Astraia has spent the winter at the
Sune Carlsson Båtvarv in Saltsjöbaden, near Stockholm, enclosed in shrink wrap
to protect her from the cold temperatures and snow in Sweden. However, when we arrived she had already been
unwrapped, so there was no excuse – we could immediately start work!
Sanding off the loose antifouling
paint …
… applying two new coats of
antifouling below the waterline …
… plus cleaning and polishing the hull,
varnishing, recommissioning the engine and generator after the winter, putting
the sails back on, checking and cleaning the dinghy, liferaft, fenders, re-hanging
curtains, provisioning – there’s quite a long list and it was quite hard
work! Eventually Astraia looked clean
and shiny and ready to go back into the water (you can see the boats behind her
are still shrink-wrapped) …
Then the props were removed and
Astraia was transported on a huge trailer down to the water’s edge …
… where the big crane lifted her
carefully into the water …
We could now move back on board – at
first we stayed in a hotel in nearby Ektorp – this is the view of the sunset
one evening from the hotel window …
It wasn’t all hard work – we had
some sociable times with other boat-owners.
One evening Lars and Marianne invited 6 of us to their lovely house to
relax in the pool and sauna, and enjoy a delicious meal of Swedish salmon and
new potatoes.
Here we all are in
the pool (37°C – even Charles came in! – isn’t geo-thermal heating wonderful?!)
Valérie and Francois
from ‘Cybele’, Clive and Jane from ‘Talisman’, us and Marianne – Lars was the
photographer.
We also caught up
with Sue & Ulf and Lea & Carl-Erik for a delightful after-dinner
‘soirée’ …
… and Sue and her Mum,
Sylvia, came on board for afternoon tea.
And of course, not to
forget ‘Pirate’, the sea-going cat on board Cybele …
We also
found time to drive round to Artipelag for lunch – via several chandlery shops
to buy various boat parts and supplies.
Artipelag is described as a ‘contemporary culture centre’ – it has an art
gallery, designer gift shop, restaurant and café, woodland and waterside trails
in a beautiful natural setting by the water in the heart of the Stockholm
archipelago near Gustavsberg. It’s still
early in the season, but it was warm enough to have lunch on the outside terrace overlooking the water
…
… enjoy
walking through the woodland trails …
… and along
the boardwalk which makes access to the nature of the archipelago accessible
for everyone …
We mused on
the meaning of this sculpture of someone about to dive in from the roof!
… and had a
go at taking a ‘selfie’ with the view in the background!!
Inside
Artipelag is modern and airy and the building has incorporated some of the
natural features of the site – this massive rock is presented as a natural work
of art and adorned with a line of tall candles which must look pretty
impressive when lit …
Even the
bathrooms make much use of the natural stone …
You can go
to Artipelag by sea – not many visitors by boat today though!
After our
‘afternoon off’ at Artipelag it was back to work on the boat to get her finally
ready for sea. Still time for a bit more
socialising though!
Lars and
Marianne visited us for dinner on board …
… and then
kindly offered us the use of their washing machine, which was great as
laundrettes seem to be very thin on the ground in Sweden. Here is Lars looking
very domesticated and cooking up a sailor’s supper for us …
On our last
evening at Saltsjöbaden, we also made time for our favourite walk round the
peninsular to look over the narrow Baggensstäkket which we have been through
several times …
… enjoy the
peaceful views …
… and peep
inside the little Church on the hill …
… which has a surprisingly elaborate ceiling …
… and a
separate wooden bell tower …
It was a
lovely, peaceful, calm evening with the sea like a millpond and almost perfect
reflections …
… and Astraia
is ready to go!
