Fiskebäkskil 30th June

We left Hyppeln on the 26th, and sailed the 9 nm to Marstrand, having kept clear of the well marked isolated rock outside Hyppeln harbour.

We started out under full sail, but as soon as we headed north, the wind was almost on the nose.
So, we wound in the genoa and motorsailed the rest of the way.
 On the way, a sailing ship from Liverpool passed the other way.Her name was hidden by an inflateable dinghy.

The way in to Marstrand was interesting, and we could see the huge fortifications overlooking the harbour - Carlsten Festninger. This site was fought over several times during the wars with Sweden. The Danes took it under the leadership of the Norwegian born Tordenskjol, but it was eventually given back to Sweden.

On the way in to Marstrand we were overtaken by a lifeboat, these have a fair turn of speed.

Our main reason for visiting Marstrand was to find a cash machine, but we had to take the little ferry over to Koön to find one outside a supermarket. It is a cable ferry.

 This harbour is one of the biggest sailsport centres in Sweden, and many regattas are held here. There are many fashionable shops on the front, and a boatyard on the other side. Marstrand is also home to many shipowners, and many foreign going ships are registered here - not that they ever come here!

The pontoons were rather low, so we deployed our newly aquired bow ladder, this has since been adjusted a little. Later we met many more low floating pontoons. We spent a very uncomfortable night in Marstrand, as the stiff northwester pushed the swell right through the moorings. The pontoons swayed and the Y booms bobbed up and down, so the boat bucked and snatched at the ropes. Marstrand marks the boundary between the Kattegat and the Skaggerak, so from now on the coast is open to the northern north sea.

We atayed just the one night here, then set sail for Skärhamn, which is on the western side of the island of Tjörn. Tjörn is a fairly big island with a bridge connection to the mainland. The route from Marstrand was winding and at times narrow between skerries - some awash. I don't think I would like to navigate these waters without the chartplotter! At least one person would have to concentrate on the navigation.

                                       A view of the outer skerries

                                          A tricky narrow turn

Just before arriving in Skärhamn, we caught a good sized sea trout - the evening's meal.

This area used to be full of fishing boats, after the herring which at one time was abundant. Nowadays, only the fishermen's huts are left and many are coverted for tourist accommodation. The few miles we sailed today were really beautiful, although it demanded full concentration.

                                           A rock monster waiting to catch the unwary.


We liked Skärhamn, it has great charm and gives full protection from the wind in all directions. We arrived early at Skärhamn, so we poked our nose into a little bay called Sunna holme, a beautiful anchorage, provided the wind is not from the southern quarter. We dropped the hook here and had lunch. We also watched carefully how the Swedes moor to the rocks, with a stern anchor out.

 I think we are getting a bit old for jumping off the bow onto the rocks with a rope! We found a nice spot in the harbour for the night, right in the middle. We were moored to the staging built around a huge boulder. This little islet housed the harbour office , and was connected to the shore by a short wooden bridge. We were perfectly sheltered behind the rock, even though it blew about 18 kn from the northwest.

                                            sheltered behind a rock
There was a large ICA supermarket a short walk from the harbour, there were also a couple of chandlery shops here, although one of them sold mainly clothing and sports goods. We bought two new lifejackets, a pair of "vanderstav" - nordic walking sticks, and a pair of Ecco walking shoes for Rie.

                                          Even the church had a happy face!

The next morning we set off again to Grundsund. This was a place we had visited by car a couple of years ago, and which led to planning this cruise. The distance was only 17 nm, but we anchored up for lunch in an anchorage south of Gullholmen. We passed through several narrow sounds today, incuding Kyrkesund, which was lined with many homes with their own private landing stages.

The approach to Grundsund was easy, the harbour lies behind a long curved mole. We moored alongside a Norwegian boat, and went for a walk through the little alleyways, characteristic of this place. We found a reasonable supermarket here too.

 

While in Grundsund, we contacted Thomas and Britt, whom we had met at my cousin's in Wales earlier this year. It turned out that their house was near to Fiskebäkskil harbour, so we made that our next destination though it was only 4.5 nm away. This is also a nice harbour to be in.

                                           approaching the harbour in Fiskebäkskil

They came down to see us, and we went with them in the car to their house for lunch. Their house was built in a beautiful location overlooking Gullmarn fjord. The wind piped up to near gale during the day, with leaves and small branches getting blown off the trees, so we were glad Restless was tucked up in a safe harbour. We had a fair amount of rain in the afternoon and evening too. The outlook for the next few days was also windy, from the south. As that is the way we want to go next, so we decided to have another day in Fiskebäkskil.