Fishermen’s Day
The harbour, full of boats of all shapes and sizes
On the first Sunday of June, Iceland celebrates Sjómannadagurinn or Fishermen’s Day (this year, it was actually held on the 12th June which was the second Sunday as the Whitsunday bank holiday happened to fall on the first Sunday of the month). Fishermen’s day is a special day, dedicated to sharing the history and culture of Icelandic Fishermen. It is a way of honouring the hardworking people who support Iceland’s main industry – which is a lifeline to the country’s economy. Most towns in Iceland grew up around the fishing industry and many of them remain fishing towns today. For centuries, fish has been the nation’s main export. Today Iceland is still one of the leading fishing nations in the world
Looking across the water to the Harpa concert hall, boats lined up in the foreground
Back in the old days, without the modern safety measures and conveniences of today, being a fisherman was a risky business. Apart from it being very hard physical work, there was always a risk of serious injury due to accidents or bad weather. However, on Fishermen’s Day, all the ships would stay in land, and a special mass was held in churches around the country to pray for the safety of the fishermen and to remember all those lives lost to the ocean. To honour the people who dedicated their lives to work at sea festivities were held all around the country. It became a legal holiday for Icelandic fishermen in 1987. On this day, all the fishing boats are moored up in the harbour and the hardworking fishermen are given the day off to spend with their families.
On Fishermen's Day, family-friendly celebrations take place around the country, with sea-related festivities including boat rides, speeches and dances, demonstrations and a large variety of sea creatures on display in tubs. The celebrations are held around the harbour and the whole place has a real party atmosphere.
Having heard about Fishermen’s Day earlier in the week, we decided to head down to Reykjavík harbour in the morning to see what was happening. As we approached the area of the old harbour, near the Grandi foodhall, we could see that crowds of people were already there with music playing and bunting everywhere. Almost all the fishing boats in the harbour had bunting and flags on display and were open to visitors. We could see a steady stream of people heading up the ramps to have a look around.
All along the road were big square tubs, filled with ice, with a selection of fish and seafood, along with laminated signs telling you about the various fish, many of which we had never heard of and some of which were very odd looking indeed! The children loved it, happily touching and prodding the weirder looking creatures on display.
The coastguard’s boat, decked out with flags for the occasion, offering free rides for the day
We had been told that there would be free trips on the coastguard’s boat at 11am, 1pm and 3pm so were keen to take advantage of that. We arrived too late for the first one but at around 12.00 we made our way around the harbour to where the coastguard’s boat was moored. Having initially thought we were much too early, we discovered that there was already a long queue of people waiting for the next trip, so we decided to join the queue. Just as well, as we then found out that only 200 people at a time were allowed on board and once we boarded we discovered that we were 172 and 173 in line, with around 300 behind us, most of whom were disappointed. At 12.30 we were allowed on board and had fun exploring the boat.
Enjoying the chance to explore the boat as we pulled out of harbour
We then headed off about 15 minutes later and enjoyed a 45 minute trip around Faxaflói bay, past Viðey island and round almost to the Grótta lighthouse at the end of the Seltjarnarnes peninsula before coming back in to the harbour. It was nice to see the Reykjavík skyline from out at sea and get another view of the place we live, and the weather was calm and sunny – what better way to spend the day than spending some time out on a boat?
Looking out across the bay to the Reykjavík skyline
Having returned to the harbour, we wandered back, taking in some of the festivities such as a live show on the festival stage, and many games laid out on the tarmac and in areas set up as children’s play areas. There is a definite family feel to the event and there was plenty for the children to enjoy. It felt as if most of Reyjkavík had turned out and we even bumped into colleagues from work who were out with their families. We stopped at Grandi and had a bite to eat in the sunshine as we watched the world go by accompanied by music from the street musicians. There were displays from the lifeboats and coastguards, including a helicopter rescue and pillow fights on a long pole over the water with the loser falling headlong into the sea to the delight of the crowds. The Maritime Museum was offering free entry all day and there were food and drink stalls all along the harbour, the ice cream and candy floss stalls doing a roaring trade all day.
By the time we were ready to walk home again we had spent most of the day there and although we weren’t doing anything at all energetic we were shattered by the evening – all that sunshine and sea air takes it out of you!! All in all a very entertaining and inexpensive day out.