Day Fifty One Thursday 8th September

Today we decided to see how much further we could get in the same direction. Although the site was great we were not sorry to leave all the insect life behind. We are both sporting some large, hard bumps! Some more lovely bridges led us over a couple of islands northwards, and then there was a long causeway heading in the direction of the furthest island, Enklinge. This must have been constructed recently, because the SatNav thought we were on a ferry! The causeway stopped in the middle of the water, with a barrier across it, and we could see a ferry on the far side. Our guess is that eventually the causeway will go right across. There was no sign of the ferry moving, and no other vehicle in sight. An incomprehensible sign made us think that maybe we would have a long wait, and we would only have to come back again, so we turned round and retraced  our steps. It was no hardship, enjoying the views in reverse in the beautiful weather. In fact a later googled translation proved that the sign merely gave notice of some minor disruptions to the service.

After a few miles, and in the middle of nowhere, we saw a sign to a shop off the main road, and drove through a grassy lane to find a full blown and very well stocked supermarket. By the car park was a little blue hut with a sign "bokboden ". A peak inside revealed shelves of second hand books, and a table and chairs, all very cosy!

We stopped for lunch across the bridge from yesterday's lunch stop, on the island of Sund, in the car park for Bomarsund Fortress. It is referred to as ruins, but in fact the fortress, conceived and built by the Russians at the beginning of the 19th century, was never completed.  The remains cover a large area, and we wandered around happily for some time. The history is very interesting and includes a successful joint British/French raid in 1854.

The campsite by the fortress closed for the season yesterday, and a quick nip back over the bridge confirmed that the Prasto site was also closed. So we went on a few more miles, still on Sund, to check out the opening times tomorrow for an open air museum and castle which we want to visit. The museum hadn't yet closed for the day, although there was no one around except the young lady manning the reception building. She was extremely helpful, and saw no reason why we couldn't stay here overnight! So, manned with guidebooks to read in readiness for tomorrow, we are tucked away in a shady corner of the car park with access to loos, and the option to wander around the museum this evening  viewing the buildings from the outside if we wish, We are even told that there is wifi 200 metres away at the entrance to the castle, although we have yet to check it out.
.