Ready for more tales from our beautiful days in West Sweden? Lucky days spent full of hazy drives, summer showers, open roads and shimmering coastlines. On Thursday we were up early for breakfast at Hotel Flora then collected our car to drive up the Bohuslan coast. We were out of the city and onto the highway in minutes and stopped off to buy a quick car picnic in the supermarket before turning off towards Fiskebäckskil.
Arriving in the coastal town of Fiskebäckskil the rain clouds rolled away and we explored this pretty coastal town under a sunny sky.
This place is picturesquely quaint with summer houses all jostling for room, roses tumble over every fence and the smooth cobbled streets wind and twist eventually leading to a boardwalk filled with boats bobbing up and down. For lunch with a sea view make a stop at Brygghuset or Gullmarsstrand.
I think I photographed pretty much every bloom in the town, peeped over every garden fence, climbed to the highest point to breath in the sea breeze and then we jumped back in the car and drove on to Smögen.
Usually a lively summer town there were a few folks about but it seemed that everyone was preparing for their midsummer parties the following day or hiding from the wild skies that were rolling in.
The views here are just lovely, fishing huts turned into cabins on the boardwalk and seagulls swooping in and out of view, the boardwalk is packed with cafes that fill up fast in the holidays and weekends and shops selling coastal souvenirs, antiques and local artworks.
Fjällbacka a small coastal town with a big personality, famous for its inhabitants, Ingrid Bergman had her summer house on one of the small islands out in the Fjällbacka archipelago and the author Camilla Läckberg writes murders mysteries linked to the history of the small fishing community.
This town feels miles away from anything sinister, a steep climb up the cliff path past Ingrid’s statue you’ll find hidden wooden stairs that take you to a view over the land and sea that is calm and tranquil, with just the faintest sounds of the boats in the harbour below. Down in the town, there are nice shops, great seafood and waterside bars to admire the view from.
Back on the road, we made our way up to our furthest destination Grebbestad. Our hosts for the night were the Ingela and Marcus – owners of the local Canoe & Kayak Tour Agency Skärgårdsidyllen – and their children Ally and Carl.
We stayed in their cottage with an ocean view and a soundtrack of birch leaves rustling in the sea breeze. Making the most of the warm evening air we took a stroll through the village along the wooden walkways out over the waves, peeking in the fishing huts and workshops down at the tide’s edge.
We made a friend in a local cat who walked along with us and then went to bed just as dusk was settling over the sea, falling asleep to the sounds of merriment, faint laughter and the clinking of wine glasses in a nearby cabin. Another utterly charming setting, further down in the main town you can eat fresh fish, shrimp, oysters, lobster, seaweed and other goodies from the ocean’s bountiful larder and the seaweed crispbreads are a famous local treat!
Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to get out on the water and tour the local islands in kayaks with Marcus and Ingela but on Friday morning we joined Ingela in her beautifully wild coastal garden to master the making of midsummer flower crowns. We foraged the garden for wisps of birch, cornflowers, yarrow and other wildflowers and wrapped them with wire to make wreaths fit for a fairy queen.
They have the sweetest kitten Sixten, who joined us on our search for flowers and once we had our headwear for the day made up, we all sat down for fika in their bright kitchen on the edge of the ocean.
Our time rushed by too fast in Grebbestad and soon we found ourselves back on the road to our final stop Villa Sjötorp, after checking in we took a short walk down to the nearby Victoria Park, Lyckorna to enjoy our first Swedish Midsummer celebration.
A mix of songs and music with our midsummer hosts in traditional dress and crazy dancing, families with all generations were in attendance and we managed to befriend the musicians and a few local cats too. After the dancing, we took the coast path home along the shore and up through the woods, past dreamy seaside homes to Villa Sjötorp and the most amazing sunset.
