MORE FAROES

 

We wake to a sunny day, so we need to make the most of it. We head towards Vagar Island where the airport is located so the road is busy. We drive through the undersea tunnel and towards the airport. We have great views down to Sandavagar as we continue to Giljane to stop at the campspot. We need to use their dump-station. Here we meet a German couple who have locked themselves out of their camper and are getting frantic. John helps, so for the next hour while he is busy I clean. Every time I hear a jubilant shout I know they are getting closer. Finally, I see Johns legs disappearing through the highest window and I know all is sorted. We leave 2 very grateful and happy Germans and we now have a bottle of some interesting Norwegian alcohol.

Back on our drive we head all the way out to Gasadalur, park and walk out to the iconic Mulafossur waterfall. It drops stunningly from high cliffs into the ocean and is in every travel brochure on the Faroes. Then time to back track and stop at tiny Bour. It’s a tiny, green-roofed village set way down below the road and curved around a little bay. A picture postcard spot. Last time we visited we were the only tourists, but it has been discovered! We head back past Sorvagsvatn Lake – there is a famous walk here to see the floating lake above the ocean. This one holds an exorbitant entry fee and the wind is nasty, so we decide not to do it. But we do stop at Sandvagar to admire the lovely Church and surrounds. All the roads on this island now explored we head back through the undersea tunnel and on out to Vestmanna to find the campground. It is closed and the gate locked. Surprisingly it is jampacked with caravans – seems a cold place for a caravan holiday. We head to the wharf and park overnight there with a row of trucks. No one takes any notice of us. Rain and strong wind gusts in the night  don’t improve in the morning. Not fun exploring so we will ride the buses! John has been checking timetables to find the best routes!

But before we leave this island, we check out a few more roads in the area and head down a very narrow road to Skaelingur. Once on it, it’s too late to change our minds as there is nowhere to turn around. Fortunately it is only 5kms long, but very nerve-wracking. Fingers crossed we don’t meet any oncoming traffic. Waterfalls are running everywhere and water is gushing all over the road/track. It is an incredible sight, but I am very glad when we get back to the bigger road. Then we head to the town of Skengur right beside the fjord with the expensive tunnel. Time for a coffee before we get on the bus and head through the tunnel, first to Runavik and then to Torshavn. There is a much-hyped light installation in the tunnel at the roundabout, but we are a tad disappointed and going on the bus has saved us nearly $200. Back in Torshavn we explore on the town buses. These are free and a great way to see town from another angle. After a few hours on the buses, we catch another bus through the undersea tunnel and back to GR3. Then we drive around the peninsula to the tiny town of Selatrad for the night. Oh no, it’s one of those “hold your breath” narrow roads, but a pretty spot right on the small port. It is an old campsite so we figure it is legal and as a bonus free.

The other bonus about camping on a wharf is that there is always a hose so we can fill up with water and do our washing. Late morning we head back along our narrow road to Skengur and then explore even more fjords and tiny towns. Finally, we wind over the mountains and down the hairpins to Oynafjordur. But before we start on our return journey, we head out to see the famous Fossa - yet another waterfall. Annoyingly there are heaps of Chinese tourists here posing for photos! Nowhere to turn, (and the road is again very narrow) we drive on to pretty Haldsverik and stop to explore. Motorhomes are banned from driving any further (it must get tight – although we drove it last time)

Our last place to visit is the amazing Saxsun. And yes, it is 11km of narrow road with a lot of tourist traffic. Unfortunately, the turf roofed farm closed yesterday for the season so no iconic turf house photos, but we do get some lovely views and hike out to the ocean along the mouth of the fjord. Sadly, the lovely Church is now locked (as they all are) because tourists decided to cook their meal inside on a rainy day! Go figure that idiotic behavior!

Back out of the narrow road we drive to the little port at Hosvik for the night. Tomorrow is our last day here! There is one mountain road we haven’t driven, so we head there and wow it is amazing with awesome views over the fjords and then down to Torshavn. We head on out to Velbastadur and then Kirkjabour to explore the old Churches. A Medieval one, a Cathedral and the last one now just a pile of rocks. There is also a stunning old Viking farmhouse. A magic stop. We head back to Torshavn and head to the outdoor Museum (free with our museum tickets), but it too appears to be closed but we can wander around. Now time to return to our Torshavn carpark to prepare for our next ferry ride, then we join the queue and finally board the boat for 2 nights onboard the Norrana.

We enjoyed our time in the Faroes and have driven nearly all the roads possible! 750km in total

We will be back on mainland Europe soon….