A first visit to the archipelago !
The end of April was upon us, a few flowers were appearing on the grass and we were feeling that spring was there, finally !... (our garden / sandbox on april 28th)
We went and spent a week end in the archipelago. Our first visit to the archipelago ; it was beautiful, really very beautiful ! And also still cold out there !
We went to Möja, one of the bigger islands in the outer archipelago : 5 km * 2km or so, this counts as a big one ! May 1st is a holiday in Sweden and Ruben was on actual holidays for two weeks, so we were able to take off for 4 days.
The ferry ride to Möja was beautiful, fascinating and enticing. We passed by hundreds of islands, from tiny barren rocks to islands with trees and a couple of houses to a few big ones with actual villages or towns. The ferry was a real omnibus on the water, stopping often to disembark a few passengers ; it makes one want to go and explore all of these places...
Leaving from Stockholm
The islands are often very close to one another, making for narrow
channels where the boat travels.
The most fascinating islands to me were the relatively small ones with a couple of houses : smooth rocks falling in the water, tall pine, oak or birch trees growing, lovely houses, water all around and small docks where one wants to set foot..
The house we were renting was close to Berg harbour, one of the main villages of Möja. There is even a small supermarket there and those are rare in the archipelago - but it reopened only on the monday afternoon, so we had brought most of our food with us from Stockholm anyway.
Berg harbour.
The weather was not excellent that week end. We experienced a lot of rain and a few sunny moments. Also, Ruben was unfortunately quite sick.
Luckily, the kids enjoyed the garden and the forest behind the house very much, and the house we were renting was comfortable, so we spent a lot of time just hanging out around the house and its outdoors and it was fine.
Surprisingly enough, there were no easy access points to the sea where we were. Most of the shore is taken by houses with private gardens ; whilst the right of public access or Allemansrätt is famed in Sweden, one can not really walk into people's private gardens.
We went to the next harbour, Löka brygga, which had a swimming spot marked on the map : there is indeed a large rocky area in front of the jetty, which would make for a good swimming spot.
A bit further north along the shore, it is possible to catch a view of the open sea - looking east, there is a straight with no islands.
We had rented bikes to move around ; we found only one with a kids seat, so Ruben had to ride on the rear rack - not ideal for a sick kidunfortunately.
The weather cleared on the sunday evening : here is our house, with sunshine!
On the monday, we went to 'the' beach of Möja - probably not the only one actually, but the one that I knew about ! It is fairly hidden : one has to ride along the southern road, leave the bikes where a small sign 'bad' is posted, and then walk for 10-15 min through the forest to reach the sea.
It is a beautiful place !
That evening, April 30th, was Vallbord, a big feast in Sweden most famous for gigantic bonfires. Since Ruben had collapsed after a long day out, Eric went out on this own to the celebration.
Then, on the Tuesday morning the weather was not great so we mostly played in the garden, collecting and herding snails. Then it was time to catch the ferry ; we spent less time outside looking at the scenery on the way back home..
When we arrived in Stockholm, it was sunny and warm and all the vegetation was blooming.. It felt as if we had jumped through a temporal portal. Spring was there, for real !!
We went to Möja, one of the bigger islands in the outer archipelago : 5 km * 2km or so, this counts as a big one ! May 1st is a holiday in Sweden and Ruben was on actual holidays for two weeks, so we were able to take off for 4 days.
The ferry ride to Möja was beautiful, fascinating and enticing. We passed by hundreds of islands, from tiny barren rocks to islands with trees and a couple of houses to a few big ones with actual villages or towns. The ferry was a real omnibus on the water, stopping often to disembark a few passengers ; it makes one want to go and explore all of these places...
Leaving from Stockholm
The house we were renting was close to Berg harbour, one of the main villages of Möja. There is even a small supermarket there and those are rare in the archipelago - but it reopened only on the monday afternoon, so we had brought most of our food with us from Stockholm anyway.
Berg harbour.
Luckily, the kids enjoyed the garden and the forest behind the house very much, and the house we were renting was comfortable, so we spent a lot of time just hanging out around the house and its outdoors and it was fine.
Surprisingly enough, there were no easy access points to the sea where we were. Most of the shore is taken by houses with private gardens ; whilst the right of public access or Allemansrätt is famed in Sweden, one can not really walk into people's private gardens.
We went to the next harbour, Löka brygga, which had a swimming spot marked on the map : there is indeed a large rocky area in front of the jetty, which would make for a good swimming spot.
On the monday, we went to 'the' beach of Möja - probably not the only one actually, but the one that I knew about ! It is fairly hidden : one has to ride along the southern road, leave the bikes where a small sign 'bad' is posted, and then walk for 10-15 min through the forest to reach the sea.
It is a beautiful place !
