Akureyri

We set out for Akureyri from Hólar late Thursday night. After heading south along Skagafjörður, we joined up with the Ring Road and set out eastwards along the base of the Tröllskagi peninsula. By this time it was actually dark, so we got only the faintest impressions of the spectacular scenery we were passing through. This would have been less disappointing had we known that we would revisit the area as part of a field trip and that our return trip to Reykjavík would bring us through here in daylight. The darkness also hid the spectacular scenery that surrounds Akureyri - we couldn't see very much of it at one in the morning as we pulled up to the University of Akureyri building where we would be staying. We were a little disconcerted to discover that our accommodations would consist of mattresses on classroom floors, and that there were no showers in the building, but it was very late and we were all tired, so not much was said.

The situation seemed much better in the morning. In lieu of showers in the building where we were staying, we had tickets for the local pool, located just down the hill. Not only were there showers and a swimming pool, but there were also hot tubs, a steam room, a really nice water slide, and, for want of a better term, a large hot water basking pool with really comfy rubber padding. Upon returning to the university building, we found that our Icelandic hosts had visited the nearby supermarket and picked up some much-needed food. From this point on on the trip, with a few exceptions, we were responsible for preparing our own meals and taking care of the dishes and other kitchen work. We were also responsible for brewing our own coffee for the breaks in between classes, but this wasn't too much of a burden - the coffee in Iceland is quite good, and our residence in Akureyri had some good coffee machines.

Classes started a little behind schedule on the Friday, largely in deference to our late-night arrival. After a morning's worth of lectures and discussion of ecology and fisheries, we spent the afternoon on a field trip, examining the local geology. We now had the opportunity to see what had been hidden the night before - Eyjafjörður and parts of the Tröllskagi peninsula that surround the Ring Road. Everyone was duly impressed by the almost overwhelming scenery and the evidence of the forces that have shaped and continue to shape the Icelandic landscape. This excursion emphasized the need for good gear, since the weather alternated between rain, light mist, and brief clear periods, all at fairly low temperatures.

We returned to Akureyri in time to visit the Viking Beer factory, a tour that was enjoyed by all. This was followed by a very friendly dinner and reception at the University of Akureyri's new campus, where we were made to feel very welcome and had the opportunity to tour the university's buildings, which were still being renovated to adapt them to their new functions. To round off the day, a sampling of Akureyri's nightlife was deemed necessary, and we enjoyed visiting some nice but rather expensive downtown establishments. A word of caution is in order here, but not about the bars in Akureyri. It's about the cars in this city - they seem to be driven rather faster than there's any reason to be, and their drivers seem to be less aware of pedestrians than you might expect. None of us realized this until we headed downtown, when we discovered that everyone drives full throttle up and down the hill that dominates the main east-west streets.

The next morning we were up bright and early. Well, we were up early, but some people weren't feeling particularly bright after the previous evening's, um, exertions. We had a day of lectures and project discussions, followed by a nice dinner and a rather tame evening in our residence - everyone apparently wanted to be in good shape to enjoy the trips they'd scheduled on their free time on Sunday. Several of us had scheduled a dayhike up Mount Sulur, and we wanted to set out bright and early.

We were up bright and early the next morning, and after transportation difficulties were ironed out, five of us were dropped off at our start point. After a few hours' strenuous walking, interspersed with a bit of scrambling, we reached the summit of Mt. Sulur and enjoyed the view. In contrast with the previous day, we experienced nothing but warmth and sunshine, which was a welcome change from our earlier experiences with Iceland's fickle weather. The evening was also wonderfully clear as we set out from the village of Hauganes on a whale watching expedition in Eyjafjörður, where we spent some time following a humpback whale and then fished for cod. After our return to Hauganes, we had a brief tour of one of the small seafood processing plants, where we were given some scallops and shrimp to add to our catch.

Monday morning was occupied with lectures - of special interest to me was a discussion of Iceland-Canada relations. In the afternoon, we visited a local unemployment center as well as one of the major fishing co-operatives in Akureyri. We took advantage of a rare opportunity to tour the processing line at the factory; it was being rebuilt, so we could actually enter it without having to take the normal hygienic precautions of a change of clothes, hairnets, and thorough washing. That evening, Andrew used our cod, scallops, and shrimp to cook up a marvellous seafood chowder, which was enjoyed by all the non-vegetarians on the trip.

Tuesday was our last full day in Akureyri, and featured the usual pattern of morning lectures. The afternoon was different, however; we were invited to a lunchtime reception by the municipality at the Fiðlarinn, a nice restaurant in the downtown area. Since this was our last night in Akureyri, we decided to celebrate, and visited some of our favourite downtown establishments. This was followed with a very early-morning swim in the harbour by two hardy souls, and not much sleep for most of us before our departure for Lake Mývatn.

Iceland Trip
Introduction · Itinerary · Background · Arriving in Iceland · Getting Around · Geysir · Gullfoss · Kjölur Route
Hólar · Akureyri · Goðafoss · Mývatn · Húsavík · Krafla · Ásbyrgi · Jökulsárgljúfur · Reykjavík
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Last updated 20 January 2006
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