Actualités

20.06.2010 : SEEDS 28. The longest day in the longest fjord!

SEEDS volunteers traveled 500km north of Reykjavík to the peaceful town of Olafsfjorður. Only 50 km away from Grimsey Island, Olafsfjorður is one the closest towns to the Arctic Circle. Olafsfjorður is in a fjord where one can enjoy the reflection of the mountains in the water and go for a boat trip to see Europe’s tallest mountains that begins at sea level. Surrounded by tall peaks, the melting snow provides water for the amazing waterfalls and small rivers in the area. Both experienced and beginner hikers can enjoy the variety of near-by hiking trails.

One of our tasks was to create a hiking trail on an old road damaged by avalanches and landslides. Starting from Olafsfjorður and ending in Dalvik, the trail now is open to all who want to enjoy spectacular views or witness the world famous midnight sun. At midnight on the longest day of the year (the 21st of June), we hiked this trail, admiring the progress of our work and enjoying the sunshine.

In the forest of Siglofjorður, we worked with local youth, building wooded bridges and walking paths. Siglofjorður used to be called “Herring City” because it was home to the biggest herring factory in the world. We enjoyed visiting the herring museum of Siglofjorður. This museum traces the history of the town through the lives of fishermen.

We spend the last day of our work camp hiking the Drangaskar trail to a half-frozen lake for a barbecue with traditional Icelandic hotdogs. Sitting around the barbecue and admiring the beauty of the unique Icelandic landscape, we felt lucky to have visited such an amazing area. Also, we felt happy knowing that we made it easier for others to experience the beauty of the local nature by using our hiking trails.

07.06.2010 : SEEDS 20. Skriðdalur: In the East of Iceland

SEEDS volunteers from 5 different countries (South Korea, Russia, Israel, UK, Italy) planted trees and helped maintain a small farm in Skriðdalur, a picturesque, isolated area of east Iceland. Our main job was to plant and fertilize trees. By the end of our stay, we had planted just under 10,000 trees, including birch and pine trees. Also, we fed over 20 sheep, restored a cow barn and took down old barbed wire fences to prevent the farm’s 7 horses from injuring themselves.

East Iceland is a region of dramatic beauty; blue, snow-covered mountains jut out of green hills that boarder the fjords. Springtime is a season of greatly varying weather. While in Skriðdalur, we experienced every weather condition imaginable: rain, wind, sun, fog and even snow! Temperatures ranged from -5 to 13.

During our free time we went night kayaking in a fjord, watched whales coming into the harbour, visited waterfalls and hiked up a near-by mountain. We took a boat ride on a fisherman’s ship along with many Icelanders to a fjord with spectacular views.

One of our favourite experiences was attending the Seaman’s Festival, a celebration of Icelandic sailors. During the festival, people competed on obstacle courses and teams of rowers raced in the fjord.

Our host was very welcoming and feed us a lot of Iceland food including fish, lamb, fish soup, chicken, reindeer, and homemade bread and jam. The most appetizing treat was a traditional Icelandic Christmas cake called jólakaka. We tried hákarl, traditional fermented shark, with brennivín to wash it down. Some of the volunteers liked the hákarl while others preferred the cake.

30.05.2010 : SEEDS volunteers assist with clean up from the Eyjafjallajökull eruption!

In the second half of May 2010, 3 SEEDS volunteers from the USA, Italy and Germany were supposed to go to a workcamp in Þorsmörk– the secret forest of Thor. It is a beautiful nature reserve north of Eyjafjallajökull and a very beloved hiking area, indeed.

During the first week of the camp, we were not allowed to go Þorsmörk because of the ongoing activity of the famous volcano, Eyjafjallajökull. At the start of our workcamp, ash was raining down from the sky in Þorsmörk! Therefore, we spent our first week in Reykjavík, painting over graffiti around town.

Luckily, permission to enter the area of Þorsmörk was granted for the second week. We moved to Húsadalur and 4 more volunteers from Latvia, Denmark, Spain, and England joined our group.

The whole area was covered with ash and we felt like we had landed on the moon! We started to clean the huts, roofs and pathways of Húsadalur right away. In our free time we enjoyed the hiking paths of the area. Even though everything was grey with volcanic ash, the landscape was still very beautiful!

Our workcamp provided us with a once-in-a-lifetime experience of staying near an active volcano. We saw first hand the beauty and destruction caused by this natural phenomenon. We will remember this experience for the rest of our lives and share the story of this workcamp with our grandchildren!

15.05.2010 : SEEDS 06. Bikeability in the Blue Mountains- Bláfjöll

The philosophy of this SEEDS project was “Yes, you can travel by bike!” SEEDS volunteers from around the world embarked on a bicycle trip with youths from a local school in Reykjavik to Iceland’s Blue Mountains (Bláfjöll).

First, we assisted local 9th and 10th graders with adjusting bicycles, checking helmets, fixing gears and breaks at their schools. We talked with students about the importance of bicycle safety, regular exercise, and the reduction of environmental impact through alternative transportation. Schoolteachers and members of the Icelandic Mountain Cycling Club joined us at the schools in order helped us lead our bicycle trip.

Next, we all began on our route from Reykjavik to Bláfjöll. Cycling allowed us to experience the beauty of the area in a way not possible when traveling by car. Far away from busy roads, we enjoyed traveling through a planted forest in the nature reserve of Heiðmörk and bicycling across a volcanic landscape.

Once we arrived in Bláfjöll, we were all very tired and ready for a good meal. We worked with the other leaders of the trip to prepare Kjötsúpa, an Icelandic meat soup. Bláfjöll is home to one of Iceland’s few skiing resort. Although the resort was not open, we were able to stay in one of the near-by ski huts. The next morning we prepared porridge and traveled back to Reykjavik. On the way back, we admired the picturesque volcanic mountain range. The highest mountain reaches 600m and the river Elliðaá has its source there, streaming down to the lake Helliðavatn in the eastern suburban border of Reykjavik.

This bicycle trip was very successful. We provided youths with an experience that encouraged outdoors activities, teamwork, and a healthy life style. Also, we learned a great deal ourselves. We gained leadership skills and knowledge about bicycle repair. Most importantly, we built positive relationships between international volunteers, local youths, schoolteachers, and bicyclists.

25.04.2010 : SEEDS sendir hóp til að taka þátt í hreinsunarstarfseminni fyrir austan!

SEEDS sendir hóp til að taka þátt í hreinsunarstarfseminni fyrir austan þann 28. apríl og aðstoðar þannig íbúa svæðisins við að takast á við afleiðingar eldgossins. Þátttakendurnir koma frá Frakklandi, Ítalíu, Slóvakíu, Slóveníu, Lettlandi, Danmörku Ísrael og Serbíu til þess að taka þátt í þessu mikilvæga verkefni.

Við höfum fengið góð viðbrögð úr mörgum áttum. Lagt verður af stað frá skrifstofu SEEDS að Klapparstíg 16, 101 Reykjavík um klukkan 9:00. Hópurinn fær hádegismat í Heimalandi við komuna til þess að fá orku fyrir verkefnið, unnið fram eftir degi og komið í bæinn um kvöldmatarleytið. Áhugasamir sendi okkur e-mail til staðfestingar um þátttöku á seeds@seedsiceland.org