A NAVAL ENCOUNTER A few years ago, on a visit to my family in Norway, I stumbled onto what looked like a navy ship approaching the pier I was standing on in Moss,  Norway.  As no one was there to handle the mooring lines, I raised my hand and volunteered to do that, all the while thinking that the ship looked very much like the minesweeper on which I had served in Portland, Maine while I was in the Naval Reserve.  It turned out to be an identical "sweeper". After all lines were secured, I got to chatting with some of the deck crew, who looked a little "mature" to be currently serving in the Royal Norwegian Navy.  Sure enough. they all had prior service in the navy or merchant marine.  All were members of the KNM Alta Society, which is charged with maintaining and operating the ship, which is owned by the Norwegian Defense Department.  They told me that the "sweeper", Royal Norwegian Ship (KNM) Alta, M 314, had been built in 1953 in East Boothbay, Maine, served for thirty years in the Norwegian Navy, and was currently no longer in active service, but was a museum ship. It is also on the international register of Historic Naval Ships.  The difference between KNM Alta and most ships on the historic register is that Alta gets underway and operates on several voyages each summer. The Alta is of the same design and construction as US Navy coastal minesweepers (MSC's) of the 1950's era.  Built of wood with non-ferrous metal fittings, her length is 144 feet, a beam of 28 feet, and a draft of 8.5 feet, displacing 344 tons fully loaded.  She is powered by twin GM 440 hp diesel engines and cruises at 13 knots. Her wooden hull, designed to counteract magnetic mines, provided more buoyancy than would be experienced on a steel ship.  That is to say, in any kind of sea she bounced like a cork. The crewmembers explained what was necessary to join the KNM Alta Society: former naval or merchant marine service, an interest in participating, and 200 Norwegian crowns(about $35).  As a retired US naval officer, I joined on the spot The summer of 2006, the tenth year of the Society's operating the vessel, Alta went on an eight day cruise from Oslo, Norway, visiting two ports in Sweden; Marstrand and Gothenburg, and two in Norway; Arendal and Risør.  As a member of the Society, I had the good fortune to participate in the adventure. As a first timer "new kid" on board it was made clear to me that rank was not an issue. We were all members of the Society, and were treated as equals.  The only exceptions were the Captain and Executive Officer, who wore rank insignia when performing official functions on board or ashore.  I was assigned to the deck force, handled lines, stood lookout watches, and slept in three deep pipe berths in an open living compartment. Watches were only one hour in length, so it was not so stressful.  It was great to be at sea again on a well-disciplined ship. When we entered Swedish waters, we were greeted by a Swedish minesweeper of 1940's vintage, and escorted into port at the island of Marstrand, near Gothenburg.  This was an unusual, if not unique, occasion of two "Historic Naval Ships" of different countries operating in company.  The next day we proceeded to Gothenburg, spent two days there, and left for an overnight voyage across the Skagerak to Arendal, Norway.  The Skagerak is the body of water bounded by Norway to the north, Sweden to the east, Denmark to the south and the North Sea to the west. In the Skagerak winds were approaching 40 knots with 12 to 15 foot seas and the ship rolling 45 degrees from the vertical as our course put us right in the trough of the waves.  We were rolling so hard that the clapper on the ship's bell would toll before we rolled back the other way.  From the bridge, on the worst rolls, we could hear the crockery in the galley crashing to the deck.  Our crossing was otherwise successful with very little damage to the ship and no injuries to  the crew After a brief visit to Arendal we proceeded on to Risør, Norway, where we participated in the annual wooden boat festival.  As KNM Alta M 314 is Norway’s largest wooden vessel, we were welcomed with open arms to join in the festivities. Our ship's Captain, Captain (Sr.gr.) Sven Erik Eriksen, was invited to give the opening speech for the Festival. We had a lot of VIP visitors on board during our stay, including the president of the Norwegian Parliament After several fun and interesting days in Risør, we set our course for Oslo and our home base.  What a wonderful experience; great shipmates, great food, great weather and a stout ship.  I'm very glad to have had that time on board, and happy that I volunteered to take Alta’s mooring lines several years ago. Gus Karlsen Commander, USN( ret) 640 Seashore Avenue Peaks Island, Maine 04108 USA