Norway by Judy Lomax

RCC Pilotage Foundation

Published by Imray First edition 2007

ISBN 978 085288 940 4

The UK recommended retail price £45

This new cruising guide produced by the publishers Imray in collaboration with the Royal Cruising Club Pilotage Foundation fills a long overdue gap as the existing guides were out of date and some areas, such as Spitsbergen, poorly covered. In the last seventeen years, the author Judy Lomax, and her husband David have visited Norway on their 35 foot Cloud Walker on ten separate occasions. Their profound knowledge comes through on every page of this highly readable book which should appeal equally to those planning a cruise to Norway but also to any armchair sailor who, for whatever reason, prefers to leave high latitude voyaging to such an enterprising couple as Judy and David.

The bulk of the book deals with mainland Norway and covers virtually every cove and anchorage between the Swedish border in the south and the Russian border in the frozen north. The charts and plans are of the highest quality, while the colour photographs, mostly taken by David, are excellent. This is particularly true of the many photographs taken in Svalbard (Spitsbergen) which Judy and David have visited twice, once making a detour to the even less frequently visited Jan Mayen Island. The RCC Foundation already has some absolute gems in its ever-expanding collection of cruising guides but, in this reviewer’s opinion, none as informative and attractive as this latest offering.