Christianso lies some 10 miles to the North of Bornholm , and the 80 mile passage there from Utklippan was the stuff of dreams . Sailing out of sight of land under a brilliant blue sky with the spinnaker up , and surrounded on all sides by towering masses of cumulus clouds neatly delineating the geography of the Baltic, we bowled along without touching a sheet or wheel . Ahead a small mass of cloud reassured us we were heading for Bornholm , whilst to starboard a line of cloud outlined the Eastern Swedish coast . To port the cloud was further away , but clearly showing where the coasts of Lithuania , Latvia and far in the distance the Baltic outlet of Russia.
Christianso itself was astonishingly attractive. Two tiny rocky islands with a narrow sheltered passage running between them , it was originally built as a naval fortress , and it is kept in exactly the same state as it was in the 18th century. About a hundred folk live there all the year round and it hums with humanity in the day time as tourists come out from Bornholm, but seems to heave a sigh and fall asleep in the evening as the last ferry leaves. Perhaps this tourist invasion explains the slightly grumpy attitude of various folk like the harbour master , the shop keeper and the lady who ran the museum. Nothing unpleasant, but definitely not full of the joys of Spring!
One resident did however have Spring on his mind. For the last 18 months a male Gannet , resplendent in his handsome plumage , has adopted the quayside as his home. Presumably blown here by a winter gale (there are no other gannets in the Baltic!) he has fallen in love with an electricity point on the harbour wall. Every morning after a night spent at sea he flies in with a harsh cry and gives it a tender peck before displaying and strutting around for a while . Next he brings offerings such as twigs or seaweed and lays them out in front of the post , before settling down contentedly alongside . Sometimes he will wander around and attack the adjacent electricity point , but soon comes back to doze with his chosen mate. He is plainly bonkers but seems quite happy with his lot , although I can’t help feeling he is in for a shocking disappointment (sic). Let us hope they remain happily attached ( er… sorry again!). It certainly gave us a wonderful insight into Gannets behaviour and I doubt we will ever have the opportunity to study one of his kind at such close quarters again.
Bornholm itself is said to be equally attractive , but its harbours are closed when there is a fresh easterly . You don’t pass up a fair wind like that so last night we raced the 100 miles to Copenhagen ( humming that Danny Kay song all the while until we were nearly as bonkers as the gannet! ) , rolling downwind with just a small headsail and propelled by 25 knots of Easterly and a very disturbed sea. It was worth it though, as we are now within 24 hours sailing of Kiel and can explore the SW Baltic whilst keeping an eye on the forecast in the hope of getting some more fair winds for the trip home.
