Finland's Archipelago National Park and Estonia

We are sailing in Estonian waters now, under pearly gray skies, expecting rain later today and winds of 35 mph overnight, gusting to 50. Luckily it will be from the north and we will be sheltering in a bay on the south side of the island of Saaremaa. Peter was up at 6 this morning, casting off at 6:40 from the industrial dock in Heltermaa on the island of Hiiumaa where we arrived yesterday evening. (There seems to be an excessive amount of vowels in the Estonian language.) We had a great day of sailing yesterday from Finland, with favorable winds most of the way. Peter, always improving his sailing skills, determined that he needed to move the block for the genoa sheet further astern for close reaches to get the best curvature to canvas. It did make a difference, and we average between 7 and 8 knots throughout the day.

When we arrived at the marina at Heltermaa at 6 p.m., having sailed almost 12 hours, we found that our vessel was too big for the docks there. As we were pondering the options of rafting up to a smaller boat on one of the 2 T docks or going into a slip and sticking out by about 10 meters, the harbor master arrived on his bicycle and suggested the big ship dock and then helped us tie up. The only activity around was the loading of a Portuguese freighter with raw logs. There was a steady stream of trucks bringing them to the pier, each with its own loader crane. We assume that the logs were not going to be processed for lumber as they were dumped rather carelessly onto the ship continuously until sunset.

Cargo ship on same pier as Mantra

Mantra and cargo loading of wood

Before dinner, we walked around the area, finding nothing of interest other than a couple bronze seaside sculptures. There was no town, just a nondescript terminal for the ferry. One of the sculptures, entitled Vanamees ja kits, is based on a famous local story. A ferry captain had insulted a villager on the island and the villager sought revenge. One day, he took his goat to the pier. He waited until the ship was already underway and then rushed to end of the pier, acting as if he hd missed the departure. The captain, noticing this man, turned back. Docking, the captain shouted and cursed at the man, urging him to get aboard. The man continued talking to his goat about the iron boat and refused. The captain sued the man in local court for the disruption to the ferry schedule and the verbal abuse he received, but the court found the story quite funny and acquitted the old man. This legend was kept alive by Tönu Otsason, a local who welcomed every new ferry from the mainland. 

Vanamees ja kits

"Tuules", a statue of a female figure commoly called Ranna Ella

Before arriving in Estonia, we enjoyed a couple days in Finland's wonderful Archipelago National Park. Located off the southwest coast of the mainland, it includes over 2,000 islands and skerries. On the morning of Wednesday, August 19, a warm and sunny day, Peter finished repairing the rudder bearing that had eroded and fallen off (which he discovered the day before when he heard unusual sounds emanating from the stern) and cleaned some tools while I repaired a porthole screen and made ratatouille. Then, around 11 a.m., we went to shore on the island of Björkö to hike and swim in the freshwater lake, Insjön.

Björkö Nature Trail

We followed the 2-mile Björkö Nature Trail, which is well-marked, offering spectacular views of the archipelago. The easy loop goes across lichen-covered granite expanses, through birch and pine forest as well as open meadows. Heather and other wild flowers were in bloom, and butterflies, including common brimstones and small coppers. 

Common heather

View of the Baltic Sea from the trail

Stonecrop flowers

Common brimstone butterfly

Small copper

Peter hiking on the island

Our first stop was the lake. We were the only ones there and enjoyed swimming in the water; the temperature was just right. Not wanting to hike in a wet swimsuit (They take forever to dry!), I shed my clothes for the swim, emulating sensible Scandinavians. Afterwards, we sat on the smooth granite to dry and enjoyed the view and the birdsong, spotting a willow warbler. 

Lake Insjön and islands of the archipelago

Peter diving in the lake

Some of the land on the island is private. One of the rustic farms welcomes visitors with a lovely cafe with indoor and outdoor seating. The food was delicious and the owners, with their four-month-old baby, were gregarious but not intrusive. Peter enjoyed the two small ponies that lazily wandered around the garden. Near this farm are the remains of stone walls, probably used for separating private land or penning sheep or cattle, which are still grazed on the island in the warmer months.

Peter petting a pony

Remains of a stone wall by a meadow

A typical Midsummer's Eve structure, with the remains of foliage from the festival

We stayed on the island until around 4 p.m. Returning to Mantra, we pulled up anchor at 5:30 and motor-sailed for an hour to another group of islands, anchoring off the eastern shore of the island of Yxskaren (no clue how to pronounce that!). On the way, we passed another group of mute swans in the open water around a small rock rising above the surface.

The flock of mute swans

The mute swans by the rock

Before sunset, Peter went out again on his paddle board to explore, discovering a large group of volunteers on the island who were doing conservation work, piling up previously downed trees and bush and creating large piles of the vegetation for bonfires. He volunteered the two of us to help the next day. When he returned, we had dinner and then enjoyed the delectable desserts we had bought at the cafe on Björkö.

The next morning (Thursday, August 20) after a lie-in and late breakfast, we went to shore about 11 a.m. to join the work party. Past the encampment of volunteers who are using a week of their vacation time (minimum 4 weeks in Finland) to do manual labor on the island, we walked past areas burned out or smoldering or blazing bonfires. Some of the volunteers created the piles for burning and some were fire tenders, and one wss the cook, a position of high value. We joined in building piles about twice as high as I am. The Finnish forest service had already been on the island to select the areas that needed clearing or thinning and then used power tools to cut the trees and vegetation. 

Peter building a bonfire pile

One of many controlled bonfires

Sheep grazing on the downed foliage

Some of the volunteers at the camp (Ollie third from left)

Everyone worked until lunchtime and then returned to camp for a meal that they shared with us. It was a simple but delicious pot of rice, eggs, tufe and other ingredients with raw vegetables to add. Dessert was a fruit salad with vanilla sauce. After the meal, we were asked to talk about our voyages, so I gave a quick overview and Peter and I answered questions. Then it was back to work at 1 p.m.

Tea time came at 3 p.m.. After beverages and snacks, we departed to our boat, with Ollie (sp,?) driving his motor vessel to Mantra to come on board to see her and to get some salt because the camp had run out and fortunately we have a good supply which came with the boat when we purchased her in 2018 and originated in Thailand. Ollie was the leader of the conservation effort, contracted by the Finnish government. He has an interesting background, including being a contractor for drone development for Intel in Silicon Valley over 10 years ago, being an flight instructor for gliders and ultralights, and being an accident inspector, mostly for aviation. We enjoyed talking with him about many subjects as we worked with him and were amazed at the breath of his skills. 

At 4:30 p.m., we hauled up the anchor and set sail from another island, Gässkaaren, where we positioned ourselves to get an early start the next morning for Estonia. 

The barometer has fallen and we are now experiencing steady rain and wind and higher waves than we have seen for a few months. I am sheltering down below while Peter is staying as dry as possible in the pilot house. The wind is from the northwest at 20 knots and we are sailing close-hauled at 10 knots. I will stop writing now as we will be anchoring somewhere soon. I need to look at the charts.