Hurtigruten; Monday, 20 July, 2015

Unlike the MS Lofoten back in 2013 the MS Richard With is a considerably larger and more modern ship, including stabilisers that help to remove most of the sea conditions. However, no matter how stable the ship the Western Cape of Norway is pretty rough water, and it was very obvious where we were when I was rocked awake at around 5am as we started the passage round it.

In the end I didn't get much more sleep than that, and by 7am I was up on deck with a cup of coffee watching the ship dock at Torvik, before headed down to Breakfast.

After a brief stop in Ålesund the ship headed down into the Storfjorden the spectacular Geiranger Fjord. At the bottom of the Fjord we had to head down onto the car deck from where we were transferred onto a small ferry to take us into the shallow and tiny harbour at the end of the Fjord where we picked up the coaches for an afternoon tour through the stunning scenery of this part of Norway, meanwhile the MS Richard With, with all the passengers who weren't on the tour, did a very quick 180 degree turn and was already steaming back up the fjord by the time we made it onto the quayside.

The tour started with the dramatic climb up out of Geiranger up the Eagle road and into the mountains that surround the town. After a brief photo-stop towards the top we continued on to the town of Eidsdal where we took the ferry across the Storfjorden to Linge.

Shortly after Linge we made a stop at the stunning Gundbrandsjuvet where the river scours its way violently through a gorge. After the Gorge we headed up into the mountains up to the top of the Trollsteigen, one of the most spectacular roads in the country. From the viewing platforms on the side of the cliffs, as the mists parted briefly, the incredible layout of this road, with its 11 hairpin bends, became clear.

Back on the coach and the driver earned his keep taking us down the stunning, winding road to the bottom where we stopped for coffee in a roadside cafe before continuing on our drive through the Norwegian countryside.

The final leg of the journey was a 35 minute ferry crossing back over the Moldefjorden to the town of Molde, where the ferry raced the southbound Hurtigruten into port.

In Molde we were transferred to a hotel opposite the Hurtigruten quay for a very pleasant dinner before watching the MS Richard With dock and re-joining her, via the slightly more elegant route of a rigidly solid gangway.

Up to the panorama lounge for a late night drink before turning in for the night, gently rocked to sleep as the ship entered a two hour stretch of open water.