N60 05.96 E19 55.39 - MARIEHAMN, Aland Islands
OOJAH's AWESOME ODYSSEY
Peter & Christene Tanner
Sat 8 Aug 2015 09:58
Mariehamn is the principal town of the Aland Islands, an autonomous territory under Finish sovereignty. The islands are between Finland & Sweden & Swedish is the native language, although in other respects they are an adjunct to the Finish Archipelago. There are frequent ferries to both countries & they are a popular tourist destination. We spent 4 days getting from Helsinki anchoring each night in lovely nooks & crannies in the islands of which there are literally thousands. By day we mostly motored in fine weather although I enjoyed just one days sailing winding to & fro thro the well marked channels - the islands are low & mostly tree covered, interspersed with rock outcrops so don’t influence the wind very much. I thought it was wonderful although Christene was less convinced of the merits of sailing in such restricted water!  The main attraction of Mariehamn for us was the chance to provision & enjoy a couple of nights socially alongside with the other 18 yachts in the rally. We also visited the Pommern, one of the last square rigged sailing ships, which was in commercial service from 1903 until 1939 & is now a museum. The run from Australia with a cargo of wool would take around 100 days & looked to be a very tough life for the 18 crew.   It now feels as if we are on our way home & will drop south of 60N on our way towards Stockholm. There is due on the decks in the morning & the nights are beginning to grow longer after almost continual daylight for two months. We have motored 400nm into light westerly winds, almost the whole way from St Petersburg which is a shame but at least it's comfortable progress! Best regards to all, Peter & Christene |