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Käringön in Bohuslän - an idyllic island off the coast of Orust.

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Käringön is an idyllic island off Orust in Bohuslän. Here you can sunbathe and swim, walk in picturesque alleys and hang out in cosy restaurants in the harbour. We made a lovely day trip by boat from Tuvesvik on Orust.

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Käringön in Bohuslän

Käringön in Bohuslän is a car- and bike-free little island far out in the sea, perfect for a day trip.

Käringön i Bohuslän

Käringön is located just south of the islands of Gullholmen and Härmanö off Orust, in Bohuslän on the west coast of Sweden.

Why is the island called 'Käringön'?

Käringön has a history of fishing and became a permanent settlement as early as 1596, when a group of young fishing families from Orust chose to move here to be closer to the fishing grounds. Since then, fishing has been an important part of life on the island and in the 18th century the community grew with the 'great herring season'.

Käringön i Bohuslän

But where does the name "Käringön" come from? It seems to be a bit unclear. According to the island's own website, the word comes from the Scottish word "Cairn", which means sea mark. West Sweden's website tells a story about 'lucky cairns' and 'unlucky cairns' that fishermen would meet on their way to the jetty, and that the term 'cairn' was eventually used to name a sea mark at Saltskär.

Whatever the connection, a statue of a 'bitch' can be found on Käringön today. The statue was made by Franz Glatzl in 1996, and a plaque reads: "The skirt is built like a hake, a fixed sea mark. Another word for hake is käring'.

The Käring statue is something of a landmark on the island, as is the huge whale jaw, which stands up like a gate. The jaw came to Käringön in 1990 as a gift from a summer visitor, and comes from a bowhead whale.

Travelling to Käringön from Orust

If you do not have your own boat, or choose to take a water taxi, you can easily travel to Käringön by ferry from Tuvesvik on Orust. From here, the line Tuvesvik - Gullholmen - Käringön is operated by Västtrafik, and the journey to Käringön takes about 40 minutes. As Käringön is both car- and bicycle-free, you must leave all vehicles in Tuvesvik.

We parked our motorhome in the nearest car park, and then walked to the ferry terminal. We bought a ticket from a machine before boarding, but another option is to buy a ticket via the app "Västtrafik ToGo".

Parkering i Tuvesvik, Orust
We left our motorhome in Tuvesvik and took a ferry to Käringön.

Gullholmen

Before reaching Käringön, the ferry docked at Gullholmen. This is a small and wonderfully charming island where the houses are close together. In fact, because of the dense development, the island is often called "Sweden's most densely populated island".

However, the other part of the island community consists of Härmanö, which is instead one of Bohuslän's largest nature reserves. There are several hiking trails and excellent places for bird watching.

In Gullholmen's harbour there are a few restaurants and cafés, and we considered getting off here. However, we chose to prioritise Käringön on our excursion.

Gullholmen utanför Orust

The harbour on Käringön

When you arrive by ferry to Käringön, you will of course come to the harbour. This is a truly idyllic place with red boathouses, small boats, restaurants and cafés. Here you will find Peterson's krog, Crêperiet, Samson's wine café which serves luxury pizzas and a grill where you can buy sausages and chips.

Hamnen på Käringön i Bohuslän

You'll also find a bunch of cute little shops selling clothes, accessories, furnishings and gifts.

Hamnen på Käringön i Bohuslän

Nice swimming spots on Käringön

Right next to the harbour is a nice little swimming area, which was extremely popular when we were here. There are both bathing ladders and floating docks, and the children had great fun catching crabs with small fishing rods, bait and buckets.

In addition to this bathing place, there are of course many other bathing places around the island. These include the Trampoline Bath by a rocky lagoon, the Open Air Bath dating back to the 19th century and the Cold Baths, where nude bathing is the order of the day, ladies for themselves and men for themselves.

Badplats på Käringön i Bohuslän

Beautiful cliffs and charming alleys

In general, it is super charming just about everywhere on the island. We went for a spontaneous walk over the cliffs and passed the cute little lighthouse.

Fyr på Käringön i Bohuslän

Then we entered the alleys where the fine red and white houses are densely packed, surrounded by greenery and hollyhocks.

Käringön's church - and Samson the priest

We also checked out the lovely little church. The first settlers on Käringön, who moved to the island at the end of the 16th century, had to do without a church. It was only in 1796 that a church could be built, thanks to the good herring fishery.

Just over fifty years later, the priest August Simson arrived on the island and left his mark on life there. Simson was both a priest and a teacher and, according to the Kärringön website, was very influential. Among other things, he introduced:

  • Three new public holidays: The preacher's birthday, ordination and landing on the island would be celebrated with a service and the ringing of bells.
  • New names for the locals: Parishioners with son names were given new names, such as Västerberg or Österberg, depending on where they lived. Samson also often decided the names of newborns, preferably something biblical.
  • Marriage cancellation: Samson believed he could judge who was suitable for each other, and cancelled marriages that he considered unsuitable.
Käringöns kyrka

Samson's vicarage - now a restaurant

Simson also had a new vicarage built for himself and his wife Fredrika with his own funds.

Simsons prästgård

The building is currently managed by one of the island's associations and the ground floor is rented out to the Simsons restaurant. Here you can eat a seasonal menu in five sittings, but there is also a bistro menu.

Simsons restaurang

The pilot's lookout

We also walked to Lotsutkiken, which is a cute old pilot's house of ten square metres.

Lotsutkiken

Here, from the south-western tip of the island, there are beautiful views of the sea and the surrounding islets and skerries.

Utsikt från Lotsutkiken

Lunch at Peterson's Tavern

After all the walks around the island we were hungry and longed for lunch. The choice fell on Peterson's restaurant in the harbour where Helena ordered a "sea wallenbergare" and Peter ordered a fish soup. Very good, and a fantastic place to enjoy lunch!

Karingo Oyster Bar

Another restaurant we have to tell you about, even though we weren't there, is the Karingo oyster bar. Located in a small red fishing shack, this exclusive place offers an oyster tasting or spa with champagne and oysters. This sounds both luxurious and cosy! Note that the oyster bar is open most of the year, but is closed in July.

Ostronbaren Karingo

Return to Tuvesvik on Orust island

For our part, we lay down and sunbathed, and rested, on the rocks for an hour after lunch. Then it was time to return to Tuvesvik on Orust. What a wonderful day! An absolutely fantastic excursion, which we can highly recommend!

Hamnen i Käringö i Bohuslän

Film from Käringön

Here you will also find a short film from Käringön.

See more in the neighbourhood

When you are satisfied with Käringön and Gullholmen, there is of course more to experience at Orust. For example, Mollösund, Malö and Flatö are beautiful. It is also nice to experience Tjörn and the islands of Dyrön and Åstol.

All our top tips for holidays in Bohuslän

Have you visited Kärringön?

Have you visited Käringön in Bohuslän? Or perhaps you have experiences from other islands on the west coast? Please tell us!

Facts about Käringön in Bohuslän

  • Landscape: Bohuslän
  • County: Västra Götaland County
  • Municipality: Orust municipality
  • Population: About 60 permanent residents and a couple of hundred part-time residents.
  • Read more: You can find more information at the island's own website.

History of Käring Island

  • 1596: The island became a permanent settlement when some fishermen's families chose to move to the nearest fishing grounds.
  • 1664: The fisherman's son Olof Knape was born on the island. He went to sea at the age of 8 and soon saw France, England, America and the East Indies. Over time, he played an important role in the island's history.
  • 1700: Olof Knape was hand-picked as an Admiralty captain by King Charles XII, which meant something akin to a state 'pirate' career. Knape participated in successful battles against attacking Danes, but was mainly involved in the privateering activities of the time. In time, he was knighted as Olof Strömstierna.
  • 18th century: Herring fishing provided abundant catches for many years, during the so-called herring fishing seasons, and the community on the island grew to a population of over 300 people.
  • 19th century: The population of the island increased further.
  • 1849: August Simson gave a trial sermon in Käringö church and was subsequently elected chapel preacher, and was given the position of both priest and teacher. Simson was a schartauan and gave strict sermons.
  • 1877: Samson had a new rectory built with his own money.
  • 1900: Samson died and was buried on Käringön.
  • 1912: A total of 662 people were registered on Käringön, which is the largest population the island has ever had.
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