Stykkishólmur is a city in the west area of Iceland where most people come to take a ferry to the West Fjords. About 1000 people live in this small city. After speaking to the harbor master we learned we could dive right next to the bay and at the surrounding islands. The visibility was pretty good- maybe 5-10meters, but the currents were pretty strong. We spotted some cod, many many crabs, medusa jelly fish, sea urchins, and star fish.
I’m getting hungry. We hop on Seatours on the Viking sushi sea tour. The ship took us to various islands along the bay. It starts to rain lightly rain. Bad idea to wear jeans. The boat stops at various islands and talks about the region and points out a lot of different birds. Like most tourists, I’m most interested in Puffins. In Reykjavik, the puffins are all on one island and kinda far away. On this tour, I can really see these cute little birdies! Look at those cute beaks!
At this point, I’m starving. The boat casts out a net to collect some sea urchins and scallops for us to taste. As a diver I was sad to see the net drag along the bottom of the ocean, but as a foodie, I couldn’t wait to taste the fresh seafood. When the net came onto the boat it was filled with scallops, small crabs and sea urchins. These sea urchins looked different than the ones I’m used to seeing in the Pacific ocean (black prickly ones). The inside of the urchin was a bit more orangey. The taste was pretty delicious. The scallops were still alive when I sprinkled salt on them before I shoved them into my mouth. Sorry scallops. Patrik had one of each and then refrained. His scuba nature preservation deterred him from the slaughterhouse. I was so hungry that I kept going back for more.
We started talking to the Older Gentleman working on the boat about scuba diving. He was really nice and gave us some phone numbers to some locals around that might know more information. We started to play telephone and wound up getting information to ask for Bjorn Asgeir on the dock.
Once we got back to the harbor, we walked over to the gas area and asked for Bjorn Asgeir. He wasn’t there, but the guy said he would call him. Wow. So then we talked to Bjorn and he said he was busy at the moment but would get the number of a boat guy that could take us out to a couple of sites.
And just like that we were able to secure a mini boat for an island dive. I love small town Iceland! Everything came together so easily in this small town.
Around 7pm- we went out on a small boat dive around two islands. Max depth was about 26 meters, but we could have easily gone deeper. The waves were kinda strong when we finished. Imagine a small dingy with water splashing over the nose. Hmmm, that can’t be too good for the boat buoyancy right? I’m glad I had just practiced how to remove all my gear at the surface. I laid on my back and kept telling myself to relax as the waves kept trying to push me over. Breathe. Unclip. Breathe. Unclip, repeat. Haha. We made it back to the dock safe and sound and shoved all our gear back into the car and had a yummy gas station dinner. Hot dogs. Soda. Candy, and Ice cream.
What a great day off!!!
