Reykjavík Grapevine - 06.05.2016, Side 52

BOOK YOUR FLIGHT OR
DAY TOUR AT AIRICELAND.IS
ÍSAFJÖRÐUR
ICELAND’S WESTFJORDS
ARE ONLY 40 MINUTES AWAY
Let’s fly
ÞÓRSHÖFN
VOPNAFJÖRÐUR
GRÍMSEY
ÍSAFJÖRÐUR
AKUREYRI
EGILSSTAÐIR
REYKJAVÍK
is
le
ns
ka
/s
ia
.is
F
LU
7
32
63
0
3/
15

“Are you kidding?” laughs the
grizzled old bus driver. “I’ll never
get to Ártun by 8:51. Maybe if this
was a Ferrari.” He checks a timeta-
ble. “You should take Strætó num-
ber five. I’ll radio ahead… oh wait,
there it is! Run!”
And so, a short getaway to Styk-
kishólmur, the largest town on
the Snæfellsnes peninsula, begins
with us racing across Hlemmur,
clumsily laden with bulky coats,
backpacks and bags. The driver
of the number five bus has been
informed we’re coming, and after
we pile aboard she puts her foot
down—firmly. We grip the rail-
ings as the rattling city bus speeds
towards Ártun, our intrepid driver
radioing ahead to tell the connect-
ing bus to wait for us. It’s a team
effort, and somehow very Icelan-
dic, that the plight of two foreign
bus travellers should become such
a family affair.
Once aboard the 57—a more
comfortable cross-country coach–
the panic is over, and we put
our feet up. Soon, the scenery is
flowing by as we shoot between
snow-mottled bulges and craggy
volcanic plains, through frosted
farm fields and over snowy moun-
tain passes. Just three hours lat-
er, Stykkishólmur’s distinctive
church glides into view, looking as
much like a grounded spacecraft
as a place of worship.
The minibus chugs away from
the cracked, empty gas station
forecourt, and the silence of the
town descends on us.
Curved & cheery
Stykkishólmur is sopping wet un-
der a drizzly ceiling of low, gray
clouds. The streets are deserted,
and we splash down the town’s
raw, potholed main street. Hotel
Egilsen is easy to find, being one
of the older and more distinctive
buildings on the town’s pictur-
esque harbour—in fact, it’s the
second-oldest building in Styk-
kishólmur, and will soon celebrate
its 150th birthday. Its curved roof
and cheery red exterior hold an
immaculately renovated modern
boutique hotel, complete with
wooden powder-blue walls, artful-
ly mismatched furniture, and cosy
touches such as Vík Prjónsdóttir
blankets and a library of Nordic
folk tales and maritime fiction.
We’re given a warm welcome and
a hot coffee, and instantly fall in
love with the place.
With a few hours left until
check-in, we head to the town’s
swimming pool, which is famous
for its mineral-rich water. We
have the pool to ourselves, and
soak blissfully in the hot pots, the
steaming water leaving a silken
sheen on the skin. A large sign
proudly proclaims that the water
here is richer in some minerals
than either the Blue Lagoon or
Mývatn Nature Baths—and at 800
ISK entry, it’s considerably cheap-
er than either.
Viking sushi
Stykkishólmur’s harbour is one
of the town’s most noticeable fea-
tures, with a huge, jutting, light-
house-topped cliff protecting the
marina. It’s still used for fishing,
as a ferry port and, increasingly,
for pleasure cruises. The most
popular of these is the Viking Su-
shi tour—a feast of fresh seafood
that’s pulled out of the fjord before
your very eyes.
We board with a large, excit-
able tour group and settle down in
the ship’s dining hold. As we pull
out of the harbour, the captain’s
voice crackles over the speakers.
Some of the reputed thousand
small islands in Breiðafjörður
have their own folk tales. We steer
alongside a distinctive island that
has a large boulder precipitously
jammed in a chasm between two
ridges. It was apparently thrown
there, centuries ago, by a misfir-
ing troll who launched it at Styk-
kishólmur’s church, irritated by
the sound of the bells. “Geologists
found that the rock is made of the
same substance as the troll’s home
mountain, and not the rock found
on the island,” says the captain.
“And furthermore, it’s on the right
trajectory… so we have proof!”
Eventually, we gather at the
back of the boat. A heavy basket
is thrown into the water, and we
look on as it sinks to slowly trawl
the sea floor. When it’s wound in a
few minutes later, out spills a me-
nagerie of brightly coloured sea
creatures, from purple urchins
to orange starfish, pink crabs
and huge scallops. The shells are
52 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 5 — 2016TRAVEL
Bus trip: straeto.is
Viking Sushi trip: seatours.isStykkishólmur
A Feast
For All The
Senses
John encounters brigthly
coloured urchins
Words & Pictures by JOHN ROGERS