Saga Ruby Captain's blog

An early start as we entered the fjord in the early morning light and increased our speed to try and get as far up the fjord by lunchtime, when we would turn around for the passage back to open water. Sognefjord is truly a beautiful area to cruise in and with the odd break of sunshine lighting up the mountain sides it provided more than enough scenery to start to fill up those digitals cameras. I am always amazed at the level and complexity of some of the kit people bring with them but sure they will be entertaining family and friends when they get home. The thing is, places like this you really just have to see to experience first hand and take in the atmosphere as well. With the fjord behind us we continued up the coast where time and speed allowed us to spend the morning working our way up the “inside passage” of Norway’s coast providing scenery a plenty for those now enjoying the “fresher” temperatures outside.

We docked as usual in Stavanger right in the centre of the town and with the gangway on the quay, our passengers went on tour to enjoy excursions such as “Hiking in the Land of the Mountain King” and tours to the Cathedral, Old town and Flor and Fjaere Gardens. Unfortunately this was one port where relying on the local weather forecast was very much the wrong thing to do. Having told all in the morning that it would be a lovely day we were plagued with afternoon torrential rain showers similar to those we have experienced all through this so called summer in the UK. Just as quickly as they arrived, they stopped and we set sail on a very sunny afternoon passing the vast array of supply vessels and oil service rigs that seemed to occupy every available berth.

First and foremost, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Mark Symonds and it is with great pleasure that I join the team of Masters in the Saga fleet. I have to say that it is normally the captain that welcomes passengers onboard. But I have quickly found that with the very strong core following of what Captain Rentel describes as “Saganaughts” it was actually the other way round and I have been amazed and humbled by the way those onboard Saga Ruby have welcomed me to “their ships”. I am sure when we sail together you will have a full history of where I come from but in brief, I have transferred from the large white whales of P&O & Princess Cruises as well as Ocean Village & P&O Australia. But it is so nice to be here back on ships where you actually have a fighting chance of meeting & getting to know most of the passengers onboard. I live in Derbsyhire in a new home surrounded by fields where the only neighbors are dairy cows and the only grid lock we encounter is when those same cows get out of the fields. I live there with my wife Kerry and 2 year old daughter Grace Mae who you may see visiting in Dover or Southampton usually dressed in something nautical as they come and visit.

But enough of me, it is time I brought you up to date with the first cruise of the mighty Saga Ruby under my command.

After a quiet departure from Dover we crossed the busy shipping lanes and completed the short journey overnight to IJmuiden. It seems we have many onboard escaping the Olympics but thankfully our Satellite & TV service will ensure there is no complete escape even as we had to the extreme northern latitudes ahead. After sampling the delights of Holland we set of again across the Eastern parts of the North Sea and started our scenic cruising in Stavanger.

It is always nice when you are getting used to a new ship to be able to do your first few arrivals in calm winds to get used to the various characteristics of her manoeuvering and I have to say that Saga ruby has many to learn. I started my career on very large oil tankers before joining P&O in 1994 and then it was like getting out of the cab of a big 16 wheeler and climbing into a Ferrari! Whilst Ruby is certainly a classic, no one would suggest that her manoeuvering would equate to a Ferrari. Of course being built in the UK I would have to say that the performance of a Jaguar is also beyond the realms of belief and she feels more like those first cars we owned and spent our weekend tinkering with and never quite understood properly as there was something new to learn about them each time we drove them.

Arriving at Seydisfjordur, the skies were overcast and an early morning mist was rising off the mountains. The small bay was picturesque with the sound of the waterfalls in the surrounding area loud enough to hear from the ships decks.

Shortly after docking, we had our gangway lowered and the tours were away, ready to explore the unique countryside and wildlife.

We were leaving early from this port as we had a high speed required to get to Falmouth on time, so all departure checks were complete and engines ready by 3pm. We were just waiting for the last tour to arrive back, we had heard they had experienced some fog on the mountain road back to the ship and had been delayed. However, they were back shortly after and we singled up our lines and begun the manoeuvre off the berth.

With anticipation of rough weather ahead, many passengers retired to the cabins early with a milky Horlicks to help them sleep.

Approaching the harbour, we could already see this town was a lot more built up then what we have been used to in Iceland, there were many houses dotted up the mountain and lights glittering in the dawn sun.

This area is well known for its fishing and whale spotting, so many passengers went off in search of sea life, while others enjoyed a walk around the town.

In anticipation of some very bad weather expected on the passage to Cobh, we unfortunately had to call off our stop in Ireland. However, after discussions with head office, instead we managed to enjoy two days at Akureyri and stayed overnight, which meant passengers had the option of dining in many of the excellent fresh fish restaurants in the town.

For our second day at Akureyri, the tours office worked hard to provide the passengers with a second day of tours, to see and experience the lovely town of Akureyri and its surrounding beauty.

After the departure checks were completed, we manoeuvered the ship off the berth and made our way out of the fjord. The fjord being about 30nm long, took us a few hours to clear, as we sailed down it, the wildlife group on board managed to spot and recognize many different types of whale including Minke, Humpback and Pilot. The Humpbacks making a superb display for the passengers, of tail slapping and leaps out of the water, not far from the ship.

With that, we left the calm waters of the fjord with sun shining and exited into quite choppy seas, with a strong wind and overcast night.

This was our last tender port in Iceland and it was very similar to Grundafjordur, being another mountainous region in the north of Iceland. There were more snow capped mountains and the sun came out as we let the anchor go in the required position, the pilot had been onboard since 0700 and by 0730, he had brought us safely through the narrow fjord and we were ready to prepare for the tender operations.

It was a nice, calm sail into the berth for the tenders, there was a cool wind but it was sunny throughout the day, once alongside, passengers had the chance to either take one of the tours available, or go into the town, which I heard was slightly more busy than the previous quaint fishing villages.

All aboard today was at 5:30pm where Saga Ruby prepared to set sail for Akureyri, Iceland.

This evening we had something a little bit different in our cinema, with his Maritime History Lecture, Cruise Director Jonathan Neil presented 'Lord Nelson and the Battle of Trafalgar'. Jonathan spoke about the story of Britain’s greatest naval commander, his life and loves, culminating in the Great Battle of Trafalgar.

Sailing into this beautiful fjord, surrounded on either side by towering snow-capped mountains, is a wonderful experience and many passengers came out on the decks early to view the arrival, while we sailed through the fjord, making our way to our anchorage early in the morning.

Grundarfjorour is a small town situated in the north of the Snaefellsnes (Snow Mountain) peninsula in the west of Iceland. The town had only 974 inhabitants in 2005 and is situated in front of an impressive mountain range, which has a slightly alpine look. The 19th century novelist Jules Verne, was so impressed with the local terrain that he set his epic tale ‘Journey to the Centre of the Earth’ in the heart of the peninsula called Snaefellsjokull.

The mountains looked just as magnificent on the departure, a slight mist rising from them as the temperature cooled in the late sun and again lots of small minke whales, rising up from the calm sea now and again for breath, came to say farewell.

As for the entertainment this evening Saga Ruby proudly presented The Covent Garden Piano Consort featuring works by W A Mozart, Pachelbel, J S Bach.

We had something a little bit special for all those passengers wishing to stay up for a little extra partying up in our Pre-View Bar we had late night cabaret with our very own singing sensations Matthew Shaw and Josephine McHugh who were singing songs from musical theatre and musical classics.

The weather conditions this morning were slightly overcast with the promise of showers throughout the day. However once alongside at about 0730, we were not going to let the weather ruin our Reykjavik experience. I even heard that a few people had got up at 5am to whale watch and had spotted 3 different types of whale on our approach to the harbour.

We had many excursions leaving the ship today, starting with the very popular and exciting excursion Whale Watching. This has just been the beginning of our many fantastic excursions that all of our passengers thoroughly enjoyed, another popular one was in the evening and this was Relaxing in the very famous Blue Lagoon where passengers had the chance to relax in the volcano and enjoy swimming or relax in the hot blue waters.

Even I decided to join one of the tours today – Golden Circle. This one allows us to experience three of Iceland’s most impressive landmarks: Geysir, Golden Waterfall of Gullfoss and Thingvellir National Park. All three very spectacular and very much recommended.

For this evening, we have arranged something a little bit different – the local show starring the musical sounds of Mr Valgeir Gudjonsson. This was a fantastic performance and was thoroughly enjoyed by all that came along to watch.

With it being a late sail and still stunning scenery outside passengers were still out on deck taking in the views before they retired to rest for another jam-packed day of adventures in the morning.

This morning after navigating through the volcanic rocks risen out of the ocean floor, I brought the vessel into a safe anchorage and gave the order to let go the anchor. Once we had settled and the ship was lying quietly at anchor, the first tender boat was splashed and made the journey ashore.

From what I have heard, Saga Ruby has never made a successful landing here due to unfavourable weather conditions, so I was very happy that I could make it happen on my first trip in command onboard.

It was a lovely sunny day outside and the temperature started at a lovely 13 degrees (which was a pleasant change after charming, but chilly Faroese). The sea here was teaming with wildlife, while taking the short (and at times rather bumpy) boat journey to the quayside, many birds, whales, and dolphins could be seen.

The place itself is famous for the volcanic eruption of the mountain Eldfell in 1973, which nearly destroyed the whole city. Remains of the event are still visible and were the popular destination for independent passengers going ashore.

One of the tours today took our guests on the trip around the island, while others focused on the spectacular wildlife of the place.

All aboard was at 5:30pm as Saga Ruby prepared to set sail for Reykjavik, Iceland, an approximate distance of 120 nautical miles. We had however one more surprise for our passengers this evening. Once we cleared the Heimaey we sailed south-west towards Surtsey - a particularly interesting island as it rose out of the sea as result of a volcanic explosion some 50 years ago. Over the years, it has been worn down by the ocean and is now considerably smaller than its original size. It is expected that it will take many years for the sea to wear it down any further, due to the hard-core rock now being exposed. The island is very protected, such that it is required to get permission to go around or onto the island and to avoid contaminating such a diverse piece of land, all shoes and clothes must be washed before stepping onto the island. During the circumnavigation of the island, one of our lecturers, Alan Batstone, made extensive commentaries about it and its history, which was very appreciated by all our guests on the open decks.

After an interesting tour of the small island and a few sightings of minky whale, the ship continued on her passage to the mainland. With an early start in the morning, it was off to bed with a mug of Horlicks for most of our passengers before we arrive in the port of Reykjavik.

We caught the first sight of the islands at around 8am, with the morning mist rising up the rugged mountains appearing along the horizon, stretching up into the low cloud base.

It was an overcast start to the day with light breeze blowing from the NW, as we made our approach to the pilot station. Earlier on we found out that we will not dock at our usual berth in Torshavn, but at the new pier in Kolafjordur. They both lay on the Stromnoy Island, which means "island of currents".

The pilotage to Kolafjordur is slightly longer and the pilot navigated us through the mountains to the berth, which was rewarding enough. The berth here was very short and Saga Ruby had to overhang by the stern 45m, meaning our lines had to be crossed in a tricky set up.

We docked promptly at noon in a picturesque berth, ahead a valley and either side, mountains dotted with small houses.

After a traditional Sunday lunch enjoyed by all the passengers, we got underway with our afternoon excursions. The first of our tours leaving the ship today was the Streymoy Sill Hike followed then with the Vestmanna Seacliffs tour. Later we had the Island Tour and the Traditional Villages. All of our excursions were thoroughly enjoyed by all the passengers and a fun filled day was enjoyed by all.

The ship was docked and the passengers who decided to go into town had to cross the mountain using nearly 2 mile tunnel drill right across the mountain separating us from Torshavn.

We sailed this evening just after 7:30pm as we prepared to make our way to Heimaey, Iceland.

We remained there until evening and reverse our passage from this morning, dropping the pilot.

After a busy day with lots of events and excursions taking place, it was early retirement to their beds for most of our passengers whilst the rest stayed up for a late nightcap in our South Cape Bar whilst listening to the delightful sounds of our Cocktail Pianist, David Taylor

On our approach to Kirkwall, we were greated by rather grey skies although the sun kept trying to break through the clouds. Looking around, there were many sloping, green hills surrounding the small berth. Kirkwall is known for its quaint fishing village and excellent fish and chips!

The pilot boarded just before 7 o’clock, using the ladder over side, then he took the ship past the ‘Head of Holland’ and by 8am we had the ship in position at Hatston Pier and gangway landed, ready for a day ashore.

Our tours left promptly as usual from Saga Ruby. Those passengers that decided not to tour, were treated to a beautiful town a mile from the harbour. The passengers that stayed onboard were too treated to a lovely afternoon with activities, movies and seminars.

We set sail at 5.00pm enroute to Torshaven in the Faroe Islands. We expect a smooth cruise to this destination with calm seas allowing our 12.00pm arrival to be ontime.

The day was not over yet though as we all joined the wonderful magical talents of Master Magician Philip Hitchcock in the Ballroom for our Cabaret Showtime and the Britannia Lounge provided the wonderful sounds of the Covent Garden Piano Consort. The passengers that stayed awake past 11pm were then invited to dance the night away in the pre-view Bar with our Kodex Trio until the small hours. All in all, a great day enroute to the Land of Fire and Ice.

Saga Ruby docked at Skjolden Cruise Pier last night at 11:30pm, so we were very much ready to start this morning's excursion. The first one took our passengers to Urnes Stave Church and was followed shortly by tours to the Nigardsbreen Glacier Hike.

Those who decided to stay onboard were very much surprised by the sight of the sun that broke through the clouds. Once everyone was back onboard we sailed away and with the weather on our side the open decks were crowded with passengers who had the chance to enjoy the beautiful sights of the Sognefjord. Skjolden lies at the innermost part of the fjord, so it took us nearly 8 hours to move to the open sea. The Kodex Trio were out on deck with our cruise staff and bar staff enjoying the scenery out on our open decks.

At 6:30pm we had our Britannia Cocktail Party in our Ballroom for all our Britannia Members. Unfortunately I was not able to host it this time as I was busy with the navigational duties, but our Cruise Director Jonathan Neil, was an excellent replacement.

With a whole day of jam packed entertainment on board and active tour excursions it was a very long day for all of our passengers and so it was off to bed before our next port of call in the morning, Stavanger.

This morning we docked just before 08:30am at the picturesque Flam Cruise Pier in Flam, Norway.

Flam is made famous for its railway and this is where the first of our excursions started today.

Iconic Norway was the last of our morning excursions to leave the ship today with another two trips in the afternoon on the Flam Railway followed by the Flam Railway Hike and the Fjord Village and Osterbo Mountain tour.

Independent Travellers was in the program twice again today with another chance to meet up with Mark and go ashore independently and meet like minded people if you are travelling alone.

All aboard was at 7:00pm this evening and shortly after Saga Ruby set sail for our next port of call Skjolden, Norway. An approximate four hours journey was travelled along the spectacular Sognejord and Lustrafjord.

Main Showtime this evening was with our Gail Davies Production Company at 9:45pm presenting their exciting new show Life’s A Dance.

The day was not over for me as just before midnight we docked in the port of Skjolden at the very end of the Sognefjord.

It was a very early morning for me as we picked the Norwegian pilot at 5 o’clock this morning, after nearly 3 hours cruise through the fjord, we safely docked at our first port of call - Bergen, Norway.

Bergen, being the rainy capital of Europe, worked hard for its title today and greeted us with fine shower, but luckily it did not last too long and later on we enjoyed bright weather.

Whilst most of our passengers were out on excursions we still had a full day of events on board with our duty Cruise Staff today Social Hostess, Gemma Logan.

For any of our passengers that are travelling alone and wanted to meet like-minded people to go ashore independently with Gemma was doing two meet up slots today once this morning at 9:30am and again at 1:45pm. This was an opportunity for passengers to get together and meet up for a chat before heading ashore for the day.

All aboard was at 5:00pm today. Shortly before that 2 Norwegian pilots joined the vessel. When cruising through the fjords it is law that you are required to carry local pilots due to their knowledge of the area and those 2 gentlemen will remain with us until Stavanger.

Now Saga Ruby was ready to set sail for our next port of call Flam. Our bar staff and Cruise Staff were out on deck enjoying the scenery and were joined by the Kodex Trio as we danced on the deck and enjoyed a glass of the special drink of the day a Fjords Delight.

At 8:45pm we had the first of our classical concerts in our Britannia Lounge with our Covent Garden String Consort, presenting W.A. Mozart’s Divertmento in D Major and J.S. Bach’s Concerto for 2 Violins in D Major.

Main 'Showtime' started at 9:45pm and we proudly presented international vocalist Mr Jamie Michael Stewart to our Ballroom followed by more music for dancing from our Saga Ruby Orchestra.

With a 08:30am arrival in Flam tomorrow morning all our passengers were soon off to bed as they look forward to another exciting day in port.

Good day to you all. First of all let me introduce myself. My name is Krzysztof Majdzinski and I am very proud to be the Master of Saga Ruby, the vessel that I consider the finest jewel in the Saga Fleet. Only last week I was onboard Quest for Adventure, when I was offered the chance to move here as the Master and as you can imagine I really did grab the opportunity with both hands.

I have joined the ship couple of days ago and since then I was shadowing Captain Angove as he let me into the secret world of commanding a cruise ship

We arrived this morning at the end of one cruise and by early afternoon we were ready to welcome our guests onto the Saga Ruby for a 7 day cruise to the Norwegian Fjords.

With everyone onboard we have carried out the compulsory emergency drill for all passengers and shortly after we cast off the last of the ships line and moved away from our berth at Dover Cruise terminal towards the North sea.

Onboard the ship, we had the first of our Destination Lectures, as our Cruise Director Jonathan Neal introduced our destination lecturer Susan Lang as she gave much valuable information about our first two ports of call.

For the evening entertainment in, the Grand Ballroom, our guests enjoyed a wonderful production show performed by our Gail Davies singers and dancers in a show aptly entitled “Sailaway”. There was a time change this evening to put us on track with Norwegian time when we arrived in Bergen on Saturday and so we advanced our clocks by 1 hour forward.

Pilotage into Oslo is about four hours, during which the Oslofjord is travelled, making up the majority of the 55 nautical mile passage from the pilot station into Norway’s capital city.

Part of the history of this fjord is the Battle of Drobak, which was a naval battle that took place during the Second World War when the German Kreigsmarine entered Oslofjord with the purpose of capturing Oslo, the Norwegian King and his Government.

Near the settlement of Drobak on the eastern side of the Oslofjord, just 6-7 miles after the fjord narrows, is an island sat in the middle of the waterway in a prime strategic location. Upon the island is a fortress called Oscarsborg Fortress. At the time of the engagement the fortress guns were over 40 years old (ironically made in Germany) and the fortress itself was only being maintained to drill new artillery recruits and for historical purposes. There was also a twin tube torpedo battery sunken into a cave a short distance further along the fjord that was not known about by anyone other than the Norwegian Military.

The pilot informed me that the Norwegian’s were half expecting an invasion at some stage but were not really sure whether it would be Nazi Germany’s desire for Empire, or the British looking to better secure their coastline that would be the instigators. He also told me that it was not until after the start of the engagement that the Norwegian’s knew it was a German Warship they were firing at, only being confirmed when they could hear the German music playing from its decks.

The Warship in question was the “Blucher” an Admiral Hipper Class Cruiser, named for the Prussian commander at the battle of Waterloo, and the flagship of the invading flotilla. The 11 inch Krupp guns on the fortress both scored direct hits, but it was the torpedoes that did the real damage, crippling the cruiser which continued for a couple of miles further down the fjord before foundering and blockading the fjord, thus slowing the invading German forces sufficiently to get the King and Government to safety.

As we sailed past the island the battery was easily visible and the cave that once housed the torpedoes could also be made out. The Blucher was actually 30 feet longer than Saga Ruby but 6 feet narrower and about 8000 tonnes lighter to give a better sense of proportion as we approached the resting place of the German cruiser. Small quantities of oil still bubble up from the wreck which now lies 30 fathoms beneath the surface, and this was visible to those looking for it as we passed over the spot where she sank.

We finally moored up in Oslo just after midday, in the prime location underneath the Akershus Fortress a prominent historical landmark in the harbour.

With such a long pilotage we could only afford a half day call in Norway’s capital city and set sail again just before 18:00 passing the ferry “Stena Saga” within the harbour limits before proceeding along the fjord and back out to sea.

This will be my last blog for a couple of months as I hand the ship over to Captain Krzysztof Majdzinski once we have traversed the North Sea and arrive back in Dover.

The journey to Kalundborg from Warnemunde involves passage through the Storebaelt or Great Belt. This is the largest of the three Danish Straights and runs in a North-South direction to the west of Zealand. This is a busy stretch of waterway and the navigable width can effectively be quite narrow depending on how deep a draft you have. Saga Ruby is deep drafted for a cruise ship, particularly given her size drawing around 8 ½ m beneath the waterline. With areas of a relatively shallow nature, particularly at the beginning of the Great Belt, Saga Ruby has to proceed at a reduced speed to reduce what is called the “squat effect”.

This is the hydrodynamic phenomenon by which a vessel moving through shallow water creates an area of lowered pressure that causes the ship to be closer to the seabed than would otherwise be expected. The faster you go the larger the squat effect is, and if not taken into consideration in relatively shallow water, there is a chance of grounding. Needless to say we always have a good safety margin built into our planned routes and err on the side of caution.

I’d been to Kalundborg before though it was some years ago when I was newly promoted to Staff Captain. I remembered it being an “awkward port” due to the relatively narrow channel within an “S” bend just before the berth. With the weather conditions marginal I decided the prudent course of taking a tug for arrival to assist with the turn to permit us to be facing the right way ready for departure. Denmark is one of the few countries that doesn’t have compulsory pilotage for vessels of Saga Ruby’s size and type, however with the need to use a tug and my Danish being somewhat nonexistent, I also reluctantly took a pilot in order to communicate with the tug effectively.

Once alongside passengers had the option of a variety of tours including going by coach to Copenhagen. We do go on the ship to Copenhagen sometimes but this would have taken us until lunchtime leaving us with only a half day call before we would have to depart again for Oslo.

The one advantage of turning to face bow out in the morning, and the weather forecast actually being correct in predicting that the wind would drop to calmer conditions, was that this meant that I wouldn’t need the tug for departure and could also therefore dispense with the need of a pilot. Having first navigated the S-bend slowly, needing to use the bow thruster as well as a split on the engines to help negotiate both turns, we proceeded back out to sea and through the Samso Belt towards the north.

As predicted there was a couple of areas of fog to contend with as we proceeded towards Germany along the Polish coastline. Though these were not as extensive as I’d anticipated being somewhat pessimistic with regard to the weather conditions, they did ensure that I couldn’t stray too far from bridge deck just in case!

The seas remained smooth though as we progressed towards Warnemunde, Rostock’s most northern district and a former fishing village. Now Warnemunde is a resort, with all the trappings that go with it, kind of like a German version of Blackpool but substituting rock for sausages and instead of a tower they have a lighthouse!

The approaches and channel are shared with Rostock, with Warnemunde sat at the mouth of the river Warnow. This stands to reason really, being as that is exactly what Warnemunde means - “Warnow mouth”.

The approaches are marked by the obligatory buoyed channel which marks a strip of seabed that is maintained at a certain depth suitable for the deepest vessel that would be expected to use it. In this case, with cargo ships bound for Rostock sharing the channel, the depth was a comfortable 14.5 m (45 ft). No sooner are you through the breakwaters than you have to stop the engines to slow down in order to safely approach the berth. We turned on arrival, parking just behind another similar sized cruise ship, the Silver Whisper, and settled alongside for a quiet Sunday in port.

Passengers, of course had the option of going to Berlin by coach, though this involved an early start. It’s a bit of a hike into Berlin so to ensure that there is enough time to see some of Germany’s capital having gone to the effort of going there, the sailing time from Warnemunde was a little later at 9pm.

With everyone onboard and only a short delay due to inbound ferry traffic, Saga Ruby sailed back out into the Baltic and headed towards our next stop, Kalundborg.