Mykines

At the far western edge of the Faroe Islands, Mykines rises from the Atlantic in steep green slopes and dark basalt cliffs, crowded in summer with tens of thousands of seabirds. It is the westernmost of the eighteen main islands of the archipelago, about 10 square kilometres in area, with a single village of turf-roofed houses and a vast colony of puffins.

Mykines belongs to the oldest part of the Faroes, built some 60 million years ago from successive flows of fluid lava. Softer layers of volcanic tuff between the basalt sheets have eroded faster, leaving ledges that make some of the richest bird cliffs anywhere. The island's highest point, Knúkur, reaches 560 metres. In the valley of Korkadalur on the north side stand great basalt columns known as the Stone-wood. To the west lies the islet of Mykineshólmur, about 1 km long, joined to the main island by a footbridge some 40 metres long over the narrow strait of Holmgjógv; a lighthouse was built at its western end in 1909. BirdLife International lists Mykines and Mykineshólmur as an Important Bird Area, with an estimated 125,000 pairs of Atlantic puffins, 50,000 pairs each of northern fulmars and European storm petrels, 23,000 pairs of black-legged kittiwakes, and Manx shearwaters, guillemots, shags and northern gannets.

Human history here is old and harsh. Pollen evidence suggests oats and barley were grown on the island as early as the seventh century, perhaps by monks or hermits, and the name may derive from an Irish term meaning "pig island". The island even has its own endemic house mouse. Around 1595 a sudden storm drowned all the working men of Mykines along with crews of some fifty boats from across the Faroes. The village once counted 170 people in 1940, but only a handful live there year-round today. The painter Sámal Joensen-Mikines (1906–1979) came from the island and took its name.

Getting there

Mykines is about 45 km west of Tórshavn. The island is reached by a small passenger ferry from Sørvágur on Vágar or by helicopter from Vágar Airport (FAE), about 17.5 km away in a straight line. The island is car-free.