Read the other parts of our travel diary:
Saturday, 22 June: I have to share my breakfast on the hotel terrace with a seagull that has got up just as early. Apart from that, however, this only seems to apply to tourists and not to the residents of Karlskrona: on the "day after", the morning after Midsummer's Eve, the sun-drenched streets of the harbour town are empty - no wonder after a night of partying.
Our small crew for the next two weeks meets at the guest jetty of the guest harbour in front of our boat, the "Rolling Swiss 2": Marc and Urs from the Cruising Club of Switzerland are already waiting. The three of us go on board, first unpacking, then shopping at ICA and LIDL. However, the congestion list is not complete at the end: the Systembolaget is closed. Those hypocritical Swedes! We'll have to stock up on beer later.
Over the next two weeks, with a bit of weather luck, the CCS motor yacht - a Trader 42 - will take us to Öland, Gotland and across the Baltic Sea to Estonia before the cruise ends in the Latvian metropolis of Riga and the next crew will come on board.
"Hej då, Karlskrona!"
A few minor technical problems are quickly resolved with telephone jokers and armoured tape, and by 3 p.m. we are ready to cast off! Cast off, past the naval museum and avoid the ferry, then it's time to set sail: Hej då, Karlskrona! In the main fairway, we pass between Aspö and Tjurkö, the deep but narrow eye of the needle between the islands that surround the royal war harbour like bastions. During the Cold War, a Soviet submarine once ran aground here while sightseeing for espionage purposes and ended up high and dry in a most embarrassing way. They had allegedly mixed up the coasts - so it was just a "minor" navigational error that didn't happen to us ...
There's a really fresh wind from the south-west, lots of whitecaps all around. Once out of the natural harbour of Yttre Redden, we are greeted by a really steep wave. Five Beaufort for sure, maybe even a bit more. With the flat profiles of the islands on the port side and the nasty sea from abeam, the "Rolling Swiss 2" rolls from one cardinal buoy to the next. We are on our way to Utlängan, the most southerly island in the Karlskrona archipelago.
Warm stones, whispering reeds, golden sun
The approach zigzags between rocks that are lapped by the rising and falling sea. The last turning mark, a sector light, is in the middle of the water. Soon afterwards, however, we enter between the pier heads of Stenshamn. Stone piers, wooden jetties and red huts at the harbour, white holiday homes between blossoming trees and bushes behind them. And there's plenty going on, with a few sailors, but also cabin cruisers and two large Grand Banks moored directly on the "promenade". A large group of day trippers are waiting for the last ferry, which soon comes sprinting in with a high bow wave, hits the pier with its bow and disappears just as quickly - leaving behind a much quieter harbour. Instead, the smell of barbecues rises and you can hear the water birds in the lagoon. Warm stones, whispering reeds, golden sun. A little paradise!
SUNDAY, 23 June: Today we're heading over to Öland, more precisely to Grönhögen in the south-west of the elongated island, which is separated from the rest of Sweden by the Kalmar Strait for more than a hundred kilometres. Kristianopel on the mainland side would have been an alternative (the tiny village really does have that name), but of course it doesn't stand a chance against Öland. Once again we have wind, but a little less than yesterday and fortunately from astern, as soon as we are around the southern tip of Utlängan and first head north-east and then NNE, once across the southern exit of Kalmar Sound. The roughened Baltic Sea is a hard blue and visibility is good. There are hardly any other boats to be seen, we are often alone. Nothing has changed when we reach the approach three hours later: The coast lies flat and rocky in front of us, with bushes and small trees growing in between. Further inland, a black Dutch mill stretches its wings.
Wide Öland
Landing piers protect a surprisingly spacious guest harbour. The boathouse, the lifeboat, two or three small fishing boats - everything is exactly as it was five years ago when I first visited the harbour. The harbour master in a yellow safety waistcoat waves us over and takes our lines. A very sociable guy who likes to talk. It's all the harder for him that we are the only guests on our own keel - and that we want to move on straight away. We drive from the bus stop at the supermarket to Södra Udde, Öland's gently sloping southern tip, ten kilometres away. There, the rocky Baltic Sea is so shallow that the seals can still bask in the sun a few hundred metres from the shore. The nature reserve around "Långe Jan", Sweden's most famous lighthouse, is a popular excursion destination: bird watching and pear cake!
MONDAY, 24 June: Just under three hours are on the sailing plan today, once diagonally on a NNW course across the sound back up to Kalmar. The weather is a little hazier than yesterday: when we leave Grönhögen harbour, the sky is more white than blue. But it should clear up in the afternoon. The first few hours of the journey are completely unspectacular, apart from the mystery surrounding the wind farm on Utgrunden, whose turbines are still standing according to the plotter (or the supposedly current software), but have in fact already been dismantled apart from the foundations under water after a five-year research phase. The nautical chart, on the other hand, is correct. The only visible sea mark is the strange, former lighthouse with a lattice mast, whose antennas spread out like yardarms on both sides. It is said to have housed a research station, but now only seagulls live there.
Kalmar on Öland
Ahead, Kalmar slowly emerges across the Kimm, along with the first arches of Ölandsbron. The castle soon comes into view. We sail past the white welcome sign on the pier. The panorama on the right is dominated by the large block at Elevatorkajen, a former warehouse that now houses the regional museum. To the left is the Nya Hamnen with warehouses and an oil tank farm. Two timber freighters have moored there; waiting logs are piled up on land. At the entrance to Gamla Hamnen, the RIB with the "Guest Harbour Pilot" picks us up. We even get a place alongside the wooden pier, right next to H&M and the sanitary facilities. In fact, we are moored right next to a shopping arcade - convenient.
With my camera over my shoulder, I set off into the old town centre with its chequerboard pattern of narrow streets and the typical Scandinavian mix of older Art Nouveau, a little classicism and modern buildings made of wood, concrete and glass. Three storeys is the highest of feelings. There are cafés and restaurants with outdoor tables everywhere and a strawberry stand on every corner. Summer in the city! Impressive: the cool silence inside the baroque Domkyrka, to which all roads seem to lead.
Now over to the castle park full of sunbathers and yoga disciples, then on to the easily overlooked beach. A few people are actually swimming, but they prefer the pier. Afterwards, the first "real" beers, Norrlands Ljus - the sparkling light of the north!
The Kystvakt passes by, waving merrily, with roaring jets and high waves
TUESDAY, 25 June: It will take us less than two hours to reach our next destination, Borgholm, which lies pretty much in the middle of Öland. So the skipper schedules our departure for 12 noon. We use the time to find a new espresso machine. The old one had broken down badly on the first day on the way to Utlängan and had only been sputtering ever since.
Once our caffeine supply has been replenished (important, we still have long sea legs ahead of us!), we cast off and head for the elongated, six-kilometre-long Ölandsbron, which crosses the Kalmarsund and connects Öland with the mainland. Small lighthouses mark the fairway on both sides, screaming Swedes in fast day cruisers overtake us, and the Kystvakt also passes by, waving cheerfully, with roaring jets and high waves.
Öland's coast remains flat. Finally, the jetty of Solliden Castle (a summer residence of the Swedish royal family) and the massive ruins of Borgholms Slot above it come into view. Around the corner to the right is the bay of Borgholm and Gästhamn. A few larger motor yachts are already there, all Swedish (as you would expect), but with the terraced hotel, white parasols and bars right on the pier, the holiday resort looks a bit like a mini Cannes. And indeed, a berth is just becoming available alongside - again, no Muring manoeuvre.
There is a small park right on the shore, with two campsites discreetly in the background. A pedestrian zone leads directly into the holiday resort. Before dinner, however, we make our way up to the castle ruins: around two hundred years ago, the building fell victim to a fire, but today the almost intact façades with their empty window cavities serve as a spectacular backdrop for open-air concerts. Unfortunately, there is no event on the calendar that day - otherwise we could have listened from the boat in the harbour.
Crossing to Visby
WEDNESDAY, 26 June: The first half hour after casting off is still clear, then it gets hazier. Finally the sun has disappeared completely. The sea, hardly moving at first, begins to stir. We head north, monotonous in this light and with a coastal landscape that has nothing to hold on to. The course is dead straight: 020°, NNE for 32 nautical miles. There is no doubt that it will be much windier again from tomorrow. All the forecasts agree: while the heatwave continues over Central Europe, the disturbances will be deflected towards us. At the daily briefing, our destination for the day was Grankullavik in the far north of Öland. Now we will only make a stopover there to weather the first thunderstorm front that will pass through today. Then we will cross over to Visby on Gotland, a full day earlier than planned. Better safe than sorry.
The head of "Långe Erik" now rises out of the forest to starboard: The lighthouse is the sign that Öland's long coastline is coming to an end. Grankullavik Bay only has a narrow entrance from the north, between two long headlands of gravel. A ferry used to pass through here. We follow the buoy line and moor a few minutes later on the inside of the old ro-ro pier at Nabbelund. Two small rusty cutters and a few local boats are moored at murings. Most of the buoys, however, are bored ashore unused, and the bent barrier in front of the former loading area is fluttering with tattered barrier tape. Further back in front of the green shore of the wide bay: two mobile homes and the abandoned waiting and service building of the ferry harbour. Grass sprouts from cracks and crevices.
Postcards from Öland
As soon as the lines are secure, the dinghy is made ready. The western sky is already darkening ominously. We glide across the bay to an old jetty near the lighthouse. A few day trippers and Swedish schoolchildren from a holiday camp wander around between the tall bushes on the paths and on the nearby stone beach. An open shed with shelves on the walls serves as a café and souvenir shop. I buy a ticket and am already at the entrance to the tower. "When it starts to thunder, please come down," is the instruction. Up the spiral staircase to the gallery under the lantern, then the wind tugs at me. Öland to the south, the grey Gotland Sea to the north, the black wall of clouds to the west. A few quick pictures and back down again; it's clear that there are only a few minutes left before the rain sets in.
Along with many other holidaymakers, I find shelter under the café umbrellas. I spontaneously buy a few postcards: time to write while the rain pours down on me. Unique! After half an hour, it's just drizzling. The wind has also taken another break - but only to take a deep breath for tomorrow. To the beach: the piled-up stone towers of the holidaymakers have withstood the brief storm, as has the "Långe Erik" behind me. I have to take a look seawards, towards Gotland: the bearing is right, but our next destination is still far below the horizon. So back to the dinghy - Visby awaits!
Service
Cruise stages
S Karlskrona - Stenshamn (Utlängan): 13 nm
- Utlängan - Grönhögen (Öland): 30 nm
- Grönhögen - Kalmar: 31 nm
- Kalmar - Borgholm (Öland): 17 nm
- Borgholm - Grankullavik (Öland): 36 nm
- Grankullavik
Total distance (first half of the trip):127 nm
Literature
Recreational craft chart set 11 "East Coast Sweden 1: Simrishamn to Mem with Gotland and Öland" (2019/2020 edition) by Delius Klasing. Format: A2, 5 transverse sailors, 34 area and detailed charts, area guide with 42 harbour plans. ISBN: 978-3-667-11614-7, price: 109.90 euros. www.delius-klasing.de
Harbour guide "Hamnguiden 7: Landsort-Skanör, Öland, Gotland & Bornholm" by Skagerrak Forlag. 414 pages, plans and aerial photographs of every harbour and anchorage, ISBN: 978-82-7997-211-2, price: 69.90 euros. Order via www.hansenautic.de
The TOP 3 in the district
- Rent a bike on Öland and explore the many sights and the extraordinary nature of the island.
- Watching ships in Karlskronain the Marinmuseum. Exhibits inside and outside with a very well organised permanent exhibition.
- Relax in Kalmareither in one of the many cafés in the old town and at the harbour or under the large trees in the castle park.
Weather/climate
Our boat: Trader 42 (GRP semi-glider) - Length: 13.30 m - Width: 4.30 m - Height: 3.80 m - Draft: 1.20 m - Berths: 6 (3 double cabins) - WC/shower: 2/2 - CE category: A - Motorisation: 2 x 380 hp (diesel) - Special equipment: VHF radio system, autopilot, plotter with radar and AIS overlay, generator, EPIRB, bow thruster, dinghy
The Club: On this trip, we travelled with the Cruising Club of Switzerland (CCS). With around 6,500 members, the Bern-based Central Club is one of the largest water sports clubs in Switzerland and is a leader in offshore training in the recreational boating sector. The motorboat division forms its own subdivision within the club with its own yacht, which is used for training and travelling trips in northern and western Europe.Further information: www.ccs-motoryacht.ch
Nautical information
The precinct: Compared to many other Scandinavian and Swedish waters, the Kalmar Sound is flanked by a dense archipelago. From the archipelago of Karlskrona and the mainland coast north of Kalmar, the coast (especially on the Öland side) is largely free of islands. Navigation between the harbours we called at (apart from the immediate area of the approaches and the comparatively narrow fairway in the Ölandsbron area) therefore takes place over open sea areas and is correspondingly unproblematic.
The lighting and buoyage is appropriate and present throughout. However, the shore areas are very shallow, dotted with stones and should be avoided at all costs outside the navigation channels. In line with Swedish standards, the harbour infrastructure is generally good. However, in the main season, which begins suddenly after midsummer and lasts until around mid-August, it is advisable to contact the harbour of your choice during the day of your trip and find out about the mooring situation. In many places, moorings are made with the stern (or a stern line on the mooring buoy) and the bow on the jetty. Longside moorings are not available everywhere.
Our harbours: Karlskrona: Stadsmarina, tel. +46 (0455)-30 31 51, www.karlskronastadsmarina.se Utlängan: Stenshamns Gästhamn, tel. +46 (709)-30 48 25, www.utlanganstenshamn.se Grönhögen: Gästhamn, tel. +46 (070)-276 96 64, www.visitoland.com/hamn ; Kalmar: Gamla Hamnen, tel. +46 (480)-45 00 00, www.kalmar.com/sv/gasthamnen Borgholm: Gästhamn, tel. +46 (070)-758 28 59, www.strandborgholm.se
