Siglufjörður & Akureyri, Iceland
A wonderful start to a day of exploration began on our way to Siglufjörður with the announcement at 5.30 a.m. that whales had been spotted close to the ship. We were treated to an eye-widening cetacean performance as a pod of white-beaked dolphins and humpback whales cruised along beside us. One of the humpbacks breached several times in an impressive acrobatic display and lolled about on the surface slapping its pectoral fins on the water. That a forty ton animal can lift itself almost clear of the water with such apparent ease is truly remarkable. A large number of northern fulmars glided or sat on the water eagerly awaiting any morsel that might come their way.
The afternoon was spent in Siglufjörður, Iceland's northernmost town and one of it's best natural harbors. Sited at the head of a short fjord with a backdrop of impressively high mountains the town was once the centre of a bustling herring industry. The local population still depend on the exportation of marine products, especially shrimps, and its fleet of modern fishing vessels bears testimony to this. In an effort to highlight the long history and erstwhile economic and social importance of the herring to the community, a local museum was established and in life-size recreates a harbor with all the trappings and equipment relating to fishing for herring including a number of original boats. Two other buildings display the workings of a fish meal and liver oil factory and the accommodation for the women and men involved in the salting and barreling of the herring. A live recreation of the preparation and salting of herring by three women and their assistants furnished us with a vivid and animated insight into the day-to-day routine of the herring fishery of a bygone age. This was followed by an opportunity to sample a variety of pickled and cured herring. The town was festooned with bunting and flags in celebration of National Independence Day. A town parade was in full swing by the early afternoon.
In the late afternoon we sailed for Akureyri. Founded by a group of Norse settlers back in the ninth century it endured and expanded over the years and is now Iceland's second largest center of population.
A wonderful start to a day of exploration began on our way to Siglufjörður with the announcement at 5.30 a.m. that whales had been spotted close to the ship. We were treated to an eye-widening cetacean performance as a pod of white-beaked dolphins and humpback whales cruised along beside us. One of the humpbacks breached several times in an impressive acrobatic display and lolled about on the surface slapping its pectoral fins on the water. That a forty ton animal can lift itself almost clear of the water with such apparent ease is truly remarkable. A large number of northern fulmars glided or sat on the water eagerly awaiting any morsel that might come their way.
The afternoon was spent in Siglufjörður, Iceland's northernmost town and one of it's best natural harbors. Sited at the head of a short fjord with a backdrop of impressively high mountains the town was once the centre of a bustling herring industry. The local population still depend on the exportation of marine products, especially shrimps, and its fleet of modern fishing vessels bears testimony to this. In an effort to highlight the long history and erstwhile economic and social importance of the herring to the community, a local museum was established and in life-size recreates a harbor with all the trappings and equipment relating to fishing for herring including a number of original boats. Two other buildings display the workings of a fish meal and liver oil factory and the accommodation for the women and men involved in the salting and barreling of the herring. A live recreation of the preparation and salting of herring by three women and their assistants furnished us with a vivid and animated insight into the day-to-day routine of the herring fishery of a bygone age. This was followed by an opportunity to sample a variety of pickled and cured herring. The town was festooned with bunting and flags in celebration of National Independence Day. A town parade was in full swing by the early afternoon.
In the late afternoon we sailed for Akureyri. Founded by a group of Norse settlers back in the ninth century it endured and expanded over the years and is now Iceland's second largest center of population.
