The Faroe Islands are truly spectacular and I had the pleasure of exploring them for fifteen days back in September. Had a great day hiking out to the location above, it’s one of the best walks I’ve ever done. Viewed from Kviviksskoranøva, the islet is Tindhólmur with the island of Mykines beyond. The five peaks of Tindhólmur are named Ytsti, Arni, Lítli, Breiði and Bogdi. Mykines has a population of ten and is the westernmost island of the Faroe Islands. The artist, Sámal Joensen-Mikines, was born there.
It was a bit of a trek getting to Kallur lighthouse in the second photo. I flew to the Faroe Islands via Copenhagen, then drove to Klaksvik and caught the ferry to the island of Kalsoy. Drove through four mountain tunnels and then hiked for one hour to get to this particular spot. Once the wind had eased off I felt brave enough to cross the ridge (1000 ft drop to the sea on each side) to the point where I made the photo.
The third photo is of two distant sea stacks viewed from Tjørnuvík. They are named Risin and Kellingin (The Giant and the Witch) which relates to a legend about an Icelandic giant and witch who attempted to haul the Faroe Islands back to Iceland with a rope. Needless to say, they encountered some difficulty in achieving this! The mountain split at the point where the rope was attached but the giant and witch continued with their task throughout the night. As dawn broke, the first beams of sunlight turned them into stone. The notch where the rope was attached can be seen from the other side of the headland. Risin is 71 metres in height and Kellingin is 68 metres.
St Olav’s Church above is a medieval church in the village of Kirkjubøur and is the oldest church in the Faroe Islands. The north wall has evidence of a former opening, through which lepers listened to the service from outside. A Viking runestone was housed in the church but is now held in the national museum, Tórshavn.
The final image is of what is believed to be a Viking sundial or a compass rose. Approximately twelve inches in diameter it is situated close to the Tinganes in Tórshavn old town.
More of these images can be seen on my website using the following link. Please take a look if you have a few minutes 🙂 : Faroe Islands
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