Ship ahoy

One of the great things about Stockholm is that the city is built on islands, so there's water everywhere. And boats, big and small. You can take ferries to and from many different places. There are quite a few commuter boats that you can use for "free" if you have the travel card. This time of the year there's always a cruise ship or two here. The first photo shows a vintage motorboat passing by City Hall out on the Riddarjärden ay. Next two photos of a Polish schoolship docked at Skeppsbrokajen. Then, one of the cruise ships. The Europe 2. Then the Michaela Rose visiting from Southampton. The Skipperi is a rental service for boats that is quite popular. I took that photo high up at Monteliusvägen on Södermalm.

Six Watercrafts

Time for a few water crafts. Queen Silvia celebrated her 80th birthday a while back. So the Norwegian Royal Family paid her a visit. They arrived in style on the HNoMY Norge. The Royal Yacht of the King of Norway. Which is the ship in the first two photos. Next, the commuter boat M/S Hamnskär moored at Riddarholmskajen. It will take you to Solna strand with stops at Lilla essingen, Stora Essingen, Alviks strand and Hornsbergs strand. Solna is a neighboring municipality to Stockholm, btw. Fourth, a typical archipelago ferry. The M/S Västan at Strömkajen, near the Nationalmuseum and the Grand Hotel. It started its life as a steamship some 120 years ago. Today it runs on a diesel engine. Next, a visitor from the US, spotted at Skeppsbrokajen across the street from the Royal Palace in the old town. A boat owned by John W. Henry, who also owns a couple of football clubs and what have you. Oh, and if you would like to buy it from him, you need to cough up around $90 million. In the fifth photo a ship at Riddarholmskajen with an interesting history. Today, with the name Mälardrottningen. And lastly, photographed from the City Hall bridge, two people out in a motorboat at Riddarfjärden.

City Hall Regatta

Stockholm City Hall turns 100 years. The celebrations have been going on for over a week. I have been there a number of times. All these photos, and yes there are quite a few, are from a regatta. It was called Stadshusregattan. Held out on the bay, Riddarfjärden. There were several different classes and many different races. Modern boats. Female only crews. And my favorite, the century old boats. The weather was amazing. People were out in force. Both on dry land and out on the water. Enjoy!

Boats, boats, and more boats

Five boat photos, shot from two different bridges on a sunny summer day. All photos except the motor sailing one photographed from the Årsta Bridge. I spotted the sailboat in the canal at Hammarby Sjöstad.The Skanstull bridge below where I was standing were opening to let the waiting sailboats through to Årstaviken via the Hammarby lock, so I stopped for a photo.

Båtliv

I always enjoy photographing boats, big or small. Båtliv means boat life, and this time of the year everyone seems to be out in a boat. Here are six such photos taken on that day when the bike broke down. So these snaps are all from Kungsholmen. All privately owned boats except for the second one which shows M/S Stegeholm from Strömma Kanalbolaget.

Down by the water

Four photos taken at Årsta brygga. A port near my favorite beach, from where you can take the ferry out to the archipelago. Or your own boat of course as you can see in these photos. This little port can be very busy this time of the year, but I arrived half an hour or so before the arrival of one of the bigger ferries, so it was quite calm. I stopped for a bite to eat and a quick look around. The car park was full. I saw a few people eating at the kiosk. A dad was showing his two sons how to operate the family boat. A few old-timers were chatting away. Someone arrived and asked where he could leave his luggage so that it would not be in the way for people arriving at the port. A couple waiting for the ferry noticed that I walked past a closed gate, so they decided to do that as well.

Gotland Runt

I watched the start of the annual offshore race Gotland Runt a while back. It was a glorious Summer day. I figured that the best place to see the boats and take photos would be from high up, so I headed to Fjällgatan on Södermalm, famous for its views over the city, and as you can see on the top photo I was not the only one with that thought. Around 400 boats took part in the race, and it was a great spectacle to watch. Background on the second photo is Beckholmen with the old giraffe. Third photo with Skeppsholmen as a backdrop. In the fourth photo, you can see the amusement park Gröna Lund. In the last photo for today, we look back at Skeppsbrokajen and Gamla Stan. More yachts tomorrow.