Another sleepless night, but this time for other reasons. I have to tell you (and it is probably more information than you want to know) but these hot flushes are just getting old. I mean really old. I wake up in the middle of the night sweating and impossibly hot so I throw off the covers and try to cool down, then I am cold, so I pull the covers back over me, then I get hot and throw off the covers, ad infinitum for the rest of the night.

I am only getting about two hours sleep a night when you throw the "waking up because I am hot and then waking up because I am cold" scenarios into the mix. Sheesh, enough already.




It is hard to stay in a bad mood, though when you wake up to a warm, sunny day in this island paradise. It seems as though we are to be blessed with a stable, slow moving high pressure system for the next few days. It means lots of lovely sunshine but possibly not much in the way of wind, so we think it will be good to drift slowly along this bit of the archipelago then tack across the waters to the outer island archipelago of Väderöarna (literally The Weather Islands).

While it is a longer route to weave among the islands, it means we can avoid the waves out in the open water and we hope that will help Lambi feel more secure. She is not happy if the boat rolls through rough water and there is no way we can reassure her that it's all okay. The birds on the other hand, being tough Aussies, remain oblivious of any changes and happily continue to chat, eat and snooze no matter what. The other advantage of taking the inner route is that you get changing scenery to look at. Miles and miles of open water as far as the eye can see gets a bit dull after a few hours.

As you would expect on such a beautiful summer's day, there are many boats out and every island has parties of people lying on the rocks sunning themselves.




There are many, many charter boats out as well and even a few Swedish boats as we head south. When we near the island where Ingrid Bergman had her summer house, we head more to the west and the isolated island group we can see far in the distance. We make slow, steay progress across the sea and even get to see our first fishing boat out working in the water. We had spotted it quite a long way off heading in our direction and when it came closer we saw that it was hauling in its nets. The local bird population have heard the good news and are ready to swoop on any scraps that may be going. I was amazed to see just how long these nets were - kilometres and kilometres of it!




We had plenty of time to study the chart for the area as well as the nature harbour description while we sailed. The islands are described as being a popular destination, so we wondered just how crowded it would be there. While all of the main places would no doubt be full of boats, we hoped to find somewhere a little out of the way to moor. The area contains a couple of hundred islands, however most of them are out of bounds as they are protected areas for seals. I always keep my eyes peeled for these guys whenever I am in an area designated as being near a seal zone, but haven't had much luck. Today it was quite different. As we approached the first islands in the north, there was a strong, fishy sort of smell and I glanced over the side of the boat to see this cutie swimming next to us.




Over the course of the next hour or so, we saw at least six of these curious, gentle creatures pop their heads up and swim lazily around checking us out. I was suitably excited, being childishly enamoured of seals. How wonderful to see them out in their natural environment.

As we had anticipated, the main mooring spots near the lighthouse at Väderö-Storö were packed tight with boats, but we had seen on the charts that a little used bay next to the lighthouse, though shallow and containing one or two rocks just below the surface, might be a good place to anchor. However, there were large signs fordidding anchoring anywhere, except the guest harbour, from June 1st to August 31st! There were no cables where we wanted to go and there seemed no logical reason for the restriction, except that perhaps they preferred you to pay their outrageous harbour fee instead. Why forbid anchoring during the very time when boats are going to be there?

We went back a little way, hoping to find a spot on the western side of the island. This area is also popular, so we hesitated to go there so late as it was bound to be full. Our spirits were a little low as we saw a forest of masts in that direction, knowing that we faced the prospect of heading back to the mailnalnd if the alternative harbour was full. Imagine our joy when we rounded the north of Storö and found a deep crack in the rocks that was empty and which we quickly grabbed.




Once we were safely tied up with plenty of ropes, fenders, a gang plank and the bimini we enjoyed a welcome gin and tonic and dinner in the warm evening sun. We discussed why this bay was empty while the other mooring places were packed like sardines. I think that because the sides of the cliffs are quite steep, it means that it is harder to come on to land. But most boats have a dinghy of some kind, so it is easy to row or motor to a suitable sunbathing, picnic or bbq spot and what you gain by being here is privacy, peace and protection from winds. We felt very snug and cosy. From the top of the island, you get a fabulous view across the northern part of the archipelago. Fiona's mast is visible on the right hand side of the picture and there is another boat around the corner. The islands further away are protected areas, so we are unable to go there, but tomorrow we want to visit the main harbour behind us and see the lighthouse.




In the morning, it was hot, still and sunny. We packed up lots of fresh water and a small picnic and took the dinghy out for a spin around to the main harbour. Our route took us down the west side of the island, to the popular nature harbour of Strömsund, which lies between Storö and Stora Hejen. Even though it was early in the day, the boats were already filling up the shore. I am glad we didn't try and moor here - with the current in the sound bouncing the boats a little and the constant stream of passing traffic, I'd feel a bit like a zoo exhibit.




This narrow sound was a well known harbour in the 1500s and 1600s. The strong currents in the North Sea drove ships in here during strong south-westerly storms and gales. Apparently local fishermen used to help pilot these lost ships in to safety in emergencies. Despite that help, this isolated area is somewhat of a shipwreck coast and we have seen many diving boats out with parties of eager divers exploring the wrecks. When you look at the landscape of bare, exposed, windswept rocks facing the open sea, you can well imagine that this could be a dangerous place to be in bad weather.

There were a lot of people in the main harbour, made up of boatowners, people staying at the youth hostel and day trippers who had come over on the regular ferry from the mainland. We bought icecreams, wandered over the cliffs and climbed up to the lighthouse to admire the fabulous view of the surroundings. It was also the only place where we could get a decent signal for the mobile phone.




This settlement was a pilot and lighthouse outpost from the late eighteenth century until the mid twentieth century and most of these dwellings are now used for summer visitors. There used to be a school here and even some small scale farming. I can't imagine how they managed to coax anything out of such barren ground! There are also a number of rock carvings, including some dates and several compass roses.




After having a good look around and dangling our feet in the water, watching the tiny crabs fossicking around in the rock pools we took the dinghy back to the boat, passing the boats in Strömsund again, where we were shocked at the sheer numbers and the way boats were moored three and four abreast - in a nature harbour?




You would never see this on the east coast. For a start, the boats there moor at right angles to the cliffs, rather than alongside so I guess more boats can fit in. There are also very many more bays to choose from, so if one area is crowded, it is only a short hop to the next place. Here you seem to have to take whatever you can as some areas are restricted and the wind and tidal streams play a bigger role. And there are simply so many more boats over here - think Sandhamn during Gotland Runt week, only everywhere! I would hate to be moored like this, with boats hard up next to you, in front of you, behinfd you and the crews of the outer boats having to clamber over your boat to get access to land - day and night.

*Shudder*

Back in our bay, we are no longer alone, but still in a relatively private place.




With such great weather, I did a good clean out of the boat and washed the sheets and towels, hanging everything out in the fresh, warm breeze to dry. Everyone onboard enjoyed the warmth, under the welcome protection of the bimini. Lars-Göran went for a skinny dip, skillfully avoiding the stinging jellyfish that are here in huge numbers, Lambi had a bath to keep her cool, even the birds had a spray of water to cool off. I think the temperature got up to 30C again today so we ate our favourite summer meal of smoked salmon, a tossed salad and new potatoes with lashings of red onion, capers, horseradish and cream cheese. It's so refreshing with a glass of chilled sauvignon blanc. Australian of course.




This picture was taken looking over the side of the boat at the plant growth on the cliff next to where we were moored. It was fascinating to look at and I could appreciate why there were so many divers around here. The variety of plants was amazing and it was full of tiny, darting fish and little crabs scuttling here and there. Who needs tv?

I had not realised until just recently, how closely linked my emotional wellbeing is to how we function onboard and the wellbeing of my family. This trip particularly, with the thunderstorms, wind and rain plus the uncertainty of new places, means we have not really indulged in our usual sailing routine. Today, going on land, taking the dingy out and just exploring has settled me and helped me to relax. I just hope I can sleep now, without my usual nightly appointment with the sahara desert!





Flap flap flap, it's hot in here....