lofoten. They'd have a lovely time eating all the Klippfisch though!

Lofoten in summertime (July-August) is perfectly doable in an AWB, just mind the weather. When we were there for 2 weeks in August temperatures varied between 8 and 18 degrees, warmer than Shetland! It did rain most days ...

[merrimac]

Now Svalbarden, or as the discoverer called it, Spitsbergen, that's another matter! But the OP isn't going there...

[Manateeman]

Well the manatee crew, like all sailors, love to tell tall tales. Gathering some tourists together on the Bodo ferry and giving them tales of hungry brown bears (they number about 50 in all Norway) or wolves (same small population) or how hungry ice bears float on bergs going south ( totally impossible) . If the tourist ask about kayaking, the crew pretends to loose it screaming ORCAS. ORCAS.
The Lofoten islands are stunning. The weather changes very quickly and one should be very aware of this...boating or climbing.
Tourist should try to be very respectful to the local population. Norwegians are pretty laid back but they are very protective of this unique ecological system.
Chartering a fishing boat and captain might go a long way to keep everyone happy and to learn a lot along the way.
I apologize for the manatees shenanigan post about ice bears. Sailors...what can you say. Buy them a beer and just sit back.
The Lofoten Islands are truly spectacular.
Happy trails to you.
Captain Mark

[goboatingnow]

I’ve sailed in Norway in summer , it’s very similar to sailing in southwest Ireland , similar weather and issues.

[olewsaa]

I say all year round, Oslo fjord during the winter, this is an old video how it can be. Sorry for the vocal, but mostly me ranting about ice in Norwegian.
Heating is nice, it can be chilly in the summer when the weather is bad, even in the summer.

While Lofoten is spectacular, the rest of the coast is well worth exploring. Just the Oslo fjord is 100 km long, not to mention the fjords on the west coast. The area known as Helgeland rival Lofoten.
The whole coastline is spectacular.

Ole