A Classic Hike within the Faroe Islands

Bookended by two of the Faroe Islands’ most enchanting villages, the path between Saskun and Tjørnuvík is without doubt one of the archipelago’s traditional walks. Located on Streymoy Island, the route traverses a scenic cross and showcases an unforgettable assortment of cascades, lagoons, sea stacks, and charming turf-roofed cottages. It’s a hike that epitomizes the “land that time forgot” feeling synonymous with touring within the Faroes.

The village of Tjørnuvík. 

At a Glance

Distance:  14.5 km (9 mi) (Out-and-back)

Average Duration:  6-8 hrs

Difficulty Level:  Moderate

Total Elevation Gain: 1,204 m (3,950 ft)

Start/Finish: Saskun – Tjørnuvík / Streymoy Island

Looking down towards the traditional hamlet of Saskun (Population: 11) and the Pollurin tidal lagoon (aka Saskun Lagoon).

Planning Information:

• Getting There & Away: Logistically talking, the simplest choice is to go away your automobile at one of many trailheads and do the hike as an out-and-back tour. Things are a little bit extra sophisticated should you don’t have your individual transport or solely need to hike a technique. In that case, your choices are as follows: 1. A pre-arranged dropoff and pick-up with a tour firm; 2. Hitchhike out of your ending level again to your automobile, and; 3. If you don’t have a automobile and don’t need to pay for a tour, you may make the most of public transport to entry Tjørnuvík, however you’ll nonetheless must hitch to or from Saskun, which isn’t serviced by public transport. 
  

• Getting Around: During my time within the Faroe Islands, I used a mix of buses, ferries, and hitching. I principally utilized the wonderful (and really inexpensive) bus system, which bought me to a lot of the locations I needed to go. For an outline of the archipelago’s public transport choices, see the Visit Faroe Islands web site. (Note: I picked up a Faroe Islands Travel Card upon arrival at Vagar Airport)

• Permits & Fees: No, on each counts.

• Online Information: For something and all the things associated to touring within the Faroes, see the wonderful Visit Faroe Islands web site. It has a great deal of info on transport and lodging choices, cultural sights, and climbing trails (together with a free downloadable 56-page information to hikes on the archipelago). Who am I kidding? If I had been you, I’d cease studying this text and go straight there.

• Mid-hike Sustenance: During the summer season months, you could possibly buy espresso and a few scrumptious waffles in Tjørnuvík. Located within the village heart and run by long-time resident Hans Esbern Heinesen, search for the “pop-up” restaurant with picnic tables.

Waffle Central in Tjørnuvík.

Trail Notes:

Overview: From a topographical perspective, don’t count on a lot in the way in which of flat terrain; principally, you ascend from one coastal village to a mountain cross after which descend to the opposite coastal village (after which flip round and do it once more). The path is nicely marked, although I think about it might be difficult to observe in driving rain and thick fog. Irrespective of how good the circumstances could also be while you set out, that is one tour it is best to by no means undertake with out ample insulation layers, rain gear, navigational instruments, and a very good provide of stoicism within the face of famously changeable climate. 

Multi-tiered waterfall overlooking Saskun.

Description (Saskun > Tjornuvik): During the preliminary climb out of Saskun, the way in which is denoted with pink put up markers. As you achieve elevation, these quickly give strategy to often spaced cairns. Climbing steadily, the views over Saskun, the lagoon, and its surrounding cliffs and waterfalls are chic, and after 3.5 km (2.2 mi) of huffing and puffing, the mountain cross (480 m/1,575 ft) is attained. The path’s excessive level is located between Melin (764 m/2,507 ft) and Heyggjurin Mikli (692 m/2,270 ft) peaks. In wonderful climate, it’s a splendidly scenic place to take pleasure in a well-earned relaxation. In moist, windy, and foggy circumstances, chances are high you’ll seize a snack, take a fast snapshot or two, and start the descent sooner relatively than later.

Approaching the cross between Saskun and Tjornuvik.

View from the cross, wanting again towards Saskun.

Sunrise from the cross the next morning (wanting towards Tjørnuvík) (Note: I climbed again to the excessive level to look at the solar come up).

As you observe the cairn-marked path to the northeast, it’s not lengthy earlier than Tjørnuvík comes into view. Gazing outwards over the village, among the many most notable options are the ocean stacks of Risin and Kellingin (Risin og Kellingin), which translate to “The Giant and the Witch (see Notes & Musings beneath). Approximately two hours after leaving the cross, hikers will arrive within the storybook village of Tjørnuvík.

I hiked the path as an out-and-back tour starting and ending in Tjørnuvík. Honestly, it was a bit extra like a waddle than a hike for the preliminary climb, as I over-indulged on the waffle place earlier than setting out.

Steeped in historical past and wealthy in pure magnificence, human settlement in Tjørnuvík dates again no less than to the time of the Vikings within the tenth century and presumably a number of hundred years earlier within the type of seafaring Irish monks. However, it’s the hamlet’s jaw-dropping setting that makes it one of many Faroe Islands’ premier sights. The northernmost village on Streymoy Island, Tjornuvik, is surrounded on three sides by steep-sided mountains and bordered on the opposite by a blinding black sand seaside and a horseshoe-shaped bay. With a everlasting inhabitants of 48, Tjornuvik is a veritable metropolis in comparison with Saskun. 

The lovely beachside/mountain-ringed village of Tjørnuvík.

Devil’s-Bit Scabious (Succisa pratensis) usually blooms within the Faroes between June and October.

Notes & Musings

• From Harbour to Tidal Lagoon: Saskun’s inlet was as soon as a serviceable pure harbor till a large storm within the 1600s crammed it with sand, reworking it right into a seawater lagoon, inaccessible to all however small boats at excessive tide.

Saskun graveyard and tidal lagoon.

• The Giant and the Witch: Located underneath Eidiskollur Peak on the tip of Eysturoy Island are the legendary sea stacks of Risin and Kellingin (Risin og Kellingin / Translation: “Giant & the Witch”). According to legend, the rock columns had been shaped when the giants of Iceland needed so as to add the Faroe Islands to their area. They dispatched the eponymous big and his witch partner to attain the duty. However, the target proved extra sophisticated than the absent-minded couple anticipated. While immersed of their labors, they forgot that they might solely work at night time. Sure sufficient, when the primary rays of daybreak shone upon them, the enormous and the witch reworked into stone, and there they continue to be to this present day. 

Looking out on the “Giant and the Witch” from the black sand seaside of Tjørnuvík.

The Giant, the Witch, and Eidiskollur Peak.

• The Old Farmhouse and the Reconstituted Church: Among Saskun’s charming assortment of turf-roofed buildings, essentially the most notable are the Dúvugarður farm and the Saksunar Kirkja church. The former dates again to the 1700s and features as a National Heritage museum that gives guests an perception into early farm life within the Faroe Islands. The latter was in-built Tjørnuvík however in 1858 was disassembled and introduced over to Saskun, the place it was reconstructed. The supplies had been transported by way of the identical mountain cross traversed on the featured path – one thing to consider whilst you’re making the journey carrying nothing greater than a featherweight daypack!

Dúvugarður Farm in Saskun.

The turf-roofed farmhouses of Saskun.

Saksunar Kirkja church

Note: Saskun to Tjørnuvík is one in every of 26 featured trails in my newest e book with Gestalten Publications, Wanderlust Nordics. Along with two different rambles within the Faroes Islands (see hyperlinks beneath), the e book options all kinds of hikes from Iceland, Norway, Greenland, Sweden, and Finland. From family-friendly day hikes to difficult multi-week treks, there’s one thing to go well with everybody from newbies to skilled vets. The e book is at the moment on sale at Amazon……….at round half worth! 

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