Tues 27th - Wed 28th August - Ostholmen

What a wonderful final couple of days we had in the archipelago, enjoying this year’s Indian Summer in Sweden!

We headed back to the inner archipelago to one of our favourite places from previous holidays in this area – Ostholmen.  And it didn’t disappoint – it was just as lovely as we remembered it, but of course this is after the end of the main holiday season, so it may be a lot more crowded normally.

This is approaching the narrow entrance into Ostholmen – there are rocks just under the surface, so the entrance is about half as wide as it looks …

… and this is inside the pretty little bay …

Here we are tied up to a couple of trees …

We scrambled up these trees and rocks – disturbing a startled badger on the way!

… to the top of the cliff …

… from where we could look down on the boats as the sun went down …

This is the view from the other side of the bay, looking towards the cliff we had been standing on …

Here we are celebrating our arrival at our ‘destination’ – the final port of call on our Baltic Adventure – at least this year …

The next morning dawned another perfect day …

I walked across the island of Ostholmen through trees sparkling in the sunlight …

… with glimpses of the sea beyond …

… to the sauna, set among the trees and powered by an underwater electric cable …

You book a time by writing your name in the diary, put a few kronor in the ‘honesty box’, and collect the water to toss on the coals from the old-fashioned hand pump …

When you’ve had your sauna, you just jump into the Baltic, and they’ve put a handy step ladder so you can get out again!

I spent a glorious last morning relaxing in the sauna, jumping into the Baltic and sunbathing and reading on the rocks – perfect!

Now it’s time to head towards Saltsjöbaden where Astraia will be laid up for the winter.

Mon 26th - Tues 27th August - Stora Nassa

We set off from the inner islands of the Stockholm archipelago, which are more densely wooded …

… past typical Swedish summer homes …

We stopped in Möja to do some shopping.  It’s a sizeable island, accessible from Stockholm by ferry, and has cafés, restaurants, shops and accommodation.  However, by the end of August the tourist season is more-or-less over, so it was very quiet and, apart from the food store, most things were closed …

Here are all the mail boxes for the whole island …

Having stocked up, we set sail for the outer islands of the archipelago …

These birds have found a convenient resting place …

There are dangerous unmarked rocks lurking on or just below the surface, which must be avoided!

We arrived at Gubben in the Stora Nassa group of islands, put out our stern anchor and tied up to a couple of bushes and a rock (hammering a pieton into a crevice) like all the other boats – it was a beautiful, calm afternoon …

The outer islands are barer and more rocky with sparser trees …

… and the Autumn colours are already beginning to show in August …

The next day, I had an early morning swim under this dramatic sky …

… then the sun warmed up and it was another glorious day …

We had a ramble round the island through the heather which seems to grow out of bare rock …

Sometimes, looking down, the islands look like a relief map laid out beneath us …

By the time we came to leave, we were the last boat in the bay …

We left the wilder islands of Stora Nassa and headed back towards the inner archipelago …

Thurs 22nd - Sun 25th August - Gällnö, Osterskär, Säck

Thurs 22^nd – We set off from Sandhamn and followed quite a big ship through narrow channels between the islands …

We had a fine sail through some of the 30,000 islands which make up the Stockholm archipelago – the inner ones are mostly forested …

We passed this square-rigger in full sail …

… and carefully found our way in behind these small islands …

… to anchor in a quiet bay called Hemfladen off the island of Gällnö, near a small settlement of typical Swedish summer houses …

Later the moon rose to one side of us …

… while the sun was still setting on the other …

Fri 23^rd – the following day, we meandered through the islands to Osterskär on Tuna Fjärden fjord …

We ‘parked’ our boat on our friends’, Sue and Ulf’s, jetty …

… at the bottom of their garden …

… and all enjoyed a drink on board …

… before going up to their house for dinner …

Sat 24^th – We sailed off through a fleet of racing boats …

… past a large ferry …

… and these traditional wooden sailing craft  …

… to a beautiful little bay on the island of Säck …

… where we dropped the stern anchor and tied up to 3 trees …

We went for a walk around the island …

… and unexpectedly found a volleyball court marked out on a very large flat rock in the middle of the island!

Sun 25^th – It was such a beautiful spot, perfect for swimming, sunbathing, reading – and the weather was absolutely glorious too …

We had visitors who arrived by boat …

Sue, Ulf and their friends Lea and Carl-Erik came for lunch – a most convivial and relaxing afternoon with a lot of fun and laughter …

At the end of the day, the reflections were amazing …

 … and the sun cast a golden hue over the bay …