Exploring In The Rain

To top off our perfect day yesterday, Frances was able to complete a successful maintenance task. Our water tanks seemed to be running out of water faster than normal and we realized that our fresh water pump was failing after four years of reliable service. We had a spare onboard and with an hour and a half the new one was installed and operational.

With our incoming track saved on the chart plotter we were able to leave Leirufordur this morning at our convenience instead of the tide's. We still gave the shallow bar our undivided attention but once we were over it, we rolled out the jib and slowly sailed down wind to Veidileysufjordur. David kept a lookout for creatures, spotting a seal and porpoise as we glided along.

Frances And Krystina In The Dinghy

Clouds started rolling in, banishing the clear skies that we had woken up to. By the time we reached Veidileysufjordur, the fjord was blanketed by gray cloud. We motored up the fjord passing puffins, a razorbill and three great northern divers. Three types of birds that we had not seen before in the Jokulfirdir area. As we were preparing to anchor, we were surprised to see an outhouse on shore and David christened Veidileysufjordur the "En Suite Anchorage".

Over a late lunch we settled on a route for our afternoon explore - a 402m flat-topped fell called Tafla overlooking the end of the fjord. Thirty minutes into the hike, Krystina stepped on an innocent looking rocky area and suddenly found herself in mud up to her shins. Not wanting to hike for four hours in soggy boots, she decided to go back to the boat and remove the rocks and mud, while David and Frances continued up the mountain. Shortly after we separated it began to rain but this did not discourage David and Frances. It did not take long for them to summit and their descent was even faster than anticipated thanks to some excellent poly-bagging runs on the remaining snow.

Frances Poly-Bagging

What has amazed us about the fjords of Jokulfirdir, is that each one is different. from the shape and spacing of the mountains to the wildlife and vegetation, each one has given us a unique experience. We have been lucky to have had a week of blue sky but even in the dreary weather Veidileysufjordur is still spectacular. The horizontal lines of snow that lace the fjord are emphasized by the added contrast of the dark sky. Vertical lines eroded by water help make the mountains more prominent. While the vegetation is just coming into spring surrounded by remains of winter, unaware that it is almost July.

For more photos please click on Veidileysufjordur Album.