Faroe Islands Day Two: Kvívík & Vestmanna

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Faroe Islands Day Two: Kvívík & Vestmanna

Note: There are a lot of images in this post. Be patient with the page load speed and accept our apologies if the page takes awhile to load.

We set out early for Vestmanna to take a boat tour along cliffs where birds nest. Thousands of birds. A couple of people on the tour mentioned that this tour wasn’t as bird-heavy as the tours they had taken in the past, along the same route. I was upset about that, not for selfish reasons, but with concern for what is causing the drop in bird population. Is it cyclical? Permanent?

We secured tickets and then took a quick drive to Kvívík. It should be noted that if you want to see larger versions of these shots, simply click on the image.

Waterfall along the road to Kvívík, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Waterfall draining into the ocean on the road to Kvívík, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

There are Viking ruins that have been excavated and are well tended:

Viking excavation in Kvívík, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

The two prominent grass shapes may be where Viking boats were used as the roof for shelter. More research necessary…

Every village has at least one church. This is the church in Kvívík, Faroe Islands:

The church in Kvívík, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Gate hinge detail:

Gate hinge on the church in The church in Kvívík, Faroe Islands -Blurbomat.com

Throughout this trip, we’ve been told that there is a strong Celtic/Irish connection with the Faroes. Some of the earliest human artifacts found on the islands indicate that the first human presence on the islands were Irish monks. I’m still wrapping my head around anybody arriving and surviving on the Faroes prior to the 1600s. It’s a beautiful country, but the remoteness and harsh weather conditions mean that whoever settles here has to be hardy, rugged and willing to make a go of it.

* * *

We boarded our boat at Vestmanna and headed out to sea. This boat trip has been a highlight of the tour. The weather was perfect and the seas were calm.

As we pulled out of Vestmanna, we were close enough to shore to see sheep grazing on improbable slopes:

Sheep grazing on a slope near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Sheep grazing on a slope near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Sheep grazing on a slope near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

As we rounded the bend to make our way along the cliffs, I shot the image at the top of this post. Even if we didn’t see a single bird, the landscape vistas on this boat tour were worth the trip:

Lone Barn atop a bluff near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Sea Caves near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands

Clouds hugging the landscape near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Opening in massive rock formation near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Clouds envelope a land mass, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Finally, birds were sighted! Puffins even! I didn’t realize that Puffins can fly wicked fast. I recognize I have a long way to go in my nature photography. The longest lens I had was a 70-200 and that didn’t even come close. I thought about buying a 2x multiplier tube, But was afraid I’d lose too many stops. That was a dumb move. Should have bought and brought it.

Bird cliffs near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

Bird flies out into the sun, bird cliffs near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

I thought these were garbage shots when I previewed them in camera. They aren’t that good. But puffins!

A puffin in flight Bird cliffs near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

A group of puffins take flight, bird cliffs near Vestmanna, Faroe Islands - Blurbomat.com

More to come, as always.