I wrote in my previous post that I thought that cruising the Stockholm archipelago was amongst the very best of my sailing experiences aboard Spellbinder. I now need to revise this statement – the archipelago west of Helsinki, where I have spent most of the last fortnight, is better still.

After a couple of weeks back in UK, regaining a measure of control of the garden and generally catching up with the real world, I flew back to Stockholm with son Jonty and new crew Bash. On arrival back at Saltsjöbaden, however, it quickly became apparent that Spellbinder had got herself into trouble with a Swedish bird, and things had got messy.

We cleaned her (Spellbinder) up, went shopping, and headed out in some quite breezy conditions north into the Stockholm archipelago, stern anchoring and tying up to rocks at Ostholmen.

We had a bit of a walk around, giving Jonty and Bash a glimpse of a different type of cruising, where you moor with stern anchor out, tying up to rocks, where there is plenty of space, free mooring, saunas-a-plenty and composting loos in the woods.

Our main destination was Finland, however, and we sailed north across the bottom end of the Gulf of Bothnia to Mariehamn, capital of the Swedish-speaking autonomous province of Åland, which technically belongs to Finland but which has its own very distinctive identity. It even requires its own courtesy flag. The main aim of going into Mariehamn was to pick up a key and burgee which would give us access to some outstations belonging to the Nyländska Jaktklubben, or NJK. The NJK is the oldest Finnish yacht club, and has an arrangement with the Royal Cruising Club, of which I am a member, allowing us access to them. Possession of this burgee, and the authorisation that comes with it, was to transform our experience.

We had a night at Mariehamn, which was nothing special, being dominated by a large cruise ship terminal which brought hoards of tourists taking advantage of some tax-free concessions. We then began a lovely cruise towards Helsinki, passing via Sandvik (Kokar Hamno), Ramsskär, Hanko (where we picked up my eldest son Tom) and Högholmen, before berthing at the old NJK headquarters at Blekholmen, which lies with its magnificent club house in Helsinki city centre.

Having picked up Tom from the port of Hanko, we enjoyed Högholmen for its sauna and nearby swimming, getting the hang of a wood burning sauna and the booking in and out process of the NJK outstations.

On arrival at Helsinki, we were impressed to see the appropriate flag raised, and enjoyed our short stay in the immaculate surroundings of the former NJK headquarters. Sammy, the harbourmaster, was outstanding.

It was time to say goodbye to Bash, who took us out for a wonderful lunch in the city centre, where we enjoyed eating reindeer meat and other delights.

Later that day our new crew Crispin and Ann arrived into Helsinki, and we enjoyed drinks and dinner in the clubhouse with William and Susannah of Hero, with whom Spellbinder has very enjoyably shared many of this year’s best cruising moments.

The next day we headed back out into the archipelago, re-visiting Högholmen and Ramsskär but also taking in the NJK outstations of Munckshamn, Långholmen, Bodö and Kräkskär.

These outstations are wonderful. They are generally quite remote, always seem to have room, and are very well curated, with a club member responsible for their upkeep. Firewood and gas canisters are delivered by boat at the beginning of the season, and each place generally has a lodge with basic kitchen facilities, a BBQ, a wood-fired sauna (you book your slot) and a composting loo or two, of the ‘long drop’ or ‘Thunderbox’ variety. It is enormous fun, as I hope the photos show.

Crispin enjoyed some great wild swims, and a run with Tom, where they made a very Finnish friend.

After experiencing these wonderful NJK outstations, we rather reluctantly headed back west to Sweden, having a lively but increasingly enjoyable sail across the open water between the two countries. We arrived at Arholm at the northern tip of the Stockholm archipelago, where we were treated to a magnificent sunset, and enjoyed a stroll around the island after a long day’s passage.

The wind had been fairly friendly up to now, but the final two days were characterised by quite strong southerlies, which entailed some motoring, using the islands for shelter where we could. We tied to rocks at Hasselö and anchored more traditionally at Ornö Kolnäsviken, before arriving at Nynashamn, where Spellbinder awaits our return later this month, when we hope to cross Sweden from east to west, using the Göta canal.

It has been a superb fortnight, and I was smitten by the Finnish islands. I’m really grateful to the NJK, who made most of it possible, but also to my crew – Tom and Jonty of course, but also Bash, Crispin and Ann. Thank you all for making it all so enjoyable – all very relaxing!