August 16, 2023 - Heimaey, Iceland

 August 16, 2023 - Wednesday - Heimaey, Iceland

Today we are stopping at another new port for us. I was awake shortly after 7:00. After dressing I went out on our veranda. I was amazed to see a sheer cliff very close to the ship. Soon it became clear that the ship was turning. As we turned I could see that we were in a very narrow turning basin. After completing a 180 degree turn we backed through a narrow entrance into the harbor and tied up at the single long dock the town has.

This was to have been a tender port. Now we can walk off.

Really Close!

The Opposite Shore

Tight Turning

Threading the needle into the port

View from our dock

In 1973 there was a volcanic eruption that lasted six months. In the course of that over 400 homes were buried in lava all were threatened by the ash flying. One wall of the volcano started sliding down the hill toward the harbor. We booked a tour to visit the island’s highlights today. Unfortunately, we booked too late to go on the 8:00 departure. We had breakfast and waited for the 11:00 tour.

Our guide A. J. was 24 years old and spoke perfect English. He was born and raised on the island. All of his schooling through college took place here. He plays guitar and leads a band that performs locally. 90s rock is their specialty. A. J. gave a running commentary on the island. He also explained that as he was still a youth he was pretty athletic. He took us to a cliff where he demonstrated a form of cliff bouncing used to collect birds’ eggs. using a knotted rope anchored high on the cliff he climbed up quite a way. Then he pushed off and swung out in an ark as he lowered himself on the rope and landed lower on the cliff. He repeated this several times. He told us that every boy learns to do this. The only significant injuries happen when older men come back and try it. They think they are fit but they are usually heavier than they were as youths.

All of that to collect eggs in days past

Our next stop was a large bowl at the end of a valley This hillside became the seating area for thousands of persons who came the first week of August every year for an annual music fest. The large stage facing this area is for professional groups. Behind that is a smaller stage at the end of a pond. This is fittingly called the pond stage. Here is where A. J. and his band have played for the last three years. On the other side of the road from all of this is an 18-hole golf course. It has been named the 8th most beautiful course to play in the world. One of our passengers confirmed this. It is a beautiful setting.

The back of the main stage looking at seating out front

After driving to the highest peak on this side of the island we stopped for pictures. When we rebounded, A. J. told a story about Puffins and told us we were on our way to see them. That is unless the good weather has sent them out to sea. When we arrived it was a short walk on a well-prepared path to get to the Puffin lookout. We looked out and there they were. Puffins everywhere. Some were flying. Others were eating grass. We were surprised at their size. They were smaller than we expected. They were also faster. We spent a good while there experiencing this special show.

The view to the sea from the mountaintop

The view to land

Puffins

Now we headed to the volcano museum. Here excellent audio guides led us through exhibits related to the 1973 eruption. The narrative changed as we moved from area to area. It started at the remains of an excavated house. This showed how total the damage was to the roofs and interiors. 400 houses were completely destroyed and hundreds of others were badly damaged by the enormous quantity of ash. We learned about the evacuation of 5,000 residents to the main island. This was done primarily by fishing boats. The whole fishing fleet was in port at the time. And we learned how the meandering wall of the volcano that was creeping toward the harbor would destroy the harbor if it got there. It was determined to try to stop the advance by using water to cool the lava. In February large water pumps were provided and a group of 200 men divided into teams and watered the lava around the clock. This continued into June when with only feet to go to the harbor they managed to stop the flow.

The unearthed house

One of the pumps that saved the harbor

Looking down from the museum

Examination of the unearthed remains and the houses that survived with minimal damage led to the development of construction standards to build more stable housing capable of being inhabited again after an eruption.

We found the museum fascinating. We were disappointed that they were out of the book that explains the eruption and the aftermath. Amazon will get a workout when we get home.

Now we returned to the ship. It was 2:15 and Windows closed at 2:30. We rushed up there and made it through the line just minutes before they shut it down. It was a good lunch. We reviewed the tour experience and bemoaned that we had no time to explore the town and shops. Perhaps another time. 

This was Azamara’s first visit here. Captain Antonio explained that he was able to get us on a dock because of the low wind and calm sea. Now it was time to depart. As we inched our way away from the dock and headed out, Captain Antonio announced that he was going to swing us in the turning basin so that both sides of the ship could view the cliffs and caves that I had seen on our way in. He pulled this off without incident. It was a fitting farewell to a charming port on a first visit. We cannot imagine another cruise line being able to do this.

Heading out to sea

This was a fulfilling day in a charming port. We consider ourselves very lucky to have been here.