Thursday 13th August - Western Fjords - Lonafjordur - Isafjordur

After a pretty rough night, I woke at 6am as we entered the calm waters of the fjord. We dropped anchor at around 7am at the entrance to Lonafjordur, and the first group left on their Zodiacs at 8am. The weather was sunny and about 8 degrees.

We had our breakfast and I went up on deck and watched the first groups returning to the ship from the far end of the fjord.

Lonafjordur

Once they had all returned, we boarded the last Zodiac at 9.45am.  It was a pleasant ride into the fjord. Beautiful scenery made up for the lack of wildlife.

We did see some very large jelly fish that floated by the Zodiac, pink with long white tendrils.

 An adult Icelandic Swan was swimming along with three cygnets in tow.

Icelandic Swans

We also saw guillemots, gulls and eider ducks. At the end of the fjord there were several waterfalls. We spent a few minutes taking photos and enjoying the scenery.

On our way back along the fjord, we went past this swan with five cygnets following.

The Zodiac cruise was a fun 90 minutes, though not a ride to list amongst the most memorable!

Loading the Zodiacs back on to the ship

Back on board, we had lunch in the dining room and then around 2pm, we arrived in the fishing town of Isafjordur. We berthed alongside a German cruise ship, the Astor.

At 3pm, we left the ship to take a coach tour of the town and local region. We had Elisabet, a lovely, lively young Icelandic mother of four, as our guide. She looked like a teenager with her shaved head and tiny pigtail, but she told us she was 30! Her husband was the guide on one of the other buses. We went to the Maritime Museum and she tried to get us to eat rotten pieces of shark, washed down with schnapps. Needless to say, most of us didn't take her up on the offer! Lori and Gordon did though, and Lori said it wasn't that bad! The museum also had a great collection of accordions.

From there we drove to a local waterfall, fed by a spring, that serves as the town's water supply. We were given some to drink and it tasted lovely. The waterfall was next to the town's golf course.

Our guide handing out glasses of the spring water to the group

Soon after we left the spring, we drove past the "Troll's Throne", where some of the passengers are hiking. The "Throne" was formed as a result of a hanging glacier, during the last ice age.

The Troll's Throne

We then drove through the town, which has a population of 2000, and looked at some of the houses, including Elisabet's own home. She said it is an idyllic place to bring up children. She also told us lots of gossip, especially the fact that Elisabet's grandmother used to babysit the present President of Iceland, who was quite naughty. She related tales about trolls and elves, which they all believe in. Then we went on to the fishing village of Bolungarvik, which lies in a picturesque bay. On the way we went through a 5.4 kms tunnel that had been completed five years ago. At the village, we saw the massive avalanche barriers that protect the houses in winter. We then went to the church, which is made from driftwood, to listen to a local 15 year old young man, who sang Icelandic folk songs with Elisabet. They are distant cousins. He is very musical, as are most Icelanders, and she has a very fine voice and was totally natural and uninhibited.

Our last stop was at Osvor, where we visited a reconstructed fisherman's hut and saw how they lived and worked over a hundred years ago. A young woman, dressed in an old fisherman's outfit made of cowhide, gave us a brief history of the fishing industry in this part of Iceland. Elisabet told us that the locals like to come to Bolungarvik to look out to sea, as there is no horizon in Isafjordur, which lies in a deep fjord.

Will, Darian and Maria with our guide, Elisabet.

Back at the ship, we watched as the Astor pulled away from the quay, accompanied by a pilot boat.

Half an hour later, we did the same, with the pilot boat sailing close to our side of the ship for the pilot to jump off, once we were clear of the harbour.

Our destination is Grundafjordur about 130 miles away, our last stop before Reykjavik.

This evening is the Captain's Farewell Party and we have been invited to join him at his table in the dining room. What an honour!

Before the dinner, we had the Captain's cocktail party where all the crew are presented to the passengers. Crew Member of the Month awards were presented to one member of staff from each department and Putu won the hotel award. A very popular winner.

We sat down to dinner with Captain Denis Radja, Philip and Kay from Australia and Allen and Connie from Pennsylvania. Captain Denis was very chatty and we had a most informative time discussing the ship and various issues a captain has to contend with, especially when sailing in ice.

During the dinner, we all celebrated the birthdays of Darian and Peter, the psychiatrist. They are both from Brisbane and share a birthday, but hadn't met before this cruise.

Only one more day to go! First thing in the morning, I must try and check in for our Icelandair flight that leaves at 4.10pm on Saturday.