Lögberg-Heimskringla - 01.11.2015, Page 6

6 • Lögberg-Heimskringla • November 1 2015
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T his fateful account of a deadly fishing expedition from Vestmannaeyjar
in 1869 has been translated
by our associate editor Julie
Summers. It shows the danger
and hardships faced by those
19th-century Icelanders who
braved the elements to fish from
open boats.
The narrative of Hannes
Jónsson, sea pilot at Miðhús
(b. October 21, 1852; d. July
31, 1937). The fishing season
of 1869, Hannes was hired
aboard the eight-oar Gideon
by the farmer Árni Diðriksson
in Stakkagerði. On Thursday,
February 25, Árni planned to
go out to sea and had shortly
before put the Gideon in the
boathouse. The weather had
been very unstable, so men
had not been able to go out
to sea much lately, but many
went out that day. Jón Jónsson
at Vilborgarstaðir, captain of
the six-oar Blíður, and Árni
Einarsson at Búastaðir, the
father of Ingvar at Hólshús
and the captain of the eight-oar
Langvinnur, had already gone
out.
When Hannes went to the
ship that morning, he fell on
a hill in the wet slush above
Naustin, where the ships’
equipment was stored, and he
got completely soaked through.
Since it was considered unwise
to go to sea wet, he headed back
home to change his clothes.
When he was finished, he again
went down to Sandur and all
except the Langvinnur had
rowed or come out to Botninn
to read the útdráttarbæn, a
prayer customarily recited
before the first voyage of each
fishing season.
Hannes didn’t want to go
with Árni because Árni was
said to be a poor fisherman,
although he was an intelligent
and diligent man. So Hannes
stayed on land for the day.
There were unusually strong
south breakers that morning.
There had been stormy weather
out of the south-southeast
overnight, but in the morning
the weather was calm and the
weather frostless. The surf was
so great that Leiðin was cut off
and men had to take advantage
of the pauses between breakers.
Most of the ships that went
to sea went south in the bay
Flóinn and south near the bay
Stakkabót, except three ships
which went north and west
around Heimaey. Shortly before
midday came a flare of strong
weather due west. Some ships
had then already come home.
The men hadn’t even gotten any
fish because it was so difficult to
keep control of their vessels on
the rough seas, and the weather
showed no signs of letting up.
Árni Diðriksson had just
come in near Miðhúsaklettur
on the Gideon. The storm was
instantly so strong that they
didn’t drag the fishing line out
since the oars were blown up out
of the oarlock. They, and all the
ships that had gone south along
the coast, turned around because
of the weather and sought
shelter east of Bjarnarey. Most
rowed away from the storm. On
board the Najaden they tried to
raise the sail, but the mast broke.
Two of the ships that had
gone west were right by the
rock column Stóri-Örn when
the storm broke out. It was
Brynjólfur Halldórsson, a
farmer in Norðurgarður and
the father-in-law of Hannes,
the captain of the eight-oared
vessel Áróra, and Guðmundur
Erlendsson, the sea pilot who
commanded the Svanur. They
landed at Eiðið, and the surf
was not as strong there since
it was southerly. But not long
after, when the westerly storm
had continued for an hour, the
water began to crash violently
over Eiðið. When they landed,
Sigurður from Brúnir under
the Eyjafjöll mountains and his
crew were there to help them. He
hadn’t gone out fishing because
he thought the skies did not
bode well and the surf was too
high. He was a very astute and
weather-wise man. He often
went out fishing and enjoyed
good weather while others
stayed on land, and sometimes,
if he found the weather
uncertain, he stayed on land
while others went out fishing,
and in doing so he avoided
many hardships. He had a
fishermen’s hut at Grímshjallur
for his crew, and he was captain
of the six-oared rowing boat
Translated by Julie Summers
Reykjavík, Iceland
The great fishing voyage
PHOTOS: STEFAN JONASSON
Top left: Open fishing boat at Skógar Folk Museum.
Above: The Seamen’s memorial and church at Vestmannaeyjar, at right a closer look at the memorial
For this and other great recipes visit www.freshwaterfish.com
Pickerel Fillets Stuffed with Scallops
6 Freshwater Fish pickerel fi llets (about 8 oz. each)
1 lb scallops
2 tbsp cream
1 medium white onion
Juice of 1 lemon
2 cups fi sh stock or 3/4 cup Clamato juice
1/2 cup white wine
4 tbsp frozen butter
4 tbsp whipping cream
1 tbsp butter
In a blender, chop the scallops. Add cream, onion, lemon juice and 1 tbsp
butter. Blend until smooth. Place a portion of the scallop mixture on each
pickerel fillet and roll the fillet.
Place pickerel rolls in a fish poacher or pan. Add Clamato or fish stock and
white wine. Cover and bake for 20 minutes at 450°F. Remove rolls and keep
them warm.
Transfer fish broth to the stove top and reduce by three-quarters. Add frozen
butter and cream until thick. Add lemon juice and pour over fish rolls.
Serves 6
Thanks to Lee Major, a gourmet chef and one of the ‘2 Grumpy Guys in the Kitchen,’
for sharing this wonderful recipe, passed along from Master Chef Tony Murakami of
the St. Charles Country Club.