This is our final post. We leave the island today. Goodbye to all our wonderful friends that we've met along the way. We will miss you and we will miss Iceland.
We heard wondrous things about Hornstrandir, the deserted northernmost part of the West Fjords (now a nature preserve) so we decided to embark on a two-day adventure into the Icelandic wilderness. As there are no roads in Hornstrandir, this involved driving to Ísafjörður, taking a Sunday ferry to Hesteyri (an old settlement in Hesteyrarfjörður, on the south coast of Hornstrandir), spending two days hiking and camping, and getting picked up by the next ferry on Tuesday morning at Sæból (an old settlement in Aðalvík bay on the east coast).
Day 1: We arrived at Hesteyri at approximately 3pm and began our hike to Aðalvík. The hike was to take around 6 hours and as we had beautiful, clear blue skies and a full 24-hours of daylight (it was after all the summer solstice), we began right away and expected to take our time getting there. About one hour into the hike Jess was the proud new owner to two mega blisters, one on each heel. Nonetheless, we kept a move on. Though in discomfort, the hike was still manageable, and hiking barefoot through glacial streams seemed to dull the pain somewhat. It wasn't until around 4 hours into the trek, as we were descending into the valley leading to Aðalvík, when the fun really began. Enter GNATS! These little buggers made the rest of our hike unbearable. They swarmed in our faces, crawling in our eyes, up our noses, and inside our ears. We thought at first we had just entered a gnat zone and that it would soon be over. Little did we know the next two days would be experienced through a filter of gnat bodies.
So after hiking down the mountain, through a waterfall, and body-sliding down an ice cliff, we found ourselves in a marshland - AKA Gnat Central. We booked it as fast as we could toward the coast, but could hardly open our eyes to see where we were going. And while our destination was in sight, getting there was a long and tedious experience. By the time we made it to the coast Jess could hardly walk anymore so we made camp on the beach thinking that the ocean breeze might deter our pesky followers. No such luck. From this point onward we were tent-bound. We did manage to get out of our tent around 00:00 to witness the midnight sun.
Day 2: We were fortunate to have a light breeze in the morning so we could actually have breakfast in peace. But soon after the rain began, so we spent most of the late morning in the tent. By around 2pm the rain had stopped and we decided to start a day hike up the coast to Skáladalur in search of the much talked about Arctic Foxes (and offspring) of Hornstrandir. fox den?
From the moment we left the tent and continuously for the next three hours our faces became gnat hotels. We made it as far as we could until the trail seemed to end at a bird cliff inhabited by Great Black-backed Gulls. Then the storm clouds rolled in and we retreated toward our beachfront property. We spent the rest of the evening in the tent, only venturing out to face the gnats to cook dinner and relieve ourselves in the wilderness (just making sure to stay out of view of the summer houses).
Day 3: The ferry was to pick us up at 10am from Sæból, so we postponed taking down the tent (our one and only shelter from the gnats) until the last possible moment. We made our way to the beach around 9:30 (as instructed) and waited in a swarm of gnats until 10:45, when we were finally able to board the escape vessel. As we left the beach I said "take us away from the flies!" and an Icelandic woman who has been staying at a summer house in Sæból looked at me quizzically and said "and you did not have a bug mask?" I guess we should have been more specific when we called ahead to the tourist office to ask about hiking conditions and wildlife in the region. In true Icelandic fashion, since we didn't ask specifically about face-burrowing gnats, they didn't feel the need to tell us to bring our bug masks. Live and learn…
While revisiting Seyðisfjörður in the East Fjörds, we ventured out to Skálanes - a bird sanctuary on the tip of the peninsula. The area is closed most of the year, and is only accessible by foot or jeep in the summer as there are three rivers one must cross. This area is also the nesting grounds of billions of Arctic Terns which act as a security system for the lone guest house. We had the unfortunate privilege of experiencing the famed Arctic Tern's aggressive behavior.
Here are the Arctic Terns between us and the guest house.
They seem to be aware of our presence and are letting out their shrill cry to warn the others.
Jess is panting after running for dear life through the nesting grounds, and the others are still coming. Watch as the birds swoop down to attack the heads of predators, Dan and Erla.
Seaman's Day is an important holiday at the beginning of June which celebrates the Icelandic fisherman. The festivities include a day-long event complete with rowing races, competitive fishing related games, and (as usual) an all-night party. On the following day (this year, Sunday, June 7th) all fishing in Iceland is made illegal and all fishermen spend the day at home with their friends and families (occasionally nursing hangovers from the night before).
Here are some highlights from the 2009 Sjómannadagurinn in Skagaströnd:
The Bird Watching Tour from Stykkisholmer is a "Unique Adventure Tour" indeed. Aside from seeing Puffins, Skags, White-Tailed Eagles, and countless Eider Ducks the highlight of this boat tour is when the sailors drop the trawl and comb the seabed for fresh shellfish. Here are the highlights.
The net/trawl
The catch
Opening the scallops
A very confused scallop
The options include raw scallops, crab roe, and sea urchins with white wine to wash it down
Jess (the vegetarian) tries raw scallops for the first time
To see more pictures of birds, seals, lava, etc. on Snæfellsnes click here
Here are a few images from our exhibition at Skaftfell Center for Visual Art, which opened yesterday and will be on view until June 7, 2009. To see more pictures of the exhibition click here.
After returning to Seyðisfjörður from a weekend trip along the east coast we were surprised to find that the quiet town had been transformed into "Soundville" and was in the midst of production for an upcoming Sony commercial. And, as it turned out, our home (the Skaftfell Art Center) was the star of the show.
From August 21, 2008 until July 1, 2009 we lived in Iceland, participating in several artist residencies around the country. This blog highlights the most interesting aspects of our travels and projects. You can see more photos from our various journeys, as well as learn more about our work by following the links below.
This site is not an official Fulbright Program site. The views expressed on this site are entirely those of its authors and do not represent the views of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State or any of its partner organizations.
Nov 1 - Jan 31, 2008 SÍM Artist Residency (Seljavegur) Hafnarstræti 16 101 Reykjavík Iceland
Oct 1 - Oct 31, 2008 SÍM Artist Residency (Korpúlfsstaðir) Hafnarstræti 16 101 Reykjavík Iceland Sept 1 - Sept 30, 2008 NES Artist Residency Fjörubraut 8 545 Skagaströnd Iceland
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