31st – Windy birding

Waking up I noticed that trying to adjust the temperature was successful. The temperature was now down to 23°C.

At around 0915 I took the bus from Tórshavn to go and catch the ferry to get to Mykines. The bus system here outside the towns is pretty great – there might not be many departures, but whenever the lines cross, they wait for each other so even if your current bus is delayed you won’t miss your connection. The traffic here isn’t very dense so the risk for any significant delays seem close to nil.

So when we arrived at the ferry 10 minutes late – not due to traffic – technically after the ferry would have departed, it was still there waiting for us.

The crossing was easier than I had expected considering the exposed nature of the Faroe Islands. The water was calm but being in a relatively small boat we still had some chopping on the way out. Reaching Mykines and circling around to the small port some of us were lucky enough to spot a couple of seals popping their heads up to have a quick look around before disappearing again.

Sailing along the coastline heading towards Mykines.

Mykines is probably best known for its puffin colonies and the lighthouse on the western-most point on the island and also the western-most point of the Faroe Islands. The weather kept dry and depending on where you were standing either nice and calm or very windy.

Looking west on Mykines.

A puffin.

Another puffin.

I spent most of my time on the island going west and enjoying the high concentration of puffins. They might be chubby and look clumsy but when airborne they are fast and nimble. Because of this it was quite difficult to get good shots of them flying, but as soon as they were just sitting around in the grass in groups there was plenty chances of getting good shots.

More puffins!

A gannet.

Apart from the puffins there were quite a few beautiful gannets, too, and kittiwakes had taken over small crevices on the rockfaces on the edges of the island. I believe I also spotted a few arctic terns, guillemots and fulmars.

Flying gannet.

Yes. More puffins.

Returning to the small village Mykines (on the island Mykines – a pattern emerges…) I had a small walk around while waiting for the return boat. It arrived on schedule and a bit past 1700 we departed the island and returned to the main land (or rather; the slightly larger island) where the bus going to Tórshavn was waiting for us.

Returning to Tórshavn I went back to the hotel to get rid of my bag and then went out for dinner. At the restaurant I randomly bumped into someone I don’t think I’ve seen since my time in uni. Apparently she’s here with her husband as he is also participating in the run on Sunday. She had been looking at the topographical maps and concluded it was a dumb idea. Today’s bus took us along part of the track and I got to see first hand the hills outside Tórshavn. I am starting to think it’s a dumb idea, too.

Mykines was a great experience. I could see myself returning when there are chick and then spending a few nights on the island to get the full experience And maybe remembering to bring slightly warmer clothes – when the wind picks up and you are standing still because you have found the perfect photo spot it does get quite chilly. And west of the town is only a small fraction of the entire island, so there is plenty of places to walk around.