As you can imagine, with our goal of driving around the majority of Iceland, there will be a few days we have to cover, literally, a little more ground. Today was one of those days—Husavik to Laugarbakki (heading west, northwest). Keeping true to our experiences, though, the weather made another 180 degree turn, and we woke up to a gorgeous, warm, sunny day.
Off we set for whale watching take 2, with two stops along the way. First, Godafoss. At 12m high and 30m wide, Godafoss is the “Beauty” to compliment the previously seen Dettifoss (the “Beast”). Godafoss means “waterfall of the gods”, which I thought would be a reference to how lovely this waterfall is. Hmmm. Not exactly. In a more violent reflection, it is believed that idols of the old gods were thrown into Godafoss when Iceland embraced Christianity in 1000 A.D. Definitely a less tranquil series of events.
Onward! We headed to the city of Akureyi next. Oooh! Cool aside—we went through another tunnel. This one was 7 ½ kilometers long. Cut out about 15km of driving, but no one could hold their breath all the way through.
Akureyri, in the heart of North Iceland, has the second largest population outside of the capital. It is a very cool city, and we could have spent a lot more time there. As is, we utilized our brief layover to have a delicious snack, stop at a used bookstore, and do a run/walk through the Art Museum. I mistakenly thought zipping through this small art museum would be ok, but I was corrected by Audrey (seconded by Elizabeth), that they really needed a few hours here. It’s pretty fun to visit art museums with Audrey and hear her explanations and interpretations about the various pieces displayed. Her comprehension of visual art is way beyond my own. For instance, ask her about the blue piece—something about the monochrome drawing in the viewer, but how the artist also utilized the brush stokes to accomplish something. Obviously, I do not have the appropriate vocabulary to even explain what she told me, but I enjoyed walking through the art museum with her!
But—we did have a reservation for whale watching so we had to move on. Whale watching today was perfect. Sunny. 55 degrees Fahrenheit. No horizontal snow. We really had incredible weather and an incredible experience. Our tour guide explained the 4 B’s of what to look for when spotting whales: blow (air spouts), black bag (what they look like in the water), bubbles (a technique they use for fishing), and birds (who take advantage of the whales feeding to scoop up any leftovers). I will modestly point out that I spotted the first whale in the distance, identified by the professionals as a Minke whale. Nothing could prepare us for our whale spotting success just a few short minutes later. There were no less than 5 Humpback whales feeding in close proximity. Humpbacks do not travel in pods. They tend to be more solitary, so to be surrounded by so many of these gorgeous giants was truly incredible! I have 45 minutes of video! Don’t worry. I won’t post it here.
All good things do end, so it was back to the van to drive the rest of the way to Laugarbakki. We had dinner at a restaurant specializing in locally sourced food. The website touted that the beef burger was named after a famous outlaw in Iceland, Grettir the strong from the Icelandic Sagas. Grettir was a monster-slaying hero who ended as an outlaw. The lamb burger was named after the “famous local woman Agnes, the last person in Iceland to be executed publicly in 1830 for her crimes. Agnes murdered her lover, true story with deadly emotions, love and hate.” Now the actual menu in the restaurant didn’t mention these two folks, but it will always be Grettir and Agnes for me.
Another long drive tomorrow!
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