Reykjavík Grapevine - 26.08.2016, Qupperneq 58

Kayaking has always been a fa-
vorite sport of mine because its
effort-to-awesomeness ratio is
incredibly low. Sure, pro kayakers
can get up to all kinds of badass-
ery, but if you’re a tourist interest-
ed in trying it for the first time or
a “kasual kayaker” like myself, you
don’t have to worry about dying at
all. It’s almost as easy as it is safe,
plus you look impressively adven-
turous in the photos afterward.
That’s a win-win-win scenario if
you ask me. Plus puffins.
I’d spent the whole summer
stuck in the city, working like a
chump, with little time for recre-
ation in the Icelandic countryside
or appreciation of its magnificent
beasts. Lovely as they are, the cats
of Reykjavík don’t count. Luckily
for me, I was able to squeeze my-
self into Fjord Serenity, a kayaking
tour offered by Arctic Adventures.
Knowing I’d be writing about it
later, I went in thinking of it as
work but came out having had ex-
actly the day off I’d needed. Did I
mention puffins?

A little less dead
The first thing to kayaking is gear-
ing up. After donning waterproof
jackets, we practiced sealing and
unsealing ourselves to the kayaks
with the elastic rubber skirts they
put us in. Then there was a quick
rowing tutorial before we headed
into the fjord.
As I walked my kayak down
the beach, I spotted my first ani-
mal of the day, a tiny dead crab.
It was completely intact and I de-
cided to stick it under the elastic
ropes crossing the front of my
kayak. In Old Norse culture, a per-
son was believed be accompanied
to their fate by an animal spirit
called a fylgja. I decided that this
crab must be my fylgja of the day,
guiding me back to shore in once
piece—but hopefully a little less
dead.
It was cloudy when we slid
into the startlingly still water but
the sun kept threatening to peek
through. I crossed my crab claws
that it would make good on its
threats.

Fjord serenity now,
fjord serenity now
I was told there’d be jellyfish and,
besides the sheep along the hill-
sides, that’s the first living thing
we encounter. It creates the first
buzz amongst the group and even
a little wholesome bit of fear.
They were harmless, though, and
seemed peaceful. I was even a lit-
tle jealous of them.
The thing about tours is that
you never know who you’re gon-
na end up with. I imagine some
groups paddle silently through the
fjords, listening to the water and
tour guide’s information about
rocks and birds. Other groups
make small talk. Some groups,
ones with teenagers, apparently
blare Justin Bieber from their cell
phones as they kayak and scream
at the sheep to “lure” the poor,
confused animals closer. So much
for Fjord Serenity.

Kayak attack
I’d had a little of column A, a lit-
tle of column B, and more than
enough of column C. So I paddled
ahead to keep up with the guide,
who was telling the group about
the arctic terns around us. By the
time we reached a peninsula to
stop and stretch our legs, the teen-
ager’s dad had properly shamed
her and Justin did not join us on
the final leg of the journey.
The group was a bit quieter as
we set off toward a small island
with high cliffsides that is known
for its bird colonies. I happened to
know it was also where Hörður, a
famous outlaw from the Icelandic
Sagas, happened to hide out with
his band of followers until they
were lured to shore and killed.
Now it’s mostly puffins. Despite
living in Iceland over a year now,
I’d still never seen a living one, so I
was not alone in my excitement as
we broke into their cute little army
surrounding the island.
Before the rest of the group ar-
rived, the guide spotted an eagle.
It perched right on the cliffside
as I stopped paddling and looked
up. A palpable silence gathered as
the others caught up. We all sim-
ply stared upward in awe and af-
ter a moment, the eagle actually
turned its head to look straight
back down at us. That’s where we
finally found serenity.
Next we found joy and laughter
as two seal pups escorted us back
to the shore, popping their heads
up unexpectedly here and there.
Even the smile on my face, howev-
er, could not shake my newfound
peace as I removed the crab from
my kayak and lay it back to rest on
rocky beach.
Tour provided by Arctic Adventures
- adventures.is
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TRAVEL GUIDE
Fjord Serenity Now
Finding the calm in a kayak
in Hvalfjörður
Words GRAYSON DEL FARO Photos ART BICNICK
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 13 — 2016
58
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