Hay Bales and High Winds

I'm back in Hofsós and learning new farm skills. Last night I received a quick lesson on how to properly tuck in the tails of plastic on the hay bales before setting out on my own to give it a try. It's more challenging than it looks, especially in a stiff wind. I often struggled to find and peel away a layer of plastic in which to tuck the loose, flapping part. "Oh, come on!" I would mutter to myself, frantically scratching at the plastic in search of an edge.

Notice the untucked, flapping plastic piece? Unacceptable.

One of several fields o' hay bales

Notice the neatly tucked, non flapping plastic? Acceptable.

It was fun to run around the fields from bale to bale, searching for loose ends and tucking them safely into the bulk of the bale. Lena and I even managed to mix in a little sheep herding during the hay bale activities. We felt like real pros when we managed to herd the mama ewe and two lambs through the gate and back into the proper area, but we were quickly humbled when we encountered another group of sheep that were not nearly as cooperative. We still have some learning to do.

It's been very windy since I returned to Hofsós on Sunday evening. The waves have been making themselves known to the coastline, and all of us here who spend the day looking out at it. There were wind warnings around the country; a Code Yellow according to the national weather center. Today it is significantly calmer, and I'm relieved to not have to fight against the wind so much.

There are quite a few people that choose to bike around Iceland. Particularly on windy days like these last few, I just can't imagine what in the world they are thinking. You'll see them along the highway, struggling against the wind in their brightly colored gear. As if the mountainous, endlessly uphill roads here aren't challenging enough, you then add in the elements; wind and rain, and it just seems like an insane way to see the country. I'll happily stick to seeing the world from behind a pane of glass, if my choices were bicycle or car.

Windy weather in Hofsós

One of the four kittens that were born at Vatn this spring was leaving for her forever home today. I brought her into the museum so that her new mom could come and get her. I had a couple of hours to play with her there before the woman arrived and brought her back to Akureyri. It was very cozy, and now I am convinced that the museum needs a resident cat.