The Selkie Woman of Mikladalur, Kalsoy

I am absolutely fascinated by these sparse rural villages on the Faroe Islands, with their wooden houses painted in tar-based black and covered by grass roofs.

Currently most villages there are served by roads and many have helipads, so the isolation is no longer what it was when connections could only be made by sea; the easier access shows, for example, in the rise of accommodation and restaurants all around. It has also brought artists that leave their works on Faroese folklore.

Mikladalur is located on top of a cliff, with access to the sea by a slipping ramp. But it's most famous for a beautiful bronze sculpture of the legendary Seal Woman, a Nordic mermaid, standing on rocks at sea level, facing a waterfall from above the rocks.

Mikladalur is older than expected: it is already mentioned in writings from 1298, in the island's sheep and dog count. Later, in 1584, there is a register of owners that also mentions the first village assembly, in the churchyard, in 1646. 

After centuries of farming and herding, as Mikladalur was well located close to some fishing banks, it became a fishing port in the 19th century. Then the village grew with people who came from other villages for the  seafaring jobs. The village first school was built in 1885. Another activity at that time was bird hunting, also bringing an important income to the village. The road arrived only in 1980, and life has changed since then. Even a café has already opened there.

Mikladalur, island of Kalsoy

Population: ~30
Coordinates: 62° 20' N, 6° 46' W

The stone church was built in1856

Nornðástova Smithy, the blacksmith forge, is a red-painted stone house with a grass roof; for some time it was a center of activity on the island, teaching the profession to many apprentices. They made hooks and harpoons for whaling, knives, sickles and even eyeglass frames.

The Smithy closed in the 1970s, but the furnace and wheel still function; they are now protected by a grass covered roof. It remains in the Norðnástova family.

A water mill can also be seen downstream on the brook that flows through the village. Every village on the island had one, for grinding grain - barley and corn., 

Kópakonan, the Selkie of Mikladalur.

The legend of the Faroese Seal Woman was immortalized in bronze with a sculpture by Hans Pauli Olsen in 2014, on a low rock next to the village gate. The framing is spectacular.

The statue of the Seal Woman was erected on a rocky knoll, Stórakneysi, at the village shore. I will publish the legend in a following post. 

Another unusual feature of Mikladalur is a small forest; it is well known that in the Faroes, trees are absent in nature, they are only found in plantations. That's why this little forest is so valuable:

The tree line in the Faroe is about 200 m above the sea. This plantation was made at an altitude of 100 meters, southeast of the village, on the banks of a small stream. It was started in 1953, and consists of dune pine, Japanese larch and spruce varieties.

Kallur, the headland north of Kalsoy island

The northern half of the island of Kalsoy rises more than 200 meters above the sea. The peak of Nestindar reaches 788 m.

Rugged cliffs covered in layers of greenery rise towards a sky that seems to merge with the sea. The route along the cliff crest to the Kallur Lighthouse is as dangerous as it is irresistible.