Strolling It All

Iceland is home to one of the world’s largest puffin colonies. Over half the world´s population of Atlantic puffin breeds are there – eight to ten million birds. That’s a lot of puffins.

Puffins can be seen all over Iceland, but the Westman Islands is home to the largest colony of them. Puffin watching is big business. People like them – they’re cute, colorful, and kind of comical, like penguins with wings.

In Iceland, they arrive in late April or May, and stick around until late August.  

Puffins spend most of the year out at sea, eating fish and riding the waves. They can dive 197 ft. deep and swim 55 mph. They do it by flapping their wings up to 400 times per minute! Seriously, that’s just super cool.

Puffins are monogamous and mate for life. A couple may stay together for over 20 years.   The female only lays one egg per year. She and her mate share incubating and feeding duties until the puffling is ready to fledge.   

Puffins nest in clifftop colonies, burrowing down before laying their egg. They return to the same burrow every year. It takes about 45 days for the baby puffling to hatch.

To learn more about Puffins and especially where to see them, visit this excellent blog.

https://www.extremeiceland.is/en/travel-guide/puffins-in-iceland

While we were in Reykjavik, we decided to take a short excursion out of the harbor to see some Puffins. It was well worth the trip. First off, the harbor itself is a lot of fun, with little shops, restaurants, bakeries and an ice cream shop. There’s a whole lot of boat yard work going on as well. Dry-docked vessels of all sizes mix in with the buildings, docks and vessels in the water. Boats in Iceland are super interesting to me, as they’re often made for a specific purpose and designed to handle the local conditions of each place that we went. 

It was not difficult to sass out a guide and boat, as there’s a little info center that helps tourists do exactly that.

Pulling out of the harbor offered an immediate ocean view of the Performing Arts Center, which seems to somehow capture the feeling of the water and the sky at the same time. 

Our captain was more than happy to take our small group out on perhaps his 5000th puffin trip. Not only was he a good-natured and informative captain, but also a commercial fisherman. He said that the catching was easy, with fish in abundance, but it was tightly regulated, not a lucrative enough enterprise to survive on without whale and puffin trips.

We didn’t have to venture too far out before we started seeing little puffins at sea. It was a short tour, and our main puffin view point was a little Island where they were nesting.

They say the first guy to see a puffin on a puffin tour will be rich and famous. Actually, that’s not true, but I did find the first puffin and got to say, “There’s one.”

THallgrímskirkja (which is pronounced nothing like it sounds) is a Lutheran (Church of Iceland) parish church.  It is the largest church in Iceland, can be seen from most of Rekyavick and is one of the tallest structures in all of Iceland.

The church is named after an Icelandic poet and clergyman Hallgrímur Pétursson (1614–1674)

The church is a short walk up a hill from the Old Town.  It was designed to resemble the trap rocks, mountains and glaciers of Iceland’s landscape. And indeed it does.

Building from crypt to steeple took 41 years and started in 1945. At the time, the building was criticized as both too old-fashioned and too eclectic.  The church was originally less high, but the leaders of the Church of Iceland could not resist the urge to scrape the heavens just a wee bit closer then the now second largest Church Landakotskirkja (Catholic).

I enjoyed this Church with its simple vast spaces, soft interior lines, peaked ceilings and grandiose use of space.   I enjoyed the simple ways the building used natural light and liked experiencing alternate viewpoints of the same shared space by moving about.  The stained glass in this church is also quite striking, colorful with narrative motifs.  It seemed, “down to earth” and not so other worldly.  The church is in use for both regular services and weddings and special events.  

The church houses a massive, quite spectacular  pipe organ and two smaller ones.  The large organ has electronic action and the pipes are remote from the four manuals and pedal console. There are 102 ranks, 72 stops and 5275 pipes.

This organ is massive. It ‘s 49 ft tall and weighs 55,000 pounds.

 

It is quite truly a work of art. I only wish I could have heard it played. They also have an amazing choir. Here is a performance made their in 2012 by the artist Bjork and the choir. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Scvy-JclyDE

The steeple of the church has an observation tower accessed by a lift.  We did not go up it.  There was no shortage of view from the church site itself. 

The general area around the church is very nice with lots of sweeping views.

The statue of explorer Leif Erikson (c.970 – c.1020) by the American Sculptur Alexander Stirling Calder in front of the church is older than the church. It was a gift from the United States in honor of the 1930 Althing Millennial Festival, commemorating the 1000th anniversary of the convening of Iceland’s parliament at Þingvellir in 930 AD.  A truly remarkable story unto itself.

City of the midnight sun

We arrived in Reykjavik by air, as most people do. It’s an odd little airport, sluggishly chaotic, but it serves its purpose. It’s a simple affair to catch a bus to the city center. You purchase a ticket from the ticket booth and they point you to a big bus in the parking lot. They’ll ask where your hotel or final destination is when they take your ticket. Then they’ll drive the bus to a transfer station, where you board a smaller bus to get to your destination. They are very service-minded, speak great English, and will get you where you need to go.  If you’re confused, they’ll help, and they seem to make an effort to ensure that no one is on the wrong bus. I mostly say that because I was on the wrong bus and they got me on the right one.

Our driver mentioned that sometimes if you tell them your street address they’ll take you right to your front door (instead of the nearest official stop).

Reykjavik is a small manageable city by foot; we stayed in the old part, which was perfect.  A short walk in any direction led to many fun adventures.

There are numerous hip restaurants, markets, music venues, and cool things to see.  There’s a working shipyard area, a port, Viking museums, several art galleries, a world-class opera house, a spectacular church, a thriving live music scene, great shopping, endless scenic spots, good food, and even great ice cream.  There are lots of outdoor and indoor gathering areas to enjoy your time in Reykjavik.

The Icelandic sense of style and design incorporates both traditional and modern motifs in unique ways. Simple, clean lines are an ongoing theme, from fashion to interior design to architecture. Arty graffiti and a keen sense of bold patterns and color spices up the scenery.

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And to top if off, the streets are full of friendly domestic cats guarding front doors  (who need pets) and a buzzing youthful energy.  In general the population is fit, engaged and “arty”.

Boat excursions, bike rentals, and longer hikes are fun and plentiful.  You can also ferry to nearby islands and see Puffins.  Everyone likes Puffins!

 We visited in July, when days are 20 hours long and night never fully falls.  Daytime weather ranged between 60 – 70 degrees, with sunny, clear skies, and nights were in the low 50’s. We rented an apartment through Airbnb, which had a kitchen, and we had great fun exploring and cooking with local ingredients and baked goods.  Smoked Salmon was a great deal, as were many other types of fish and seafood.  The dairies there produce great cheeses, and some of the best ice cream I’ve ever had can be found at a place near the water front called Valdis http://www.valdis.is

We also enjoyed several meals out.  One super-fun, casual place was called the Laundromat Café, and it actually did have a Laundromat in the basement. http://www.thelaundromatcafe.com/en/home

One of my friends is vegan, and we had no trouble finding her a variety of tasty selections. 

Reykjavik is extremely safe for walking or biking.  The whole country is in fact, almost entirely crime free, clean and socially benevolent.

We stayed for four days, but you could easily stay longer – especially if you pick up a car for excursions to the Golden Circle, Vik or Skogafoss waterfall.

Reykjavik could easily serve as a nice home base for those who want a big taste of Iceland without having to re-pack their bags.  I’d even consider stopping there for a few days on the way somewhere else just to eat the incredible fish, drink the local beer, maybe catch some music, and absorb the Icelandic vibe.

Even this tiny little window in our apartment was decorated with unique Icelandic art that seems to so perfectly capture the seductive slow unfolding of time, light, sky and space.

There are three commercial ways to get to Iceland.

You can fly, take a ferry, or take a cruise ship.

While the domestic ferry services are quite robust (for inter-Iceland travel), the ferry service from Europe is very limited.

All travel options can be reviewed at http://www.visiticeland.com Our choice was to fly Iceland Air. http://www.icelandair.us

Iceland Air has direct flights from the US to Reykjavik (the capital of Iceland) that depart from Seattle (7 hours), Portland, Denver, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Chicago, Boston, New York, Washington, and Atlanta. It’s a good airline with a strong safety and “on time” record.  Like most non-American international carriers, you will get a little more leg room (39 to 42 inches) and nice flight attendants. It is also quite affordable. Even better, it flies to 22 destinations in Europe, making Iceland ideal for stopovers (which are free, encouraged, and often incentivized with free perks).

Transportation on the island is best handled by buses, rental cars, or short flights (depending upon where you are going.)  Hitchhiking is fairly common, as crime rates are extremely low, but one should factor in the severity of the elements, the massive distances between towns and the lack of “spontaneous” accommodations, if choosing to go that route.    

We flew from Seattle to Paris with a two-hour layover in Reykjavik, and then stayed in Iceland on the way back. My business-class fare on Iceland Air was $400 less than an Air France coach fare out of SF, and the flight was two hours shorter. An added benefit of flying out of Seattle is that they only have one flight a day each way on the same plane — it spends 10 hours a day not flying — so you can be confident that it is well-maintained and will leave on time. Compare this to my parents’ experience on Air France.  The first direct flight had three mechanical issues. After four hours on the runway, the plane was de-boarded and they were put up in a hotel, followed by a next day departure with another two-hour runway delay. And guess what? On the way back from Paris, they had another four-hour runway wait. You seriously need to check an airline’s average rate of making departure times and think about when your potential flight is most likely to come and go in order to make the best travel decisions.

Iceland has a plethora of hotels, B and B’s, farm-stays, Airbnbs, and camping options to choose from at a variety of prices. If you’re going during high season and want to stay indoors, you’d be foolish not to make prior reservations. Towns are far apart and accommodations fill up in advance.  Fortunately, almost everyone you’ll communicate with is intelligent, speaks great English, and is internet-savvy, so making arrangements from afar is very easy. There are also really good websites that will help. Here is the one I liked best — https://www.farmholidays.is

I can’t speak to camping, but that seems wide open. A lot of people travel in well-equipped RVs and they seem to park wherever they want. I also can’t speak to trekking or biking, but there are lots of blogs on the subject. I will say that the weather (especially the wind) can be extreme all year.   How extreme you ask? Well, I bought insurance to protect the car from having the paint sandblasted off, and I had to sign a waiver saying I would be responsible if a car door flies off its hinges, which apparently can happen if you’re not careful. Now that’s windy.

Accommodations are, roughly priced, on par with the US, but food and gas are pricey – about like London. BUT – all the parks are free and museums are cheap. There is also a raging arts and music scene in Reykjavik and a few other places that can be enjoyed for nothing. The people of Iceland are typically college-educated, well-read, well-versed in current events, and as I mentioned, almost everyone speaks English, so there’s no shortage of interesting, active, and strikingly healthy people to talk to virtually everywhere you go. Unlimited outdoor adventures are reasonably priced and well organized.

Food is, in my opinion, pretty damn good — fresh everything (including veggies), with a heavy emphasis on root veggies and seafood. Even places that look a bit touristy or serve food that might read as fast food in the states are often quite good, healthy, and locally sourced.

We rented a car and toured the perimeter of the entire country (with the exception of the West Fjords) on what is commonly referred to as “The Ring Road” in about eight days. We would love to have spent more time doing it, as virtually everywhere we stayed merited more time. Because of the unique, scenic, and fairly treeless (but very green) nature of Iceland, you can see incredible vistas, lush landscapes, and amazing geology right near the main roads, and even short hikes are highly compelling and often otherworldly. There are few mammals beyond the rogue sheep and Icelandic horses (that roam free), but there are hundreds of different kinds of sea birds (a number of them found nowhere else).       

Iceland is a photographer’s dream; the only way you can take a bad picture on a clear day is to leave your lens cap on. It’s also a haven for people who like ornithology, marine life, geology and anthropology.  Lots to see in all regards.

Coastal Terrace Prairie is a pretty cool little wild life sanctuary about 15 miles north of Santa Cruz, CA. 

A hand full of parking spaces can be found in a little dirt turnout on the west side of HI way 1.  A second entrance can be found a half mile south, across the hi way from the entrance road to the small resort Costanoa https://costanoa.com/

This is a great place to take a several mile, back and forth, hike or to drop down to the wide expansive beach (when it’s not full high tide).   It’s an easy walk, flat, and beautiful.  Perfect for kids, romantics, bird watchers, flower gazers and simple reflection.  If I was a person that could throw up an easel and paint, I would seriously consider doing it here.

The native grasses change color and dance with the light all year long, so visiting once is never enough.  The hike moves across and then along the waters edge of the coastal prairie.  Every so often there are cuts in the land that drop to the sea.  Each forming its own little framed vignette.

I have also seen many cool birds here including an Osprey carrying a fish or this here Turkey Vulture watching some Pelicans fly by.  

This hike was a little sad as the recent fires had severely burned the area. As you can see in this photo, the road I am walking on was literaly the fire break. 

And here, looking to the west you can see the devastated redwoods which were green and lush just a few weeks ago.

The good part of the story is that this land that will soon recover. 

Down the trail is this massive Tree surrounded by logs and burls twisted by the wind. If you go left you can easily access the huge beach. If you go right you embark on a nice little journey along that undulates along the ocean cliff.

As you walk along the ridge of the trail, there are lots of little cuts in the land, shaped by water run off and perhaps pounded now and then by big surf. They are full of unique plants and little birds that reside in each one. The comprise little tiny worlds, punctuated by the ever changing backdrop and sound track that is the pacific ocean.

Before you know it you are a long way from the Tree.

Time to head back, things always look different in the opposite direction. I hope you make it here some day. It’s well worth seeing and nice to contemplate how prairies like this one, still rich with native grasses and plants, once dominated the entire west coast of central California. Many have gone to agriculture and others to development but a few remain, much like they were hundreds of years ago.

Hello, welcome to my blog.  Travel is a big part of my life, as is exploring my local surroundings.  I look forward to sharing  stories, reflections, photos and information about my time spent exploring, both near and far.  Unlike most travel blogs, I don’t plan to focus on “bargains” or “luxuries” but rather on quality of experience.  I also hope to infuse my reflections with a strong dose of “being there”.