Iceland Arrival (13Jul2017)

You all have been on the edge of your seat anxiously waiting for my Iceland and Norway posts.  Now you know how I felt waiting the 6 months prior to this epic adventure planned for my 15th wedding anniversary.  Ok well maybe I was a little more anxious than you were.  Although I was looking forward to the birding, I can honestly say I was almost as excited by the prospect of the landscapes we would see and the time we would spend together alone.

We dropped the kids in NY (thanks Mom and Dad).  Actually my mother came to meet us at JFK and we spent the day in NYC visiting the 911 Memorial and the Freedom Tower.

It seemed weird taking a picture here.  A very powerful place, I am tearing up just thinking about it.  I don't think the kids truly got the significance of it.  The Memorial is very well done.  These types of things are hard to put into words.  I didn't know any of the people in the tower or the firefighters that perished there, but just thinking about it gets me very upset.  So sad that just a few deranged people can cause so much pain and suffering.

The Freedom Tower was also impressive but so was the $150 we spent to go up to the top.

My first experience at a real Ramen Shop in NYC.  That's my wonderful mom on my right.

In the evening we boarded the very pleasant Iceland Air flight to Keflavik airport and began our "redeye".

The flight seemed to go very quick thanks to the movie screen and relatively comfy seats.  This was just the very beginning of a very sleep deprived 2 weeks.  It's hard to sleep with almost 22 hours of light and the prospect of amazing scenery and birds at every corner.

First bird I saw outside the airport?  Parasitic Jaeger!  Also known as Arctic Skua.

Luckily this sign had a translation cause I would have been really confused.  FYI when at Keflavik airport, try and not poop in the fields surrounding it.  They don't like that.

It was fairly early in the morning and we knew the hotel was not going to let us check in so we drove to the peninsula west of Keflavik and explored some of the coast.  Actually I did while Melissa slept in the car.

Common Ringed Plover

This one was a good bird to study.  Nice white supercilium and the black area was surrounding the gape.  Now I am ready to find one in the USA.

Common Redshank

Meadow Pipit

Tufted Duck

Common Redshank

Greylag Geese

Red-necked Phalarope

Common Redshank

Eurasian Oystercatcher

Whimbrel

Arctic Tern - these were everywhere in Iceland.

Black-legged Kittiwake!

The black tipped wings were diagnostic but I have to say I was not prepared to how similar this species looks to Mew Gulls.

Northern Fulmar

At the lighthouse there were tons of seabirds streaming by although most stayed several hundred yards out.  In this photo there is Razorbills, Common Murres, Atlantic Puffins and what I think may be Thick-billed Murre but I didn't count the last as I could not be sure and I didn't want my lifer to be a flyby.  Look for the one in the middle of the frame which the white armpit.  Of course I didn't see any others the whole rest of the trip.. Looks like I may have to come back.  Too bad. =)

My first White Wagtail of many to come.

Black-legged Kittiwakes

Another Arctic Skua aka Parasitic Jaeger

I will spare you the gruesome shot, but this cute little Common Eider was scooped up by a Great Black-backed Gull and the gull was flying around being chased by other gulls while the poor chick made a heart wrenching sound.

We made it into Reykjavik and walked around and had lunch (delicious fish soup).  While Melissa scoured the shops I headed to the port and walked around.  What a cool town/city! I loved it.

Lief Ericsson and I hanging out in Reykjavik.

Northern Fulmar

Arctic Tern

Black-legged Kittiwake

Lesser Black-backed Gulls were everywhere.

Black-headed Gulls also are all over Iceland

Here is a landscape pic Melissa took earlier in the day.

I LOVE ICELAND..... More to come soon.