Kalsoy: Incredible Views on the Hike to the Kallur Lighthouse & the Kópakonan Statue You Can’t Miss!

08

Oct

Kalsoy was one of the places I wanted to visit the most in the Faroe Islands, and I’m so glad that I got to go! We took a hike to the Kallur Lighthouse and the Kópakonan Statue and the views were INCREDIBLE. Plus, I got to take photos of tons of sheep along the way 🙂

Kalsoy: Incredible Views at the Hike to the Kallur Lighthouse & the Kópakonan Statue You Can't Miss!

Ferry to Kalsoy

Ferry ride to Kalsoy

The only way to get to Kalsoy is by ferry from Klaksvík, it doesn’t run very often, so I was worried and got in line for the ferry SUPER early. But it worked out because we got to park the car in line for the ferry and explore Klaksvík! You probably don’t have to get in line for the ferry as early as we did, but it is a pretty small ferry so I wouldn’t risk getting there right before it leaves. And I would recommend getting in line early for the ferry returning to Klaksvík so you don’t get stranded on Kalsoy for the night.

Kalsoy ferry schedule

The ferry schedule can be a little confusing so make sure you double check the schedule!

Klaksvik harbor

Ferry ride to Kalsoy

Ferry ride to Kalsoy

Ferry ride to Kalsoy

Ferry ride to Kalsoy

Ferry ride to Kalsoy

The ferry was surprisingly only half full, but it probably fills up more during the high season

Ferry ride to Kalsoy

Ferry ride to Kalsoy

Red barn in Kalsoy

Hike to the Kallur Lighthouse

Kalsoy

After arriving at Kalsoy, we drove to the end of the island at Trøllanes to hike to the Kallur Lighthouse! Matt and I aren’t exactly expert hikers, but we’re in decent shape so the hike wasn’t too hard. It is pretty steep and it took us about an hour to get to the top (including my stopping every 5 feet to take photos of every single sheep I saw… I have a problem).

There isn’t really a path, but you basically just have to climb towards the lighthouse (or follow people like we did!). It wasn’t hard to find our way to the top, but we did get off the “path” on the way back down and had to backtrack a bit. Again, we’re not expert hikers!

We had great weather with no rain and it hadn’t rained the week leading up to our trip, but the ground was still pretty soft and muddy in some places. If it had been raining, this hike would have been a lot harder! I was wearing athletic sneakers and was wishing I had sturdier shoes because I was sliding around a lot, so I would definitely recommend wearing boots.

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Sheep in Kalsoy

Sheep in Kalsoy

Sheep in Kalsoy

Sheep in Kalsoy

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Sheep in Kalsoy

Sheep in Kalsoy

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Sheep in Kalsoy

Sheep in Kalsoy

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Sheep in Kalsoy

I really took photos of ALL the sheep I saw 🙂

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Sheep in Faroe Islands

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

We made it to the top! The views were absolutely incredible, so I definitely recommend finishing the hike if you start it! We hung out taking in the views (and catching our breath) for about half an hour before heading back down.

View from Faroe Islands lighthouse

We did NOT go all the way out there because I’m very clumsy and the ledge was too narrow for my comfort! A lot of adventurous people did venture out there though

Kalsoy lighthouse hike

Kalsoy cliffs

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Faroe Islands ferry

Faroe Islands hikers

View from Kalsoy

Faroe Islands hiking

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy lighthouse

The Kallur Lighthouse is so tiny!

Faroe Islands ram

Faroe Islands sheep

Faroe Islands hiking

Faroe Islands lamb

Faroe Islands lamb

Kalsoy lighthouse

You can just make out the tiny path to the lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Faroe Islands moss

Faroe Islands sheep

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Faroe Islands ducks

Kalsoy hike in Trøllanes to lighthouse

Visiting the Kópakonan statue

Faroe Islands Mikladalur

After finishing the hike to the Kallur Lighthouse, we drove to the other famous Kalsoy sight- the Mikladalur Seal Woman statue. And the views there were incredible, too!

Faroe Islands Mikladalur

Faroe Islands Mikladalur

Faroe Islands Mikladalur

Faroe Islands Mikladalur Selkie statue

The Seal Woman, or Kópakonan, statue has a famous legend on the islands. It’s a long story that you should definitely read in full, but to summarize, seals could come to land once a year and shed their seal suits. A farmer hid the seal suit of a woman so she had to remain in human form, and they ended up getting married and having children. The woman eventually found her seal suit and returned to the ocean and her seal love. The farmer later went on a seal hunt and killed her seal husband and children, so the seal woman has vowed her revenge on the hunters.

Faroe Islands Mikladalur Selkie statue

Faroe Islands Mikladalur Selkie statue

Faroe Islands Mikladalur Selkie statue

Faroe Islands Mikladalur

Faroe Islands cliffs

Faroe Islands waterfall

Faroe Islands Mikladalur Selkie statue

Faroe Islands cliffs

After all our hikes, we made sure we were in line for the ferry at least 45 minutes early. There wasn’t as much room on the ferry back to Klaksvík since it was one of the last ferries of the day and there was a bus that took up a lot of space, so you should definitely get in line as early as possible! But even with the worry about missing ferries, Kalsoy is an amazing place to see and I highly recommend visiting 🙂

Save to Pinterest!

Blog, Europe, Faroe Islands, Photography, Travel

  1. Val says:

    Nature at its best, I’ll definitely add this to my (super long) wishlist! 😀

  2. The views from the top were just incredible and how cute were those sheep along the way!

  3. This whole article is beautiful! I simply have to visit, it all looks like such fun…

  4. Suzy says:

    Wow what an incredible hike! I love hiking but haven’t done anything like this terrain before. Your photos are fantastic (I’d take a lot of photos of sheep too ha).

  5. Tasha says:

    Beautiful photos! Your post has made me want to visit the Faroe Islands even more.

  6. I’ve been thinking about going to the Faroes so this post came at the perfect time! It looks amazing – plus…sheep are adorable.

  7. Kimaya says:

    I loved the pictures, especially of the baby sheep :). I would definitely avoid the seal woman at night though :P.

  8. Erin says:

    Oh my…all those rolling green hills and the fluffy sheep…it’s absolutely breathtaking! I would LOVE to go. What an odd story about the seal woman, though 🙂

  9. Your photos are incredibly stunning and it really looks like the kind of place I would love to visit! Your post just made me dream ????

  10. Kate says:

    Stunning stunning photos! What a place!!!

  11. Heidi Roland says:

    The hike looks amazing! Love the views and the sheep!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

embed your form here

 Pellentesque rutrum maximus leo vitae blandit. Vestibulum vel est eu sem laoreet dapibus. Pellentesque cursus semper purus, a gravida tortor. Ut ac urna magna. 

Grab Your Guide