Blog 15 Figeholm, Idö, Loftahammar

The last few days weather had got into a pattern of low wind with early sun then at 3 pm on the dot thunderclouds with all the trimmings dampening everything until evening. This discouraged our first attempts at using a nature harbour - which are effectively sheltered spots at the back of a pile of rocks where nobody in their right mind would normally take a boat and where you tie to a tree, a stone - or anything you can find. However they are always very beautiful and isolated. We did sail right into one where a friend had run aground some years before then chickened out, unwound our track out of the boulders and wove our way on through to the harbour at Figeholm.

A strange little place in the fashion of riverside boating since, within sight, the water was only the width of a river between the pink granite isles. The village apparently had no centre, that is, we walked miles trying to find the focus of activity but I don't think there was one - in fact even the marina was in three bits which were not connected other than by road. I remember the young German couple from Berlin who were glued to their radio listening to their narrow victory against Algeria in the World Cup, I wished them success in the next match - against France - they smiled a knowing smile.

By the next day the rain had drenched our enthusiasm for risking a second nature harbour ( doing what the Swedes do ) and set out to sea in the morning sun for a longish trek to Idö. To our delight, a seal came to inspect us and having slowed down, he followed astern, his sleek black head pushing though the flat calm water making a silvery wake sparkling in the sunlight.

Back among the skerries, our entry into Idö was a little fraut, we hit the anchor line of a moored boat, got free eventually and set our own stern anchor only to find the dreaded "lazy lines" in use. Panic reverse to retrieve our anchor before grabbing the smelly lazy line and tie up without more embarrassment other than to clear up the pile of seaweed fished up on deck by the anchor.

Idö is a little island paradise, we will probably stay a few days - walking around this afternoon after the 3 o-clock rain cloud had managed only a few spots, we were struck by the beauty of the tree cover flowing over the profile of the pink granite bedrock and wild flowers everywhere and glassy inlets taking the sea into the landscape where it laps on low wooden landing stages, which in turn, borrows landscape from the sea - Arctic terns twist and plummet onto the sea then wheel away screeching their scratchy call yet still with a fish in their beaks. 100 mtrs off the stern from our mooring is Nora Bockholmen, a small granite island - uninhabited - one of many - which we rounded in the Avon dinghy. Later in the day we went on foot around the perimeter through the charcteristic mixed woodland - I am not often lost for words but it felt like another world - one of utter peace and beauty, there is no point trying to describe how wonderful it was, I shall only fail.

Having arrived at Loftahammar only a short while ago, I shall leave any comments until next time.