Bang! Wonka-wonka, bang! Wobble flap flap flap.
Two flat tires.
Another beautiful sunny day. Many of us (47 to be precise) had opted to go on a boat tour of Breidafjördur Bay, a really great place to observe nesting sea birds. It was a half hour drive by bus from where the ship was anchored in the picturesque village of Grundarfjördur to the even smaller fishing village of Stykkisholmur, where we would rendezvous with our excursion boat.
Alas, it wasn't to be. Our local Icelandic guide Barbara was doing a great job describing the history and various geographical features seen along the roadside when both of our left rear tires suddenly exploded. Bummer.
But, soon help was on the way. (Yes. There are excellent cell phone communications in Iceland).
As mentioned earlier it was a gorgeous sunny day. We were waylaid in the middle of a wild volcanic wilderness. The heavy browns, blacks and greys of lava rock and ash were relieved by generous swaths of green vegetation and bright splashes of vividly coloured flowers. It really was a serendipitously beautiful moment.
Meanwhile a team from our Icelandic agents changed the two tires. Within an hour we were back on the road. Too late to meet our excursion boat but the fantastic Icelandic landscape definitely eased our disappointment.
We departed beautiful Grundarfjördur at 14:30 and set our bows in the direction of Greenland. The remainder of the afternoon was taken up by informative lectures and briefings of what to expect in the coming days.
