Departure

From my cabin, on the Hurtigruten ship MS Nordlys. Sailing north towards expedition start...

The final days of my old life were hectic. I barely had time to sleep in the final push to be ready. Board and rig had to be boxed and the original 45kg combined weight reduced to an airport acceptable 32kg. This required that literally every last screw be stripped from from the gear and the cardboard box trimmed to within an inch of its margins. Amazingly, it made the weight.

A 2:30am start then got us to Heathrow with time enough to negotiate the predictably incredulous airport check-in staff. The board had been pre-agreed, so it was just a case of remaining patient and diplomatic, and the kit and I were on!

There was a flight connection at Copenhagen, then a high altitude view of the Skagerrak Sea - which in a few month's time I will likely attempt to windsurf across - before the coastline of Norway came into view.

This was a time to reflect on the challenge ahead. Looking down upon a white-capped sea, impossibly complex island coastline, and the snow capped peaks of Norway's interior, I was reminded of the scale of what lies ahead. It unnerved me slightly.

But that didn't last long. On the descent towards Bergen the closer-up view had my nose pinned to the window. I'd been re-conquered by the beauty and ruggedness of this country and the adrenaline of adventure was flowing.

A taxi rank attendant reminded me that although this is a solo adventure, it won't be a solitary one, as together we walked the gear to a bus stop. A proactive approach got my gear on the bus. Once inside and seated I closed my weary eyes, and two seconds later we'd arrived outside the Hurtigruten terminal at Bergen port.

I met and was enchanted by Hurtigruten's Guro. She got the board loaded and introduced me to the crew, before leaving me with a good luck hug. And we set sail.