Flatey Island and Grundarfjordur, Iceland, 9/19/2022, National Geographic Endurance
Aboard the
National Geographic Endurance
Arctic
Today we continued our exploration of the wonderful country of Iceland. The morning began with a chance for guests to take a short Zodiac shuttle to Flatey Island. We walked along the narrow paths on this charming little island just off the mainland of Iceland. In the afternoon, we relocated to Grundarfjordur, where the options were to take a shuttle to Kirkjufell Waterfall or a longer bus ride around Hellsin.
Nathan Kelley developed his love for nature as a kid at his family’s cabin in Northern Wisconsin. Family fishing trips, camping, hiking and a trip to his first National Park in the Everglades, all vigorously shaped his passion for the natural world. ...
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An overcast sky greeted us as National Geographic Endurance entered the old harbour of Reykjavik. With a slight change in the itinerary due to weather, we were given the opportunity to explore in and around Reykjavik today. The Ring of Fire, a 4x4 tour, and a spa visit were on the menu. The Ring of Fire tour took us to one of the geothermal power plants outside the city. Icelanders make it look easy to sequester carbon dioxide. They have come up with a system where they add carbon dioxide to water and push it down into the Earth. Eventually, the bubbly water turns into rock as it reacts with the basalt. The plant supplies Reykjavik with hot water and electricity. So, all you need is geothermal activity, lots of water, and porous basalt…then you can store carbon dioxide. It’s as easy as that! Fittingly, lunch was cooked with geothermal heat, including bread and pastries baked with steam and eggs boiled in the naturally hot water. Just brilliant. Thingvellir was our last stop. We stood with one foot on the Eurasian Plate and one on the American. Well, not quite, but you can walk from one continental plate to another. Iceland is such a unique place in many ways. As the plates slowly move away from each other, the rift created is almost splitting the country in half. After the guest slideshow and farewell dinner, the day ended with a concert in the ice lounge. Hafdís Huld, a local singer-songwriter with incredible talent and charm, brought this beautiful trip to a close.
As National Geographic Endurance sailed through Arnarfjördur in the Westfjords region of Iceland, the sun was just starting to peek over the mountains. Our morning destination was the iconic, cascading falls of the Dynjandi Waterfall, also known as Fjallfoss. We dropped off a group of guests interested in a longer hike 3.5 miles from the waterfall. They were greeted by eider ducks and black guillemots. National Geographic Endurance proceeded farther into the fjord, where the rest of our guests and staff went ashore to photograph and explore the falls. As we sailed out of the fjord in the afternoon, we encountered a pod of half a dozen feeding humpback whales, including a mother and calf. The captain and officers expertly held the ship in position for all to see. Perfect light allowed us to photograph these incredible animals, and we were able to take identification shots for Happy Whale, our Citizen Science project. The late afternoon was filled with a presentation about the archeology and construction of Viking ships. Special guest speakers Peter Hillary and Jamling Tenzing Norgay invited us to an early recap to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the first ascent of Mount Everest with a champagne toast. As we sailed out of the fjord, a few more whales were spotted in the setting sun.
