The Faroe Islands 3-5 September
We eagerly looked ahead to catch a first glimpse of the Faroe Islands. It had been a long, tough journey since we left Iceland. Mid-afternoon, we saw contours ahead of us, but were not certain if it was land or clouds rising in the distance, out of the steely grey ocean. It was with great satisfaction when the outlines of the distant mountains became clear, though we still had a long way to sail.
We entered the long Kalsoyar fjord as the sun was setting, outlining the mountains on both sides. Sparse settlements along the fjord were visible with a few lights, as we turned a headland to view Klaksvik. We moored alongside Hummingbird, our sister yacht. It was already 10pm and the watch system was suspended. We were both glad to get into a steady bunk and sleep through the night.
The plan for the following day was to take a 9am ferry to Syöradalur on a neighbouring island, take a bus, and go for a steep hike to the Kallur Lighthouse via James Bond’s grave. This meant nothing to us: wasn’t Mr Bond a fictional character? The trail is apparently steep with sharp drop-offs on either side. Lynne wasn’t sure she had the energy after being laid low for 2 days, so we decided to give this a miss. Peter’s vertigo was also a factor in this decision… Instead, we had a relaxing morning, with a leisurely shower aboard, breakfast ashore in a lovely coffee shop and then went for our own walk, just the two of us.
Our skipper, Phoebe pointed out a park worth visiting, but first a great breakfast, a quality cup of coffee (coffee on board was not worth drinking…) and catching up with family on WhatsApp.
The weather was kind, much warmer than at sea. We ventured out as schoolchildren were on their way to lunch. We were surprised by how many young children were overweight; they were enjoying the last of the summer in short sleeves. We felt we had overdressed.
The Faroe Islands have been a part of Denmark since 1380, before that being ruled by Norway. The total population is only 55,000 across the 18 major islands. Klaksvik lies between 2 inlets, originally consisting of disparate dwellings. Two avalanches hit the area both on 12 March in 1745 and then 1765, devastating farms and their inhabitants. So, after the second avalanche replacement dwellings were built where Klaksvik is now.
We followed the main road out of town until we found the park we sought. Faroe is famous as it has no natural trees – the barren rocks, the salty atmosphere, the constant wind all mitigate against tree growth. This park was in a crook of the open fjord, with a lovely, contained forest. We took a path which ascended steeply through the trees to one waterfall, where we stopped for a snack, took photos and enjoyed the view, before climbing to a second waterfall.
The walk was glorious and peaceful. The heavens were forgiving, the air was clear, the forest pretty, the waterfalls tumbling, and the wonderful feeling that we were somewhere few had ever visited. The view across the fjord was beautiful, with the warming sun glinting in the water. Could it get better?
We descended, crossed the main road into the lower level of the forest park, sauntering beside the water’s edge following a path back to the coffee shop near the marina. It was then that Lynne discovered that she could not find her glasses. It was only 2pm and we weren’t setting sail until 16.00. So, we had time to retrace our steps back to the park, to the first waterfall where we had stopped for a snack, and we found them where they had fallen behind the bench we had sat on. What luck! We had plenty of time to return by a similar path back to the coffee shop, for a luxurious smoothie, ginger hot! After days at sea, walking nowhere, we clocked up more than 13,000 steps!
Just after 4pm we set sail for Torshavn, the city with the least hours of sunshine in the world. We crossed under several mystery steel lines crossing high above the fjord, each about 50m apart. Everybody assumed they were power lines, but it didn’t make sense, as one would never design electrical power distribution in this way. More likely it was some sort of Very Low Frequency antenna arrangement, used to communicate with submarines over vast distances.
Lynne managed some time at the helm, hoping the concentration in looking at the horizon would ward off the return of any motion sickness. During Peter’s stint at the helm, the boat seemed to be veering off course – a lot! This happened several times – until the cause was found. Lynne had decided to take a picture of Peter at the helm, with her iPhone. Because the foulies didn’t have any pockets, she had then put the phone into the top pocket of the binnacle not realising that this interfered with the compass!
We managed to avoid rain but there were plenty of dark clouds which passed by. We had a difficult berth in Torshavn marina, which took two attempts, due to the number and size of other boats, needing our Skipper to perform a complicated and difficult reversing manoeuvre in to the side of Hummingbird, which had arrived before us.
We were due to have a full day here in the capital, so Peter booked a table at a highly recommended restaurant for dinner the following evening. Although we arrived late, there was time for the land hungry (and thirsty) crew to climb up the narrow streets near the marina to a craft beer house, Mikkeller, which didn’t shut till midnight. It was a jolly and rowdy atmosphere, so as we weren’t setting sail for more than 24 hours, we were very happy to enjoy a couple of glasses of wine.
Someone discovered that The Faroe Islands were playing Croatia at football on the following day in a World Cup qualifying match, but with a stadium capacity of only 6,500, no tickets were available!
We were up early to avail ourselves of the marina showers and then the prospect of a leisurely breakfast, followed by a stroll around the quaint town. But all that changed suddenly, as storms were forecast and we were obliged to set sail at midday. Peter quickly had to cancel the booked restaurant, and we rushed to find a supermarket to buy bottled water and a bottle of smoothie for Lynne, in an effort to prevent further seasickness…
The weather was fine as we set sail, and Lynne was in fine fettle, scampering on deck to help with the slip ropes and fenders, even daring to strike a warrior post beside the main sail as we gracefully sailed out of the harbour! As we left Torshavn, we performed a necessary ‘wet’ Man Overboard drill. This built on the dry MOB we performed before we left Iceland.
The Wet MOB drill was performed with a floating fender standing in for a person casualty (also known as PIW – Person In Water). The exercise involved those spotting the PIW to cry out “Man Overboard!” and stand by the helm, pointing and never losing eye contact. Another would throw out a floating ‘Dan Buoy’ marker including a tall pillar, a light and AIS (Automatic Identification System) beacon. The crew would drop the main and foresails, start the engine, and manoeuvre the boat in an ordained way to approach so the PIW was on the lee side.
During this, the rescue person would be getting ready, with Fladen suit and harness, preparing to be hoisted down the side of the boat with a big hook (fixed to another hoist line) to secure the PIW. Meanwhile, at the winches, the operators would ease the rescuer down, and later hoist them back up into safety.
This time it was Andrew who volunteered (or did he?) to be the rescuer. He heroically clipped himself in with the big hook, was lowered down the side of the boat and rescued the unfortunate fender! Well done Andrew!
We now headed off on the 280 Nautical Miles to Scotland. We were first headed towards the Shetland Islands, to make the most of the wind, and to alleviate the boat’s movement against the swell direction. Consideration was also to avoid high winds on our way. We would then change direction towards Stornoway. This would require three nights’ sailing, so another 3-hour on , 6-hour off watch with a different set of crew members this time. The two of us were on different shifts again so we felt like ships passing in the night…literally.
Some beautiful dramatic scenery
Amazing photos they are stunning views
Love that you scuppered Peter’s turn at the helm to prove that women are better at steering!!