One more discovery: Seglinge

Still in Lappo we started checking what could possibly be our next destination. And since that was a summer of getting to know the Turku archipelago better and discover new places, we picked one we knew nothing about: Seglinge. 

Sailing was great, weather was perfect, it was a very enjoyable leg of about 30 nautical miles. On the way I was really impressed by the little open sailing boat, that had no cabins or interior at all, and came to the archipelago all the way from Denmark... I wish I was that brave! :)

When approaching our destination I took someone's private summer cottage for harbour and was wandering why the pier is so small and where are the other boats :D 

At first glimps the place did not seem anything special to me. But the best was yet to come! It became one of the best places we saw last year. After paying the harbour fee and talking to the harbour keepers we went to the shop to fill up our grocery storage.

Again Seglinge was one of those places where carrying two bikes on board for the whole summer vacation pays off :) Grocery visit was done much faster by biking there and after that we were ready for the island discovery. 

We were told by the harbour keepers about the old windmill, inner lake and swimming area. So off we went! Must confess though that we never reached the lake. We were already very close, but the path to see it lies through a very green and moist area, so the amount of biting mosquitos made the walk unbearable and at the very last moment both of us lost patience and rushed back to the bigger road where the bicycles were left, leaving clouds of attacking vampires behind.

So there is still a part of this place for us to discover next time, lets put it this way :) The views on the island were really great! You could see the harbour from the main road, sea was glittering in the sun... summer was at its best.

 

By the time we were back to the harbour, there were no more places left. And also it was time for the local market to begin! Local inhabitants had a great idea of keeping the market on Mondays, so we were at the right place at the right time, without even knowing aobut it :)

You could buy there all kind of stuff: home made jams, juices, ciders, buiscuits, pancakes, archipelago black bread, smoked fish, herbs, handicraft items... list can be continued :)

 

 

 

This, by the way, was the only place where we got to eat smocked perch. It was delicios and was sold out in no time! By the time I had a round for taking pictures that was all what was left! 

This young seller attracted us for two reasons: the first one was the real fresh pancake from Åland. I have heard of them earlier, but never got to to try one! It was high time :) Home made apple jam gave a delicios touch to it :) And the second reason to shop at this desk was to support the dreams of this young lady: with the earned money she was hoping to buy either a rabbit or a new mobile phone :)

I think we should go visiting there again, maybe we will get to meet the rabbit ;)

Lappo

After a couple of month of break, back to blog :) It's been a while since the last post... and still this one, as well as couple of the posts to come, are from the summer 2014. 

The next stop for us was Lappo's harbor. The weather was perfect, we sailed for the most part of the trip. And when approaching the pier wind was important to consider, since inner side of the harbour is well covered and protected from the waves, but the outer side is open to the wind from certain directions and thus is open to the waves as well. We were lucky to arrive early enough and to ensure 

ourselves a place on the inner side :) 

On arrival we went exploring the place. Apart from the harbor facilities, it offers services of a grocery store and a restaurant. Of course, whenever possible, we were happy to have a dinner out and reserved a table for the evening. Though, I must say, the food did not impress us at all, maybe our expectation were a bit too high ;)

The facilities building is not very new, it is in ok condition, but I must say that I found the women's shower rather small and with bad ventilation, there was steam all over the place and it was almost impossible to get yourself dry and get dressed. Though the sign in the WC made me smile, there is a picture of it below :)

Anyway, after the meal and when the heat decreased (what a luxury was the weather last summer! :D), we headed for an evening walk. On the way we saw a soccer field, where village kids of all ages were plaing together in the sunset light. It was a heartwarming view and a pleasure to see how much fun they had despite the age or sex difference. 

By the end of the day the harbor was full. We had a relaxing rest of the evening on the deck, enjoying the warm evening with a glass of sparkling and some snacks. Tomorrow is a new day and a there will be a new place to explore.

Iniö

After a great stop in Nauvo and refill of all the needed stuff, we decided to go and see some other places we have never been to. So the next destination was Iniö, where we chose to stop at the Triton Marin harbor. Wind was favorable, though rather weak, the weather was really mystical, sunny and foggy at the same time, sea looked surrealistically sparkling and sailing was easy and enjoyable.

Once we reached the place it was great to see that the harbor was taken good care of and was recently renovated: completely new shower/sauna buildings right on the shore close to the pier were in perfect condition and well equipped. Right behind these new buildings was a good grilling area and mini-golf. Little cafeteria also looked quite nice, but after enjoying all the "luxury of civilization" in Nauvo we skipped it and resisted the tempting scent of warm buns :) There is also a grocery shop close to the harbor.

We went exploring the place with the idea to check also the other harbor, Bruddalsviken, that was a couple of kilometers away from the place where we stopped. 

Like all the inhabited centers of the archipelago Iniö also has a church. I like visiting these little chirches middle of nowhere to realize again, how much people, who live so remotely from big cities and so deep in the archipelago, are connected to the sea. In all of these churches you can find the ships hanging from the ceiling, as well as other marine attributes, like here for example the two fishes at the altar.

My favorite of the archipelago churches though is in Jurmo. I was deeply impressed by the cemetery in its yard. Have to write a separate post about it once we visit it again.  The sea for these people is the main source of life and income, but also the biggest danger, that takes lives of people of any age...

On the way apart from the nature we could admire these old abandoned beauties. Yeah, no make-up could restore them anymore... It was curious though to see so many of them were concentrated on one island. I would rather like to think that they all belonged to the same owner, rather then considering it a local habit ;) 

This place turned out to be popular not only among the boating people, but also those exploring the archipelago by bicycles or bikes. It was joy to see that this B&B had many visitors on that day.

Finally we reached the Bruddalsviken pier and we were actually very happy with our harbor choice. The facilities looked rather old, and by the number of boats spending a night here you could definitely say it is much less popular than the other place. But in any case it is good to know it exists, just in case the Iniö pier would have no more places left :)

Next stop - Nauvo

Brännskär was a great place to be, but more places were to be seen. Especially with the weather getting better and warmer we could not wait to lift up the sails and enjoy the summer. Next 2 days we spent in a great company of friends and relatives on a private island, from where we headed to Nauvo.

It was kind of a funny thing, but no matter it was my 5th summer of sailing in the archipelago, I have never been to Nauvo. Normally we are "in a hurry" to reach Mariehamn and then Sweden, but this time we decided we stay on the Finnish side and have a better look on the places that normally are off our route. So Nauvo it was!

It was a perfect day for using spinnaker.

And I cannot miss one detail about our spinnaker: it is actually this summer.... (tadaaaaaaaaaaa!!!)... 45 years old :D This funny "Marlboro" sail has travelled all the way from USA to end up on our Elan 33 in Finland :) We got it together with the boat, so no idea how long has it been in use here, actually.

Easy sailing it was, in a nice sunny weather, with the spinnaker up and quite little sails trimming. 



Nauvo's harbor was quite full, but we were lucky to get a good place as one boat was leaving right on our arrival. It was a great summer day and this place

was just the right place to be. After a couple of days on a private island and before that 2 days in Brännskär and Helsingholmen, our grocery storage and fridge were getting quite empty. Nauvo was good for all kinds of refills, Alko store including ;) And here too they had good freshly smoked fish of different types on sale in the morning. And closer to the grocery stores you could find little market, with locals selling mushrooms, berries, some veggies, etc.



Little shops on the shore look so tempting, with all their assortment related to boating equipment and gear!.. Must say that prices were not as nice and appealing as the place and the weather, so no budget damage was done :D

After all the must-do things (harbour fee payment, shopping, lunch..) we headed to the town. In summer it is like mini-Hanko :) Lots of cozy cafeterias and restaurants, but also historical heritage (the old church) and great natural sights, like the small hidden beach towards the right from the harbour. 

Later in the evening we decided we would dine out. In the archipelago you don't do it that often, so normally whenever there is this option, we go for it :) And our choice this time fell on the pizza place Najaden.



Pizzeria is built on a vessel, so it had unusual interior and reminded a bit those  "sights and dining" trips that you can enjoy in Helsinki :) The pizza tested fairly good, it was not the best pizza ever, but good enough after one more day at sea. Later in the evening this place becomes the center of the Nauvo's night life, with live music, dance floor and lot of people.

It was that time of the year when it is not really dark at night :) These last 3 shots were taken after midnight. 

Love summers in the Archipelago! <3