Overnight shack

This is not an island you go to on your own keel, unless you are a seasoned yachtsman and have a good crew. The island is isolated far out in the Baltic, it takes some navigation to get there and conditions can rapidly deteriorate so that you must leave your anchorage and take to open sea.

Svenska Högarna, records date back to the 15th century when the island was a centre for the seasonal fishing. But it was not until 1855 before the first, wooden, beacon was built. The red iron lighthouse was built in 1874.

New technique has help the island to survive. Swedish Telecom has built a relay station for mobile communications - a mast 38 meters high. A leading edge "windmill" has been installed and a computer controls its operation and the accumulator during calm periods.

Nature is primarily barren rocks and is easy to walk, but often you will find deep ravines.

The islands offer great opportunities for the birdwatcher. Here you will find both guillemot and skua nesting. Large numbers of migrant birds also take a rest on the islands. East of the "village" is Ruddammarna where people in the old days kept carps.

The island also has a burial ground with an old bell-tower, and two paved labyrinths, several hundred years old. Several giants´kettles can be found on the southern end of the island.

The lighthouse has been designed by Gustav von Heidenstam and is the only one by him in this archipelago. This lighthouse is the best preserved one around and most of the details and technical arrangements are in original shape. It has been restored and offered as a gift to the foundation "Edward Sjöbloms Stiftelse Svenska Högarnas Fyr".