Isafjordur- Where Male Models Go To Get Serious Abs

Kayaking in Iceland requires a lot more
gear than kayaking in Hawaii

We arrived at Isafjordur, and after enrolling at an Icelandic high school, we set off to look around. Let me explain. During the summer, a chain of hotels open called Hotel Edda. All of these hotels are inside schools closed for the summer. They remove desks and all the rest and put in cots. You buy sleeping bag space on one of these cots, and there you are, with a bed. We were in a chemistry room. We went to the Café Braedraborg, and I had really good Icelandic cream cake. It was vanilla cake with chocolate frosting, cake, cream, cake, frosting, cake. My mom was ecstatic that they were making our lunch on our kayak trip. Judging from the menu, lunch seemed like it would be filled with vegetables. Joy. After I ate pizza, we went back to the Hotel Edda for a night’s rest.

The following morning we prepared for our kayak trip. We went to the Café Braedraborg, and then, after getting the rest of our group and meeting our guide, we were off. We stopped shortly to get the kayaks, and then drove to the fjord. We expected to go straight in, but first we put on wetsuits so we wouldn’t get hypothermia if we fell in. We also put on life jackets. Lastly, we put on spray skirts that attached around the hole in the kayak where you sit. Then we went in. The current was really strong, and I was almost immediately blown off course. I paddled really hard on one side to try and get back on course, but all the kayak did was move towards the rocks. My dad had to attach a rope to the front of my kayak so I wouldn’t get too far behind. After that, I was fine. After a bit, the seals came, hordes of them, bobbing up and down. When we were halfway to our lunch spot, one started following me. It would come up, look at me, and then go under. Then it would come up closer. When we landed at our lunch spot, the seal stayed there, at the edge of the seaweed bank. After an hour, the seal left. I was right about our lunch; it was a vegetable sandwich. I ate a health bar instead. After lunch, we got back in our kayaks and started back. The waves were bigger, and it was harder to paddle and really frightening when we had to turn. The water offered a lovely view of the swarms of jellyfish bigger than my head down below, another reason to stay in the kayak. We stopped by the seals on the beach, basking in the sun and splashing around, and then we powered to the shore. I was sore by the end, as was everyone but the guide. We then drove to a pool, and it was really warm. Apparently, pools in Iceland are designed to warm you up rather than cool you down. The pool was heaven, and I wasn’t so sore anymore, although my hands still hurt. Getting out of the pool was painful on account of the bitter winds. After dinner, I went straight to sleep, because next morning we were getting up early for the week of arctic foxes everyone at school is tired of hearing me jabber about.





no seals here because they are not cooperative