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Minolta Autocord, Kentmere 400 @ISO400, yellow filter, Caffenol CL-CS, 15°C starting temperature, 60 minutes, Zone Imaging Eco Zonefix.
I made this image fairly late in my trip to the Faroe Islands. I was staying in the town of Leirvik at this point, having relocated to the eastern part of the archipelago to be closer to the islands of Kalsoy, Kunoy and Viðoy. By this point I had hit most of the spots I had really wanted to see and was poring over Google maps to visit any places that looked interesting but had been passed over in my initial examinations. I had already discovered that it was impossible to go anywhere on these islands and not be amazed, so I was really just looking for a place to point to as an initial direction to head, content to enjoy whatever I discovered along the way. Kunoy Park seemed just such a spot and I wanted to see the island of Kunoy as it was, so this seemed like a good place to start. One upshot to visiting the park here and reading about its history is it made me realize that one thing the Faroe Islands is almost completely lacking is trees. I had noticed but not noticed this already. I think initially I was so distracted by the beauty of the place and once I had gotten used to that I had also gotten used to not seeing trees. Kunoy Park is one of the few places in the islands you can find trees and even these were planted by people. Later, after I had moved back to Tórshavn I asked my Airbnb host about this. According to her, the islands have pretty much always lacked trees. Before shipping became a reliable means of importing goods the islanders relied upon driftwood as a source of their building materials (I was especially curious how they built boats without forests for lumber). There were several beaches and coves on the islands known for collecting driftwood and these became prime harvesting locations. Most of the trees the islands saw wash ashore came from Norway, in case you were curious.
Anyway, with my affinity for forests and trees I really enjoyed my visit to Kunoy Park. Despite being planted by people, this park had a very natural feel to it and like any good forest was quite contemplative and quiet. I hiked up through its short length, passing a father and son playing in the woods and came to this back exit looking out on pasture and mountains and found this view moving enough to unpack the Hasselblad. Much of the islands is pervaded by a sense of quiet and timelessness steeped together. This is just one more example of such a spot where that came out. At least while I was standing there.
Hasselblad 500C/M
Kodak Portra 400