Today is the day Rich has been waiting for all year!  He turned 70 this spring, and we each get to plan a trip of our choice on our decade birthdays.  We are in Iceland for a week, traveling the Ring Road and taking in all its beauty.  But the whole reason for coming is to see puffins.  His ultimate destination was the Hafnarholmi preserve, home of the nesting grounds for thousands of Atlantic puffins every summer.

The drive to get there took us up and over mountain ridges with vistas of green hillsides flanked by lava peaks pocked with snow, twisting and winding around switchbacks and ultimately reaching the sea.  That only added to the magic as we anticipated our destination.

The area has long been home to nesting puffins, and thanks to local farmers who donated their land to BirdLife Iceland, a safe viewing area has been constructed to watch these wonderful birds.  We got there early in the morning, some of the first to arrive.  The preserve is on a peninsula beyond the harbor, where wooden stairs and boardwalks enable visitors to get up close to the puffins. 

We started by mounting a tall staircase up the high outcropping of land, and as soon as we turned the corner, there they were!  Right next to us!  Puffins dotted the hillside, each patrolling the patch of land around their burrow.  Rich quickly nabbed the best spot for photography, and we stayed glued to the sight for ages. 

The birds were so entertaining!  They aren’t very good on land, waddling around, popping in and out of their burrow, flexing their wings, and finally getting up the courage to fling themselves over the edge and fly out to sea to catch fish for their young.  Watching them come back in for a landing was equally comical.

We were there at just the right time, when the birds were very active, all out on the hillside and within feet of us.  We were up close and personal to say the least!  As the morning wore on, more people arrived but it never felt crowded.  And there was a definite hush among the viewers, talking in whispers not wanting to break the spell.

While Rich the bird photographer put his camera through its paces, I snapped away with my iPhone, just as pleased to get enough photos for good memories.  And I took in more than just puffins.  I was equally enamored with the surrounding scenery.  It had turned into a stunning sunny morning, and the sea was perfectly calm.  Having been prepared for chilly, windy and wet Iceland it felt like a huge gift! 

There were several different spots for viewing and we tried them all.  Rich particularly liked the blind for its view of puffins against the blue of the sea. At long last, after over two hours of puffin watching, we were finally ready to tear ourselves away. But Rich found one more spot at the bottom where he could catch puffins up top preparing for flight against the deep blue sky.

I knew the day was truly a success when Rich said it far exceeded his expectations. And given all the hype, distance traveled and anticipation, that meant a lot! Especially for a 70-year-old who has seen and photographed his share of birds. Which you can find in abundance, including these puffins on his website. Believe me, his photos are far better than mine!

By the way, I turned 70 last year and spent my week with a good friend from England on a Greek island! I had so much fun, I never got around to blogging about it.