After the unwelcome visit of the jetskis, Lars-Göran did not let any grass grow under his feet and within the hour we found ourselves in the canal waiting for the bridge to open and preparing to go from Öresund back into the Baltic Sea.

If you look at the map opposite, you can see that the canal is a shortcut around the south west corner of Sweden. This area is quite sandy as well as shallow and you have to go a fair way out to safely get around the reefs that dot the coastline. There had been several attempts to build a short cut, so that both fishing and cargo boats could avoid the longer and more treacherous outside route. It wasn't until the second world war when the Germans began laying sea mines in the area that the government got their act together and hurriedly built the Falsterbo Canal, which opened in 1941. They had to dredge a 27 kilometre route to the canal, then construct the 1.6km canal and bridge. It is capable of taking ships as wide as 20 metres, though it is mostly used these days for smaller vessels and for leisure boats.




Once we filled our diesel tanks and finished making the bread, it was time to go through the bridge and bid farewell to western Sweden. And no, it was not a fond farewell! It was however great to be back in the Baltic again. Here was a sea we could understand.

Once through the bridge, we hoisted sails and nosed out into the Baltic. The wind was brisk and the breakers came rolling in, but we set a course to clear us from a shallow reef area near Skåre and headed eastwards towards Trelleborg. There is no mooring for yachts at the port of Trelleborg, so we had thought of going a little further along to the fishing village of Gislöv's Läge. We had stopped there to get fresh water on the way home from Göteborg five years ago and remembered the harbour as a little shallow and tight but very friendly. However, the wind seemed to pick up, so we thought we might try and go a little further to a bigger town like Ystad, where we felt sure we could find a place to moor.

The wind died not long after we passed Gislöv's Läge, so we decided to try and see if there was space at the harbour of Smygehamn. While the harbour guide assured us there was 15+ guest places, it was a tiny, cramped harbour and looked full from our view through the binoculars. We noticed a Danish boat behind us heading the same way and rapidly gaining. Lars-Göran was in no mood to be gentlemanly as he had been at Råå, so he cranked up the engine and we sped at full speed into the harbour, just managing to beat them there by a couple of boat lengths.




It was full of German and Danish boats, but we decided we were going to stay come hell or high water, so we signalled to a Danish boat lying alongside the pier that we intended to tie up to the outside of them. We hate doing that and could see that he was less than keen on the idea himself, but we figured that if it wasn't us, it would be some other boat. True to the form we have come to expect in Skåne, we had not even tied the boat up when we were confronted by the harbour master with her hand out demanding payment! Can't they wait until we have even tied up the ropes before they start?

The Danish couple on the boat next to us were really nice and we tried to not disturb them by clambering over their boat more than was necessary. We told them we were going to leave early in the morning and he thought that we were mad as there was a gale forecast for these waters. I have no idea where he heard that, but the Swedish forecast was for average winds and a gale the day after. It was rather funny to be speaking Swedish to them and they answering in Danish. The languages are similar, but I find that Danish is unclear to my ears, so used as I am to listening to Stockholm accented Swedish. I prefer talking to Norwegians as their language is easier to understand, although it sounds a bit silly sometimes because of the jumpy, sing-song intonation which makes it hard to take what they are saying seriously no matter what they are talking about. They always sound so cheerful.




We walked around the harbour area, which was quite charming in the evening sunshine. This little community is Sweden's most southerly point, thus the many signposts pointing out how far away various places are. I can't believe we are still so far from Stockholm, though! It was also odd to see that we were closer to Moscow than to the northern tip of the Sweden (Treriksröset)!

We also had a welcome warm shower, ate a lovely dinner and made plans for tomorrow. Lars-Göran has no desire to prolong his stay in Skåne, so we are leaving at 6am and intend to sail the seventy five nautical miles to the start of the archipelago in Blekinge tomorrow. With an average speed of 5 knots, which we can maintain with engine support, we estimate that it will take about 15 hours. It's going to be a long, long day, though I still had an urge to sing "Things can only get better".




We had an early night, though we were disturbed at about 1 am as we heard someone walking around and whispering on our boat. Upon looking out, we saw a German boat had just come in and the crew were in the process of tying up alongside our boat. Lars-Göran told them we were going to leave at 6am and after looking at each other, they decided that they would also leave at that time. Of course, we had to wake them up to cast off, but they got up quickly and we both left the harbour at the same time. They set out across the water to Germany and we followed the flat, fairly featureless coastline heading east.




There were several little towns like Kåseberga and Abbekås that I would have liked to visit, but there was no guarantee that we could find a place to tie up, so I am starting to realise that like Bohuslän, Skåne is best explored from land, where you can book accommodation ahead and travel safely by road. We needed to be away from the south facing harbours by the end of the day as strong winds were forecast and that would send the swell into these exposed shores.

As it was such a long day, I insisted on doing my fair share of steering, so we took one hour turns at the tiller, spending our free time checking the navigation, reassuring Lambi who was not thrilled by the swell and preparing endless fika snacks.
There was not much to look at on the shore - just miles of sandy beaches and every now and then a glimpse of a town. Our first welcome landmark was the lighthouse of Sandhammaren.




This lighthouse, situated on the south east tip of Sweden is right in a lovely sandy area full of popular beaches. There were plenty of people out enjoying the water today as you can see. We have a soft spot for this lighthouse as one of the young girls who reads out the weather report on Stockholm Radio always calls it Sandhammraren, which we both think is really cute. Again, it is fun to pass a place that we hear about daily but never knew exactly where it was before. I feel like I'm on a lighthouse tour of Sweden.

This also marked the point that we turned north for the first time, so I had to break out into song with "The only way is up", which caused a groan from Lars-Göran who wonders how I can remember so many awful songs in their entirety.

Not too much further north, the pretty little seaside towns began to appear regularly. First to come into view was Skillinge, which has featured in the weather forecasts a lot lately as having the warmest temperatures each day. "Can we stop here?" I begged like a grumpy toddler, but the answer was a resounding No.




So on we go. The countryside on this side is much softer than on the south coast and its proximity to the sea gives it a mild, though very windy climate. There are fields and small farmhouses dotting the shore in this typical Skåne scene. There is also a really special kind of light in this region and you can easily see why poets, writers and painters have found it inspirational. In fact, one of the first Swedish books I read, Selma Lagerlöf's The Wonderful Adventures of Nils begins in this area.




Looking at these flat plains, it is hard to believe it is in Sweden, which I have come to associate with coniferous forests and rocky archipelagos. This area is known as Österlen and consist of highly fertile agricultural land, which is very important for the rest of Sweden. For instance, 90% of Sweden's sugar beets are grown in Skåne. The soil is among the most fertile in the world and justly deserves its title as Sweden's bread basket.




By now, it was late in the afternoon and we had been sailing and motoring in shifts for over 12 hours and I was longing to drop anchor anywhere. It is very tiring, even though I have enjoyed looking at the wide open countryside with colourful farmlands, the fresh ocean air and the picturesque villages. I'd just like to STOP. But Lars-Göran is made of tougher Viking material, so on we go past the pretty little town of Brantevik.




There were people out on the beaches and the town looked idyllic with a tiny harbour and a line of villas along the coastline, but I knew that there was no real way to squeeze the boat into such a small harbour, even if the captain wanted to. Which he didn't.

An hour or so later, we passed by Simrishamn, which I think is one of the nicest towns I've been to in Sweden. It features a lot of very old half-timbered buildings, little hidden courtyards and pretty gardens. I begged again to stop and even did my very best three-year-old-pout, but the mean captain wanted to press on and clear the Skåne coastline. When he makes up his mind to do something, he can be surprisingly determined. I'm sure he was feeling just as tired as I was, but he hid it well until he could feel we were safely moored. So I decided to stop whining openly and instead resigned myself to a further three hours of pain.




We were very tired when we finally prepared to drop anchor in a bay a little south east of the town of Sölvesborg. A welcoming party of cows has wandered down to the water's edge for their evening drink and we are surrounded by beautiful silence with not a soul in sight anywhere. I think a well earned sleep in is in order and I intend to laze around with a good book tomorrow. I bought Herman Wouk's Winds of War while I was in Halmstad and I am going to refuse to budge until I've finished reading it.




We are now officially in the province of Blekinge, having completed Skåne at a rate that would do Speedy Gonzales proud. I guess all I can say is "Arriba! Arriba! Ándale! Ándale!"