Taking a bath and change of plans

Icelandic Geothermal Experience at Vök Baths

As Gabrielle mentioned in yesterday’s post, the weather is closing in and overnight we seemed to have the forerunner of the heavy seas we might encounter. We have traversed back along the North Coast, travelling East and then headed South down the East Coast, meaning that the sun streamed through our window. All night. Here’s Gabrielle’s photo at 01:35hrs today. You might ask, why weren’t you asleep? Don’t go there.

Midnight Sun in South East Iceland

The coastline never disappoints. It’s nearly always either dramatic mountains, capped with snow even in summer, or neat little villages huddling behind sturdy harbour walls. Out in the wilds, the odd house sits on the shoreline and you muse on what life must be like there, particularly in winter.

Today is a very early start with a 06:15hrs alarm and breakfast served in our room by the immaculately turned out Santosh at 07:00. Gabrielle is walking around the room this morning with her cap on to flatten her hair.

We are going to the Icelandic Geothermal Experience at Vök Baths (Gabrielle hears “bird baths” initially) and there is also a treat in store for us, or a disappointment, depending on your point of view: we shall dock against a quayside for the first time since we left Dublin. This means no bouncy Zodiac ride today, no lifejackets, no thick winter clothes because it’s 14C and we shall walk off the ship in some puzzlement. How does this work? Seems scary? Can we jounce across the waves instead? Either way, we disembark at Eskifjörður - a fishing town on the East Coast that is set in frankly dazzling scenery.

Of course we are not allowed to take photos in the baths so you can only imagine our bronzed and finely sculpted bodies luxuriating in the hot mineral waters.

Vök Baths is a geothermal baths that feature three pools of varying temperatures. It is a fabulous day when we arrive with the sun beating down and an air temperature of about 14C. Pretty much the whole ship debouched into this little place, arriving in four coaches at staggered intervals. Inside we are given a wristband which acts as access for the lockers and charge method for any drinks you buy poolside. We slip out of our clothes, take a quick shower and walk out into the cool air. There is no incentive to linger on the side so we get into the beautifully warm water. We have over an hour, sunbathing, chatting and enjoying the soft caress of the warm mineral water.

Then it’s time to get out, get showered, get dry, get dressed. All sounds easy, doesn’t it. When you have relaxed yourself into a puddle of wilting delight your brain ceases to function. At least I find my locker ok and my magic wristband clicks it open. I even manage to dress but then, where are my shoes? Hunting high and low, going through my rucksack, checking the locker. Fortunately I am put out of my misery by someone saying, “Right, just get my shoes from the rack …” and I follow him, pathetically gratefully to retrieve mine.

View across nature reserve to fjord

After we are dressed we are able to help ourselves to herbal teas with geothermal hot water and then we board the bus back to the ship. We stop at a viewpoint over the fjord, affording sights across the nature reserve. It’s impossible to capture the scale and the rugged beauty of the landscape. Yet, at one point in it there is sited the largest aluminium smelting plant in Europe. The reason it is there is because of the cheap electricity that is produced in the South East mostly from hydroelectric generation. Elsewhere in the country power comes from geothermal sites, tapping into the massive reserves of heat that lie just under the surface.

The obligatory selfie

We arrive back to Eskifjörður at lunchtime, completely exhausted after the adventures of the morning. A quick lunch and a cuppa and then an afternoon nap because we are to be briefed on the revised plans for our trip at 16:30. There’s been much speculation about how we avoid the storm: stay put here, go to Reykjavik, make a sudden dash across to Scottish Isles. No one knows, but Gabrielle guesses that we might return to Djúpivogur. Time will tell. Meanwhile, a nap beckons. And very lovely it is too.

Strange craft

We sit on the balcony with a decaf coffee and watch the fisheries support vessels returning to port. It’s a very busy waterway and there’s a constant stream of strangely shaped ships tooling up and down the beautiful fjord.

We go to the theatre to hear the plan for safety and the balance of expectations on the voyage. Forecast wind speed for our projected sea area has dropped to 48 knots but the swell has increased to 20 feet! Our maximum has been around 8 feet so far and even the route we are doing we should expect 11 feet.

So, instead of heading down to Orkney, we shall hustle a few miles north to shelter in Seyðisfjörður. It will be windy and drizzly but we will have a docked landing at 7am and then be able to have a wander around the town. However, we are booked into La Dame restaurant tonight. This is the gourmet fine dining event which we had booked tonight with an expectation of a day at sea the next day. If it’s a heavy event, we may be late up and the ship departs Seyðisfjörður at 11:30 am.

So, in sum, we’ve lost Kirkwall and Lunga as part of the tour. This is a shame but it’s a tribute to the captain and the expedition team that they have prioritised our safety and comfort. It’s still gonna be a bumpy ride, to quote Harry Potter’s bus driver, but it will not feel life-threatening. And for that we are both extremely grateful.