A short sail later
We opened our curtains in Lysekil, Sweden.
We quietly slipped out of Copenhagen as we chatted with friends last night and sailed the short distance overnight to our first port. The Captain said that we may be reminded we were on board a ship during the night because he expected some lively seas. We needed no rocking for a good night’s sleep however!
He’d also warned of “liquid sunshine” during our stay in Lysekil and the view on opening our curtains this morning suggested he could be correct. Better take jackets and sweaters then.
Checking in for our tour this morning in the usual way, we noted - and appreciated - the calm approach of our fellow travellers. Like so many other similar situations, these processes work better when everyone follows the procedure. The tried and tested system works and that was the case this morning. We collected our tickets, awaited the call for our group and made our way out and onto the quayside.
Leaving the harbour, our guide tried to teach us the correct pronunciation of Lysekil. I wrote “Lusheshil” in my notebook but that’s not correct. Every time we heard the name spoken, we tried to get it right but sadly, never did!
We didn’t have to go very far - a couple of km - to the boat which would take us on the “Seal Safari” we’d planned for this morning. We climbed on board, receiving a warm welcome from Yvonne and her husband there at the wheel and made a quick decision - was the weather fine enough to sit up top in the open air?
We thought we’d take the risk and settled into comfy chairs, thinking that if those heavens opened or the icy blast was too much, then we’d go inside. But for now, we were here for the fresh air and fun!
As we sailed out of Lysekil, we thought we might even have spotted a small patch of blue sky!
Well, who’d have thought it?! Our optimism was rewarded with a bit of sunshine too! We sailed further into the Gullmarn fjord, which we learned is a true fjord with steep sides and a very deep channel. We learned too, that it has a threshold; a kind of “doorstep” at the entrance which prevented ships with a large draught from entering the fjord proper, meaning that Lysekil was never spoiled with an oil terminal or similar.
All around us were small lighthouses. The area is full of these small red granite outcrops, weather beaten into rounded shapes and interesting to sail through. How many of these were just under the water though? How challenging must it be to sail through these waters not knowing what was where? We were surprised there were no buoys, no markers to alert sailors to such underwater hazards.
Mindful of the title of our excursion this morning,we were keeping an eye open for wildlife though so far, there’d just been the odd bird. Thankfully, they were far enough away to be of no bother to me!
Our Captain alerted us when we entered the small natural harbour where the seals were likely to be. Sure enough, on a couple of rocky islands, a bunch of harbour seals were snoozing in the sunshine.
We didn’t sail close enough to disturb them, nor catch a whiff of their distinctive aroma, but sailed by and snapped pictures, leaving them in peace.
Our route took us through another natural harbour, where the wind was less brisk and there was more shelter for boats. We’d seen a few leisure yachts and small boats out in the sunshine this morning and I can imagine this to be a great place to spend a few days exploring. We’d learned that this area had been famous for herring fishing and that processing these herring had been the foundation for Lysekil’s prosperity. But these huge shoals of herring were no more and the few fishing boats we spotted were unlikely to be making much of a living.
We did, however, see what brought most of the wealth into this region of Sweden, waiting out there to enter the next fjord along, where there was an oil terminal.
All the time we were sailing, the light was changing and we hoped we would stay dry. Yvonne said it had been a really wet summer so far and that yesterday had been a total wash out. How fortunate we were then, to have such lovely weather (so far!)
We sailed though another of the small natural harbours where the local yacht club has some moorings available for members, who could stay overnight and enjoy a couple of the larger rocky islands.
This whole area was so unspoiled and really beautiful.
As we sailed through that narrow channel, exchanging “Good Morning” with the owners of each small boat, we were suddenly in a more populated area again. Youngsters were sailing small boats, learning the craft of yachting which is surely a life skill around here.
We turned around in the small harbour of Grundsund, wondering how practical it was to live here year round, or whether these were solely summer homes? We learned there was a small year-round population, however income was mostly generated by tourism these days.
From here, we took a more direct route back to Lysekil, joined at times by some more adventurous sailors than we were. Those skies were becomign more threatening and we hoped the few drops of rain we felt were not going to turn into a deluge!
Thankfully they did not and by the time we reached home, the sun had come out again. Feeling peckish from a morning in the fresh air, we were ready for a spot of lunch!
This afternoon, we’d planned a second tour, but questioned whether or not to cancel. We’d been so lucky this morning, what it it poured with rain this afternoon and we were left feeling miserable?! Then again, what if we missed out on seeing what sounded like another beautiful place? We might not come this way again….
And so, off we went again, this time getting on the regular, everyday ferry across the harbour, bound for Skaftö island and a tour entitled Art and Culture in Fiskebäckskil. Once again, we tried to learn the pronunciation of Fiskebäckskil and once again, we failed miserably.
Our guide gave us the choice. We could walk with her, up to the small wooden church, or we could do our own thing, sit and have coffee and potter about. Whatever, we’d meet back here for the 4pm ferry back.
We set off with her towards the church, together with a huge group of others, thinking that this might not be the best way to see this place. However, she was interesting and explained things about which we were curious so we stuck with her and our thirty friends.
Such a place isn’t really great for exploring in such a large group though, so it wasn’t long before we decided we’d peel off and wander about independently. I wanted to take photos and my Hero was simply happy to be here.
So off we went. We’d got a good idea of where we were, for it was a small place, and being alone meant we could chat to people and feel a little more “at home”. We smiled at the young woman trying to teach her cute dog to stop on command, giggled with her when he got it wrong and then greeted her once more later, when we encountered her coming back. It’s this kind of encounter which we remember, which singles a place out from others and which I particularly enjoy.
By ourselves, we could stop and notice things, take photos and decide which of these houses we’d choose.
And of course, when we spotted the ice cream hut, we could stop and take a break. Buying ice cream also made for another amusing conversation with the two young women operating the ice cream sales.
Me: “Can I pay by card, please?” Ans: “Sorry, we don’t have internet right now” Him: “How much would two ice creams be? Perhaps I have enough cash?” Ans: “Sorry, we don’t take cash! But we’ll serve you the ice cream here and you can pay with your card over in the cafe”.
So that’s what I did. My hero bought the ice cream and I went over to pay another delightful young woman who didn’t seem quite sure why I was paying her for ice cream and not her colleague in the hut. And my non-existent Swedish was no use whatsoever!
I returned to the hut where my Hero was holding two cones. He had had such a funny chat with the ice cream girls, who had complimented him on his command of English. “But I have had years of experience” he said with a wink - “Oh”, they giggled, “We thought you were German!”
The liquorice ice cream was terrific and spending the rest of our stay in this delightful small town sitting in the sunshine was perfect. And yes, of course we were back at the meeting point to catch the 4pm ferry home.
