It always seems to me that travel shouldn’t be too easy. Modern sanitised forms of transport mean that you are hardly aware of the changing landscape and culture you have travelled through and to. Being transported (or herded?) in a metal tube can make one altogether too blasé about the distances and difficulties of travel. So, in the spirit of Jules Verne (?) we decided that we would aim to get to Iceland without using the ubiquitous, afore-mentioned metal tubes.
Now, one look at a map makes you realise that Iceland is an island – problem number 1. Plus it is a long way from anywhere – problem number 2. However, a solution to both is at hand thanks to the Smyril Line. They operate a ferry from Hirtshals in Denmark via Torshavn in the Faroes to Iceland. On the plus side, this would mean that we were in Iceland for me to pick up the Tecla, but on the minus side, the Smyril ferry arrives in Seyðisfjörður on the eastern side of Iceland and we need to be in Reykjavik on the western side.
So, a convoluted travel plan was put in place which went something like this:
- Lunchtime Eurostar to Brussels and an overnight at Brussels
- Early morning train from Brussels to Kolding (changing at Köln and Hamburg and Flensburg) – overnight at Kolding
- Then, to be on the cautious side – a train to Aalborg and overnight in Aalborg
- Train to Hirtshals to pick up the ferry at 3pm
- Ferry to Torshavn and then Seyðisfjörður
Typing this is much easier than doing it, but, generally, all went according to plan. The one minor issue was getting on the wrong end of the train to Kolding. It turned out the train split and we would have ended up in Kiel if we had stayed on it. So, one breathless run along the platform later, we ended up in the right carriage.
Overall this took 6 days, compared to perhaps four hours in the metal tube version of the trip, but we didn’t want to make it too easy.
The stop in Aalborg (day 3) was lovely. We had an afternoon to explore round there and it is a town that has undergone considerable change. In the Middle Ages it was an important port. Its position on the Limfjord (a channel through Jutland between the North Sea and the Baltic) gave it considerable status. While not a vast amount from that period is left, there are some beautiful houses and building around the old port area. Aalborghus Castle, a royal residence, was built in 1550 and is still close to the river.
From its early roots in trade and goods, Aalborg is now in transition to a more knowledge-based economy. Companies there have become global producers of wind turbine rotors, marine boilers, and cement, cementing its place (excuse the pun!) as one of Denmark’s most important towns. The Aalborg Carnival (usually held in May) is on of Scandinavia’s largest festivals attracting more than 100,000 people each year. This together with a university with more than 20,000 students makes it quite a vibrant town.
Hirthals, our destination the next day, cannot have the same said about it. Its main claim to fame is as a ferry town and fishing port, but it has a functional air about it. We saw a little of the town as we wandered around waiting for the bus from the station to the ferry port, but, perhaps unfairly, saw little to delay us there. So around 2pm we boarded the Smyril Line ferry. Beside the loading jetty lay an old fishing boat on its side – perhaps not the best advert for a long distance ferry terminal!
The ferry journey itself started very pleasant with relatively calm conditions past various oil rigs and through an extensive fishing fleet just off the Shetland Islands. The clam conditions continued and so the Captain chose to take the short cut through the Yell Sound to the north of the island of Yell. This was an intricate passage and very beautiful, running close on occasions to the rocks with some turns which Lewis Hamilton would have been proud of …. Overnight from there was slightly less pleasant with a stronger breeze and open Atlantic swell leading to a noisier night. However, 7.30am (Faroes time – one hour earlier than CET) saw us moored in Tórshavn.
The ferry terminal is right in the middle of town and so we set off following a nature walk heading north out of the town towards Hoyvik and then heading back past Svartafoss waterfall.
From there we cut back into town and, after finding a wool shop (!) explored the area around the harbour. The point right by the ferry terminal is called Tinganes and is the historic location of the Faroese landsstýri (government). This first met in the Viking period when Norwegian colonist put their parliament on the point in 825. This was called a ‘Ting’ giving the area its current name. The outermost building is still used as the government’s main building and the other buildings mainly still have their turf roofs, giving the whole area a very traditional feel. The turf roofs are apparently alternatively known as sod roofs, something which in the context of our parliament somehow feels appropriate.
We left Tórshavn again around 3pm, a bit later than scheduled and once again, a fairly calm start meant that we cut through between the islands giving us a great view of Eysturoy and the various other northern Faroe islands. The calm didn’t last though (does it ever!) and we had a fairly bumpy night. Nothing dramatically untoward, but the sort of weather where eating and drinking might involve more hand to mouth co-ordination than usual ….. Despite leaving late though they made up the time and we arrived on schedule at Seyðisfjörður.
