Oz's Travels

Day 14 – Reykjavik Iceland

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Today we arrived in Reykjavik Iceland after sailing 3777.1 nautical miles from Southampton. We are staying onboard overnight, so need to rush around and pack just yet.

The tour I am on is the longest of the cruise, 8 and half hours checking out what is call the Golden Circle.

Golden Circle Tour

Experience the thrill of visiting Reykjavik’s “Big Three” scenic wonders – Gullfoss Waterfall, Geysir Geothermal Area and Thingvellir National Park – all on one excursion.

Arrayed along a route known as the Golden Circle, this trio pretty much single handedly fills the bucket list of Icelandic natural phenomena.

Rolling along via comfortable panoramic coach, you’ll encounter vast lava fields, a greenhouse community warmed by hot springs and fertile South Iceland farmland – and that’s just en route to your first stop of the day.

Two-tiered Gullfoss Waterfall is one of Iceland’s most beautiful and iconic sights, its vast water volume plummeting down over 100 feet into a river gorge.

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Day 13 – Isafjordur Iceland

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After 2 days and 1400kms (755 nautical miles) at sea we have arrived in Isafjordur Iceland. Time to find out if Iceland lives up to the hype.

A Visit To An Abandoned Village

Travel from Isafjordur to the Jökulfirdir Fjord by boat to visit a remote village deserted by all its residents over 60 years ago. The only way to get to Hesteyri is from the water; it’s about a 70-minute ride.

The tiny settlement never did have any roads leading to it, and no electricity or telephone links. What it did have – and still does – is an outstandingly picturesque setting amidst steep snow-dusted mountains and quiet, secluded coves. Notwithstanding the natural beauty, in the 1940s the 80 inhabitants decided they’d had enough, and by 1952 the last of them had moved away.

Many of their structures still stand, little changed from how they were then. And since the village has been an ecologically protected area for decades, the native flora and fauna have had a field day. Hikers here often encounter Arctic foxes, seals, and birds of many types. You’ll stroll around the eerily empty village with your guide, enjoying traditional Icelandic refreshments at a house where the doctor used to live. Don’t miss this chance for what will certainly be an excursion unlike any other you take this voyage.

Day 12 – At Sea with Cognac and Crew Capers

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Day 12 of my North Atlantic Adventure was a planned date at sea, the most eventful sea day of the Cruise. Today’s plans include another Wine Connoisseurs Lunch, Hennessy Cognac tasting and Crew Capers.

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Day 11 – At Sea

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Today we were meant to be transiting through Prins Christen Sund, unfortunately that did not happen due to, you guessed it fog. There was also one more complication added to the mix, the ship’s radar picked up an iceberg that was also near the entrance. Another reason not to risk the transit.

The Captain also mentioned that he was worried that there could be more bergs within the Sund and that it was too narrow to turn around. You couldn’t fault him on this as a ship is not exactly like a car. Throwing the ship into reverse and trying to back out down a narrow channel would be a pretty impressive feat of seamanship…

This was one of the legs that had helped me to decide on this cruise as I wanted to compare the fjords of Greenland with the ones I had seen in Chile.

Day 10 – Qaqortoq Greenland

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From Nuuk Greenland we sailed to Qaqortoq Greenland a distance of about 335 Nautical Miles (620kms, 385 miles). Unfortunately, due to fog, we had to slow down which meant we did not arrive in Qaqortoq until 15:00 (3pm for land lubbers) about 2hours late, reducing our time in this scenic port. Luckily my tour was not impacted.

Sailing in there were a number of smaller icebergs in the channel, but none, that I saw were obstructing our way to our anchorage.

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What added to the picturesque nature of Qaqortoq was the iceberg that was just off the bow when we were anchored. A number of the passengers congratulated the CEO of Regent for placing it there, I think if he had done it he would have had it branded with the Regent logo. Jason Montague (the CEO) was quick to mention that he wished he had thought of the idea to have an iceberg greet us.

Passage into Qaqortoq

Qaqortoq Town

After the transfer from the Ship by tender we met our guide for the day who took us on a walking tour through, with around 3.2K inhabitants, the fifth largest settlement (could not bring myself to call it a city) in Greenland, Qaqortoq.