Skuvoy

Skúvoy is a small island west of Sandoy with a single village of a few dozen people and cliffs on its western side that hold large seabird colonies, including one of the more important guillemot populations in the islands. Beside the church is a grave slab traditionally identified as that of Sigmundur Brestisson, the chieftain who brought Christianity to the Faroes; attacked here around the year 1005, he swam to Suðuroy and was killed on the shore there, and tradition brings his grave back to this churchyard.

History

Skúvoy takes its name from the many great skuas that nest on it. In the 14th century the Black Death is said to have killed everyone on the island except one woman, whose cottage can still be seen, and the island was the home of Sigmundur Brestisson, the hero of the Færeyinga saga (Wikipedia, Skúvoy).

Highlights

• The western bird cliffs - large guillemot and other seabird colonies.
• The Sigmundur grave - the slab by the church traditionally identified as his.
• The single village - a few dozen people on the sheltered eastern side.
• The ferry crossing - the short and weather-dependent link from Sandur.

When to go

June to August is the practical window and the seabird season. Ferry sailings are few and cancelled in swell. Cliff access is dangerous.

Before you go

The ferry runs to a sparse schedule and cannot land in swell; being stranded is possible. The bird cliffs are unfenced with lethal drops. There is no accommodation.

Nearby

Sandur is north on Sandoy, and Stora Dimun is south.

Key facts