Took the 10:45 ferry from Landeyjahöfn to Vestmannaeyjar. The ferry terminal was about a 45-minute drive from Hotel Vos. We made it there after a meager breakfast at the hotel, with time to spare. Thankfully it wasn’t too windy and hence the sea wasn’t too choppy. It was a nice ride to the islands.


The first stop on the island was the aquarium and puffin rescue center run by Sea Life Trust to get some information about puffins. Followed their suggestions and went to a viewpoint at the island’s southern tip. We did spot a few puffins flying around and floating in the sea as their color and wing-flapping pattern are distinct from the seagulls. But didn’t see any puffins from close proximity as one would earlier in the summer months when there are hundreds or thousands of them nesting here. It was disappointing but we at least spotted a few. Drove to another recommended spot for bird watching on the western shore of the island. There was a nice trail to walk along the shore which was enjoyable but didn’t spot any more puffins. While chatting with some other tourists during lunch we learned that the big arches that saw on this hill during the hike are called elephant rock. Looking at the photos, we did see an elephant shape.


All this walking was followed by lunch at Gott - a recommended restaurant from Rick’s book. We shared nachos and a fish stew of halibut and redfish. It was quite good. Nachos had some chopped spicy red chilies as a topping - must be the spiciest thing I ate on this trip and it wasn’t really hot.

After seeing the puffins from a distance we wanted to see them up close. So went to the aquarium and puffin rescue center and got to see them. It is a small aquarium with many displays of fish and invertebrates from the ocean. Well maintained considering it is on a small island and run by a charitable organization. The staff was very friendly and helpful. Chatted with them about puffins and learned a lot.

There was a volcano eruption on the island in 1973 that destroyed about a third of the buildings, covered the island under several feet of ash and pumice and the lava flow extended the island by about a kilometer. The museum tells the story of this event and how the island sprung back afterward. The centerpiece of the museum is a house that was half engulfed by the lava flow. It was excavated about 30 years later and put on display here. The audio tour of the museum nicely uses the house in the narrative about the eruption.

Went on the recommended town walk from Rick’s book. It highlighted some places from the volcano eruption story. Saw the location of the house that is inside the museum. Interestingly the lava flow stopped next to a house leaving it unscathed. The house number was 13. Lucky number!!!

At several places around town, there are “ash pillars” marking how deep the ash and rubble were from the eruption. Mind-blowing to imagine the amount of this stuff they must have moved to clear the town. Also got to walk on this young land that was created only 50 years ago.

The ferry ride back was uneventful and so was the drive to Selfoss. More Icelandic food at dinner. Had salted cod made with a tomato-based sauce with capers and olives. V had cured arctic char appetizer for dinner. Went to an ice cream shop for dessert.

It was great to see Aurora from the dark site last night but tonight it was so bright that we could clearly see with all the city lights. Our hotel room had a whole wall of glass and Vaishali could see the lights from the comfort of the room without going out in the cold.