O is for "D/S Oster" in ABC Wednesday

Today's post is a tribute to a real veteran - "D/S Oster". The ship is an example of the archetypical coastal steamer that sailed along the coast of Norway in the late part of the 19th century and well into the 20th. Oster had its base in Bergen and was for many years the largest of the vessels that connected the Northern part of the county of Hordaland with the city of Bergen. The two first pictures show the ship moored at the quay in a small place called Bjørsvik.

The ship was built en 1908 and is thus 100 years old this year - a fact that will be heavily celebrated. It was built at Christiansands Mæk. Værksted (in Kristiansand in the Southern part of Norway) and had initially these specification:

Length: 106,1 feet
Width: 21.7 feet
Deep-draught: 9,7 feet
Gross tonnage: 167
Passengers: 265
Engine (coal): Christiansands Mek. V. trippel expansion 54 nom. hp.

It was also built more or less like an ice-breaker, since the fjords in the inner part of the county always froze in the winter and the people became isolated. In 1915 it was extended, so that the length became 118,6 feet, the gross tonnage 191, and the number of passengers it could carry was increased to 312.

The ships carried all sorts of goods - from cows to cereal and post to planks. It (and is smaller siblings) represented the main artery for the whole area. Along the coast of Norway all connections had been via the fjords. However, by 1964 the time had caught up with "D/S Oster". New and more modern ships, and not the least - more modern roads, cars and buses had taken over much of the work that "Oster" had done. Despite a large local action (including the song "Dar kjem dampen" by Ivar Medaas, which became a classic Norwegian song), the ship was sold off, rebuilt as "M/S Vaka" and disappeared from history - for a while.

However, in 1996 some enthusiasts managed to get hold of the old ship and have since then done a marvellous job with the restoration. They had to get a "new" steam engine from England (alas, not coal) and they are steadily getting closer to the look the ship had when it was a "proper" steamer. Below the ship is moored in Bergen during the "Norsteam 2005" festival.

I am old enough to have travelled with this ship. I have my roots in the area in which it sailed, and I can vouch for the importance that these ships had for the district. Since it was fired by coal it was never difficult to see where it was. Nowadays it is fired by oil, but as you can see - it can still send up a bit of steam. Here at Ostereidet.


The sound of the steam-whistle close by used to scare the wits out of me as a small boy. It still has the same sound. If you have a couple of minutes to spare - please watch and hear this little video showing the ship entering and leaving Ostereidet last year.







PS For more about ABC Wednesday, please visit Mrs. Nesbitt's Place. It is well worth the effort.