Faroe Islands Travel Tips: Why Visit this exotic, clean, North Atlantic destination?

Abundant, attractive sheep are a constant presence on the Faroe Islands, which also boasts exotic bird life.

QUIET, VERDANT REMOTE NORDIC ISLANDS ATTRACT ADVENTURERS, HIKERS, BIRD AND NATURE LOVERS

STORY BY CHRISTENE MEYERS

PHOTOS By BRUCE KELLER

"The Carpe Diem Kids"

Keller rests above a river after a muddy but beautiful hike above Klaksvik.

LOOKING FOR a destination beyond the ordinary? The Faroe Islands deliver dramatic cliffs, scenic hikes, puffin colonies, and peaceful Nordic charm-- all without the crowds of Iceland.

Discover why this remote archipelago is one of Europe’s best-kept travel secrets and why the Faroe Islands should be on your travel bucket list if you wish to explore dramatic cliffs, waterfalls, puffins, and untouched Nordic beauty.

THE FAROE ISLANDS has an exotic appeal -- "far away from civilization are we," our guide told us during a day-long venture.

We stopped on a recent trans-Atlantic crossing, and were delighted by the guide's wit and erudition, and his country's mountains, valleys and grassy cliffs. Then, even better, we beheld a lush variety of  birds and sheep -- a delightful bonus.

Klaksvik is a  picturesque cruise port, with tidy homes and streets, between two seas: the Norwegian Sea and North Sea.

On a day-long hike out of Klaksvik, we slogged through a bog in search of  a stunning view from the mountain top. It was a bit soggy and damp but ultimately sunny and beautiful.

AT LAST it came and we were rewarded.  Although an occasionally steep and challenging journey -- wet and muddy at times -- we had a splendid reward for our persistence.

Cookie braved the occasional sprinkles to hike several miles above Klaksvik, Faroe Islands.

The  Faroe islands (although "islands" is usually plural, it's a collective, singular noun, our guide confirmed) is an archipelago between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, halfway between Norway and Iceland, 320 kilometers or 200 miles north-northwest of Great Britain.

My grandfather Gustav's Norsemen forebears settled the islands around 800, bringing the Old Norse language that evolved into today's Faroese. To my ears, Faroese sounds similar to Icelandic, with the lyrical lilt of Norwegian. It is very musical to this Norsky-Irish hybrid.

ACCORDING TO Icelandic sagas, one of the best known men in the island was the brave and dashing Trondur i Gotu, a descendant of Scandinavian chiefs who settled in Dublin, Ireland. Tróndur took on the Norwegian monarchy and the Norwegian church, fighting bravely to claim the islands. The area is small -- only 1,400 square kilometers, or 540 square miles. Its popular is only is dwindling -- only 48,700.

Salmon are raised in these netted tanks near the cruise port.

"We're struggling to entice our young people to stay here," our guide told us. "Once they cross the waters to Copenhagen or Oslo, they go to university, meet people, taste city life, marry, and don't come back."

WE FOUND the people of Klaksvik open and welcoming, articulate, witty and understated, much like my Norwegian cousins.  Of course there's a connection:  We learned from our guide that 1035 and 1814, the Faroe Islands were part of the Kingdom of Norway.  The 1814 Treaty of Kiel granted Denmark control over the islands, along with two other Norwegian regions: Greenland and Iceland. The Faroe Islands has been a self-governing country of the Danish Realm since 1948. 

Hikers are rewarded with a  bird's  eye view from the mountain top.

THE FAROESE control domestic matters; Denmark handles military defense, police, justice, currency and foreign affairs. As a self-governing archipelago, the Faroe Islands is represented in the Nordic Council, part of the Danish delegation.

18 rocky, volcanic islands make up the Faroe Islands, scattered between Iceland and Norway in the North Atlantic Ocean and -- connected by road tunnels, ferries, causeways and bridges. Hikers and bird-watchers are drawn to the islands’ mountains, valleys and grassy heathland, and steep coastal cliffs that harbor thousands of seabirds.

MORE INFORMATION: visitfaroeislands.com