LOCALadk Magazine

56 Winter 2017 LOCALadk Magazine LOCALadk "There is little about yet I would trade it I wake in the middle of the night to the sound of lines whip- ping against the mast and sleet pounding the hull. Only hours ago, I was paddleboarding on the glassy surface of the same fjord, watching seals and seabirds and gazing at endless steep couloirs in an alpenglow sunset. The weather here is quick to change and, despite a berth in the center of the boat, the nauseating swell of the sea lurches me from side to side. Real sailors say these are the conditions that lull them into their best nights of sleep, but I lie awake queasy and anxious. It's the same feeling I have when airplanes encounter turbulence at 39,000 feet; then too, my mind wanders to all the worst- case scenarios. That's when I remember my boot shells, carelessly left be- hind on deck earlier that night. We'd come back from a big day of skiing and rather than put my gear away, I'd cheered Les on as he backflipped off the boat, plunging into icy water. Then I'd climbed the rigging and paddleboarded until dark. I'd completely forgotten about my boots on deck, but now I'm worried. If they haven't already, I'm sure they're about to slide into a choppy sea, which would bring a quick end to my planned week of skiing. I get up and sneak past the captain's cabin and slither onto an ice-plastered deck. My boot shells are right where I left them, frozen in place, but the mountains have vanished into a thick, ghostly fog. In the fjord, the white caps are luminous, and sheets of sleety rain fall sideways in the hammering wind. There is little about this that is pleas- ant, yet I would trade it for nothing. I love it here…but I'm not totally sure why. Beyond the throngs of tourists in Reykjavik, the Icelandic landscape is stark and volcanic, and easy to fall for. Home to only 330,000 people, and with its histor y of Vikings, medieval sagas, and tales of elves and trolls, the land is enchanting. Icelanders are a unique hybrid of Nordic and North Ameri- can. They speak Old Norse (but excellent English as well) and are generally educated, progressive, and care little about dif- ferences in race and gender. Among other Europeans, Iceland- ers are known as risk-takers, and perhaps too quick in mak- ing decisions. Icelandic fishermen are notorious for casually heading out to fish in stormy Atlantic seas. And, of course, the infamous 2008 bank collapse might indicate a bold nature of sorts. Yet these are also among the qualities that make Ice- land such an alluring countr y and culture. Add to that its end- less potential for backcountr y skiing, and Iceland becomes a ver y intriguing destination. In the same way that Japan has become an exotic destina- tion for powder skiing or Alaska for heli skiing, Northern Ice- land has also become a skiing mecca. Accessing remote, un- tracked lines via sailboat is particularly in vogue, even though, only miles from the Arctic Circle and the Sea of Greenland, this part of Iceland is raw and stormy. And, at a latitude of 65 degrees north, there are few hours of daylight in winter and even fewer of sunshine. The skiing here, at least in March, is an exercise in variable conditions and quality. There may be powder but more likely there will be flat light and firm, wind-affected snow.

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