We were asked if we had some sheep that could go at Selja, because there are no animals left there. There are still at least 5 people living at the island, they even have their own bishop! He is currently residing in Sarajevo, but visited in 1997 or1998 for the 1000-year anniversary.
Anyway, they had to give up farming a few years ago, because it didn't go along too well with the tourism...lots of manure around which they did not want to get into the boats. Then 10-15 years passed, and the island is "disappearing" in shrubs. So, as a part of a plan to restore the monastery and it's surroundings, those in charge wanted sheep again! The plan is to build up a flock of gammel norsk utegangersau. They will fit in nicely, they will be able to find most of their food growing on the island, and they stay there all year round. So, Thursday was the day for the big move..
We see Selja from our farm, but we can'tsee the monastery, that's on the other side of the island.Off to an early start- walking each sheep down to the sea, where we had a good neighbour waiting with the boat. The kids were great in helping out. It's high water,and easy to lift the sheep onboard. I went along on that first boatride, it tok us about 45 minutes to get from the farm to the monastery. The weather was quite good, but with a bit of waves...
The sheep did very well, although a couple lied down and were taking up a lot of space.. We had 16 on that first trip. Getting them off the boat went like a dream, and I stayed with them just to see how they reacted, while the boat returned for 9 more shep, and two happy girls.
sitting on top of a bale of hay, and some grains which we use as "chocolate"- only to get them more manageble, they love the grains, and come running whenever they see the bucket or hear the sound, but don't get fed on it.
They all settled in nicely, and we went back home, because the weather turned , it gotrainy and a lot more windy. On Saturday we went back, the kids and I , this time also exploring the monastery itself. This is the view from Sunnivahelleren.
We found all the sheep going together near the monastery, and hopefully they will stay around here, at least until the touristseason stats in June... then we'll have to relocate them to other parts of the island. There is plenty of food, the grass is coming, and there is einer and røsslyng ,
tang og tare, everything very healthy and also neccesary for the sheep. 
They seem pretty happy, don't they?
On their way just below
Sunnivahelleren.
DS2 is sitting next to Sunnivakjelda, a small ,"hole of water" orholy water, it's said to have a healing effect, if you take three sips from your right hand. The kids love the place, and the school tries to take a trip out there every year. It's a big part of history- both local and for all of Norway, I think.
There will be many more trips to Selja during the year- this is only the start. In a couple of months I hope to have 15-20 lambs running around there...
...and have a great day:-)
( Sæl, Benný mín! Jú thetta er ég, thad var rétta Maritin;-) gaman ad sjá thig! Býd kærlega ad heilsa fjölskyldunni, og svo vona ég ad thú kemur aftur, bædi hingad á bloggin, og til Selje! Kvedja, Marit)
They seem pretty happy, don't they?
On their way just below
Sunnivahelleren.
DS2 is sitting next to Sunnivakjelda, a small ,"hole of water" orholy water, it's said to have a healing effect, if you take three sips from your right hand. The kids love the place, and the school tries to take a trip out there every year. It's a big part of history- both local and for all of Norway, I think.
There will be many more trips to Selja during the year- this is only the start. In a couple of months I hope to have 15-20 lambs running around there...Sooo, stay tuned;-)
...and have a great day:-)( Sæl, Benný mín! Jú thetta er ég, thad var rétta Maritin;-) gaman ad sjá thig! Býd kærlega ad heilsa fjölskyldunni, og svo vona ég ad thú kemur aftur, bædi hingad á bloggin, og til Selje! Kvedja, Marit)
20 comments:
Det var eit bra dagsverk. Lukke til med beiting og lambing og alt. Eg er så glad for at det endeleg vert beita litt meir på Selja.
Det kjennest litt "mitt" ut òg, det klosteret
Wow, that is so amazing!
Hi, Marit! I was so happy you stopped by my blog, and to see that you have posted new here too! :o) That is incredible...And so are the views there! Those monastery ruins are very romantic. And the sheep do seem very, very happy there! Happy Days to you all! ((HUGS))
Hei Marit.
Fantastisk. Spørs om jeg ikke skriver noe om Selja igjen i min blog, og linker hit. ER det ok?
For en fantastisk historie. Og litt av en jobb, ville jeg tro.
Jeg må jo le litt også - når en tenker på turister som reiser langt for å få se ekte historie og "bli ett med naturen" for så få fnatt når litt av den samme naturen setter seg fast på skoene.
That is really fascinating! What a beautiful land you have there. And I may be mistaken, but I believe Selja is even mentioned in an Icelandic Saga.
Your boat house is gorgeous!
Wow, that's a big move! I love the photo tour, and I can't wait to hear more about how the sheep are doing :)
Sounds like a wonderful weekend. The pictures are amazing, as always ;).
I am always in awe when I read your blog posts! What adventures, and such beauty!
I think it is wonderful what you have done, and I hope your sheep are happy and stay healthy there. It looks like a lovely place to visit, but I imagine it could get very lonely living there. :)
It's a good idea to have sheep to graze areas to prevent them from being shrubby. Even here on the UK coast a herd of Herdwicks (fleece good for carpets plus they are good doers on sparce land) are being used to stop the shrubs from taking over from the grasses on the dunes. I have heard of them being used on graveyards when maintaining them has become too expensive. I think it is better than people's head stones being removed to the side walls to make mowing cheaper and easier.
I am impressed at how well your sheep behaved at loading Marit.
Så herlig det må være å leve så i pakt med naturen som dere gjør! Men det er vel litt på godt og vondt, med stadige uvær og dårlige veier!
Det er jo så vakkert på Selja og hos deg, så en har lett for å glemme sånt når en bare ser de nydelige bildene.
Du hadde vel på deg den nye koselige lua di på turen tenker jeg! Den likte jeg godt!!
Stooooor klem!
Spennende!
Svar på spørsmålet ditt i bloggen min:
Det er brikkevev ja. Jeg kjenner ikke til at vikingene benyttet seg av grindvev. Samene derimot var jo spesialister på grindvev, helt fra vikingtiden og fram til i dag.
Vikingene kjente til mange svært avanserte brikkevevteknikker, mye mye mer komplisert enn dette relativt enkle mønsteret. Når jeg får god tid (ha ha) skal jeg lage noen virkelig innvikla og tidkrevende bånd!
Så koselig blogg du har! Bruker ikke alltid like musikk på sider men denne gangen ble ejg litt skuffa når den ble borte fordi jeg skulle skrive kommentar, nydelig:-)
Fine bilder fra sauefrakt, sauer er fine og nyttige dyr, lukter godt gjør de også bare man får vasket *bittelitt*;-)
Og så nydelig det er ved kysten....kan nok bosette en kystelsker midt i innlandet men ikke ta bort lengselen mot havet helt!
Hei !
Har en liten utmerkelse til deg i bloggen min hvis du vil ha den!
Det ser så vakkert ut på bildene dine. Det er flott at dere kan bidra, så landskapet ikke gror over. Det var kjekt at du tok oss med på turen gjennom bloggen din.
Jeg syns forresten at du kledte lua i forrige innlegg veldig godt :-)
What a beautiful place and what a great story. Thank you for sharing I will forward to seeing lambs
Oh hello from Southern California! I just came over from Britt-Arnhild's blog and enjoyed reading this post. I also see you have Eva Cassidy in your music selection - that is my favorite album of hers.
What a beautiful island - I hope your sheep are very happy there :-)
xxx
That's a beautiful sight, I hope you those sheep get many healthy little lambs!
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