After Grutness Voe we continued to Lerwick, stopping overnight in another bay along the coast. It was windy, rainy and cold so we didn’t go ashore, but we admired the beautiful coastline from under the dodger 😉

I somehow caught a flu somewhere and had a fever for two days ( some of the teens and Tim and Alex also didn’t feel amazing so we decided to stay in Lerwick a little longer. The weather continued to be windy and rainy so it actually turned out good timing to take it easy, play games, explore around town and we celebrated Alex his 2nd birthday! 🙂 Lerwick is a beautiful city, I loved the look of the stone houses, the little alleyways and cozy coffeeshops. There is also a huge playground which was a hit with Tim and Alex once they started to feel better. On Monday the 10th we threw of the lines again and continued North, past the rugged coast line. A cold northerly wind was still blowing and the rain was painfully hitting our face as we peaked out over the dodger. There are moments I do long back to the blue warm waters of the tropics, but this rugged landscape is also convincingly beautiful. And not just the landscape is amazing, I also like the fact that we are usually anchored in the bays alone, the harbours aren’t crowded and we rarely see people on the hikes we do ( except Ben Nevis…) It’s worth the cold. And of course we now have a heater onboard! Such Luxury 😉 It already feels so normal that it’s warm inside, I sometimes wonder how we managed to live without a heater for so many years..

We anchored in Hamna Voe, a bay at mouth of Yell Sound. The wind finally gave a us a little break and even the sun showed it’s face every now and then. We spend some time on the beach, and taking little walks ashore. On the 13th there was a short but good weather window to make our passage of 190nm to the Faroe Islands. We left in the morning, timing it to have the tide with us through Yell Sound. It was a lovely morning as we raced passed little isles and rocks and the sun shone warm on our backs. As the day continued the wind started to pick up as we knew it would and of course so did the waves. A few dolphins greeted us shortly as Guppy kept picking up speed and we kept taking down more sail. By the following morning we were sailing with a double reef and only the smallest piece of genua boomed out. The sun had gone again, and we were once again surrounded by low hanging cloud. Guppy was merrily rolling, as short steep waves came in from the stern. I heard more plates fly from the Galley counter and reminded someone to hold their cup and not just put it down next to them. The group needed to get used to the rolling and the facts that everything onboard was trying to attack them, but most of them seemed to actually enjoy the waves and wilder seas. A few of them spend a good while sitting on the bow sprit, flying over the seas. It does feel amazing up there. In the cockpit it’s hard to feel how fast we really go, but on the bow you can hear the waves and see Guppy pound through the seas. I love the feeling as well. A bit like being in the front of the rollercoaster 😉

We arrived in Torshaven in the afternoon and after we had rounded off the formalities with customs and immigration everyone went ashore to explore. It’s amazing how we sailed only for one and a half day and have again landed in a different world. These islands are very different from the Orkney and Shetland Islands. Not only are they much steeper and rougher but the culture is very scandinavian. Torshavn is quiet a big city ( for these regions) but even walking through the town you will find lovely little houses with grass roofs. This morning we walked for 40 minutes to a small waterfall and I thought how cool it is that the landscape is still so clear within the city. between the houses are areas with boulders, rocks, grass and sheep. Now we just hope that the weather will be friendly and we get to explore more of this fascinating and beautiful island group.

Laura