July 14
Dynjandisvogur
We continued sailing in the Vestfirðir/Westfjords of Iceland. This area is characterized by an intricate coastline resembling the head of a dragon. More than half of Iceland's fjords are found here. (A fjord is a long, narrow, deep inlet of the sea between high cliffs, typically formed by submergence of a glaciated valley.) This is the oldest part of Iceland, and was created around 14 million years ago. It is also the coolest, wettest, and windiest region.
During the morning we disembarked via zodiac to visit the Dynjandi Waterfall. Dynjandisvogur which translates to "Thunderering waterfall". It cascades down a 100 meters/328 foot descent, following the natural contours of the basalt underneath.
It was a beautiful hike to nearly halfway up the waterfall.
Vigur Island
In the evening, we again took zodiacs to reach the island of Vigur. Although Vigur is the second largest island in Ísafjörður bay, there are only three permanent residents who live in a mid-19th-century house. One of these is Felicity Aston, the first woman to ski alone across Antractica. She lives there year round with her husband and young son. Vigur Island is famous for its enormous colony of birdlife. Species here include puffins, eider ducks, arctic terns, black guillemots and razorbills.The family makes part of their income from collecting and selling the down of the eider ducks. We learned about these birds and the process of collecting the eiderdown.
Wet landing at 9:00pm on Vigur Island
Puffins on Vigur.
Arctic terns are amazing birds. They migrate every year from the Artic region to Antarctica, chasing the summer. They are also very territorial and will attack then they feel that their ground nests and chicks are endangered. They will attack the highest point of the predator, so we carried sticks above our heads for protection! We ended our evening with a delicious slice of a traditional Icelandic cake, hjónabandssæla, or "happy marriage cake". Delicious !
Another amazing day of exploration! ❤️