Go cycling north of Mariehamn and experience charming countryside villages, a medieval church and nature’s own cave church deep in a crevice. Stop for a coffee along the way and take a dip in the sea at Bambölevik beach.
Åland offers great bike rides in all directions on designated cycling lanes as well as on winding village roads with little traffic. You can, for example, follow Godbyvägen out of Mariehamn and cycle north towards St. Olof’s Church in Jomala, one of the oldest stone churches in Finland, dating from the 1280s.
In the neighbouring village of Ingby you can follow a hiking trail and find a completely different kind of church called “Troll Church” in an 11-metre-deep cave-like gorge. On the Ingbyberget hilltop there is a lookout tower, picnic tables, Bronze Age burial mounds and an ancient shingle beach.
Then continue along Godbyvägen road until you turn west to Emkarbyvägen and make a short detour to Judy’s Ceramics & Arts with a pottery studio and a shop in Gölby’s former slaughterhouse.
Coffee and swimming
Solkulla Gård bakery and café is the number one stop when you need to boost your energy level. Enjoy freshly baked sweet and salty treats, and try the specialities of the house, such as Närpes Grisar and PizzÅla.
Further on Svartsmaravägen you will pass the community hall of Karl Ers with a midsummer pole on the way to Bambölevik beach. On the sandy bathing beach there are also smooth seaside rocks and a diving tower. The distance from Mariehamn to Bamböle is about 21 kilometres, but you can make the tour shorter.
