Cruising Iceland

[scruff]

My boat, like many others now, has been laid up for the winter. Thoughts now at turning to next year's adventures and I quite fancy going to Iceland. No not to the shop for cheap, low meat content frozen sausages but the country.

Has anyone been? Know of any online crusing logs/ printed books to whet the appetite?

Cheers

 

[Deleted member 36384]

These guys have pilot books and a host of information on high latitude sailing and Iceland specific stuff as well. The link is to a search of their web site using 'iceland': -

http://www.morganscloud.com/search-results/?q=iceland

 

[Birdseye]

When strange urges hit me, I always find it helpful to sit down in a darkened room.

Cruise Iceland? Why?

 

[ionbard]

There was a French yacht did Iceland this summer, their blog is good (great photos and Google translate will help if like mine, your French skills aren't up to it...). Looks amazing. High on my list, too.

http://www.chugach-sailing.com/saison-2015-tour-de-l-islande-a115259172

 

[Minchsailor]

I know several people who have been, including Willy Ker who is/was co-author of the RCC pilot.

Forget the south coast east of Vestmannaejar - no decent harbours, nasty currents/tidal streams. The NW coast is deeply indented, somewhat similar to NW Scotland but more so.

Apart from that I gather it is quite spectacular, and not so challenging. A guy I know did it solo in a Moody 44 this year.

Lots of facilities for fishing boats, not much for yachts as such, but the natives are friendly and helpful.

The first suitable landfall on the east coast is about 600 miles from Stornoway. When I was in the Faeroes a few years ago the nearest point of Iceland was only about 330 miles away - was tempted but crew not so keen.

Be warned - expensive, especially fresh foods. However few harbours make mooring charges for yachts.

 

[Poignard]

"Letters from High Latitudes" by Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava KP GCB GCSI GCMG GCIE PC

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Yacht-Voyage-Letters-High-Latitudes/dp/1498013139

Should be full of handy hints

 

[30boat]

Everytime I look at a weather chart there's a nasty low sitting right on top of Iceland...

 

[marklucas]

If you want some inspiration (and exemplars of Icelandic hospitality) then you can do no better than this book.

 

[Sybarite]

As a student I spent a summer working in a fish factory in Vestmannaejyar.

If you go there A) make sure your boat and yourself can handle heavy weather. B) get good weather forecasts.

I saw a trawler sunk on a mooring inside the harbour during a storm.

This video shows a trawler entering the harbour, in the lee of the island:

Https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mPBaqh3dcVMb

However it's not impossible. Winkie Nixon, who was the Irish Waters correspondant of YM, went there with a former friend of mine in a Vertue, and Daniel Fournier (YM May 2015) has twice circumnavigated Iceland solo in a Bav 34.

 

[AntarcticPilot]

Everytime I look at a weather chart there's a nasty low sitting right on top of Iceland...

Like this?

 

[NDG]

Everytime I look at a weather chart there's a nasty low sitting right on top of Iceland...

Pah!

Frank Dye cruised to Iceland in a Wayfarer dingy - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Dye

Mind you he did take a short cut by going from Scotland.

 

[30boat]

Pah!

Frank Dye cruised to Iceland in a Wayfarer dingy - https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Dye

Mind you he did take a short cut by going from Scotland.

Let him! Each to his own.

 

[GHA]

When strange urges hit me, I always find it helpful to sit down in a darkened room.

Cruise Iceland? Why?

If the very thought of high latitude doesn't make your blood quicken, or just a page of Ming Ming result in a click on google earth, then maybe no one can answer that

 

[bikedaft]

"Letters from High Latitudes" by Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava KP GCB GCSI GCMG GCIE PC

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Yacht-Voyage-Letters-High-Latitudes/dp/1498013139

Should be full of handy hints

or free from Gutenberg;

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/3701

looks interesting ta for heads up

 

[AndrewB]

One plus: if you are cruising there in summer, you won't need navigation lights. Local yachts aren't even fitted with them.

 

[Poignard]

It's along time since I read any of H.W.Tilman's books but I assume it's somewhere he visited; probably en route to somewhere even grimmer!

 

[dimdav]

"Letters from High Latitudes" by Frederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 1st Marquess of Dufferin and Ava KP GCB GCSI GCMG GCIE PC

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Yacht-Voyage-Letters-High-Latitudes/dp/1498013139

Should be full of handy hints

bit of useless info but I'm related to him! I didn't think anyone else even knew of his book and the voyage of Foam

 

[dimdav]

or free from Gutenberg;

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/3701

looks interesting ta for heads up

It is interesting. His journey from Glasgow to Stornoway conjures up the time well describing the old rest and be thankfull and over to inveraray also the old character of a skipper on Foam and the friend they make along the way...

 

[jerrytug]

It's along time since I read any of H.W.Tilman's books but I assume it's somewhere he visited; probably en route to somewhere even grimmer!

I think he's still up there, if you can find him..

 

[jerrytug]

These guys have pilot books and a host of information on high latitude sailing and Iceland specific stuff as well. The link is to a search of their web site using 'iceland': -

http://www.morganscloud.com/search-results/?q=iceland

Mega link thanks BoB