In old damaged in downtown Reykjavík is the only student in boats building, repairing old wooden boats to save them from destructive hands of nature. Jón and some of his friends have created a company called “Báta Vinaflélagið Súðbyrðing” and set up facilities to restore old wooden boats. The Company has sought find broken boots around the country to put them under a roof to repair and restore them.  Recently they took in the rowing boat Sumarliði, which was built in 1867 at the request of Skúla Skúlason in Fagurey on Breidarfirdi. Jón Ragnar also a vice chairman of the Icelandic lighthouse company – Club for Icelandic’s coastal culture  The aim of the company arise awareness in the country about the historical importance of the old boats and importance of preserving the Icelandic costal culture.

Jón Rangar‘s mentor is Hafliði Aðalsteinsson, boat builder but he is also the founding fathers of Boat Museum Breiðafjörður Reykhólar.

Wealth of marine and coastal

At the beginning of the May the members of Fishernet European partnership held a meeting in Iceland.  At the begins they were shown few selected places around the country, where development and utilization cultural heritage in coastal area has come to success.  Sailor Memorial Museum in Reykjavík – Vikin. Jón Ragnar’s boat repairing and Lumbfish garage with Grímstaðarvörina  were amongst the places that were visited in the capital. Then they travelled to Siglufjördur,  dinner was served at Deck in the houseboat of the Herring cultural memorial  museum, during the dinner they listed to locals rhyme. The following day they sailed with only schooner of the country. Hauknum, to Husavik and that tested the sea fitness.

All of them came back alive. After a meeting and introduction to Húsavik, they finally travelled to Akureyri, more meetings and the conference: Wealth of the Sea and the Beach – the Initiative and creativity use of cultural heritage.

The conferneces succeded in every way and the speeches were enlightening, entertaining and scary. Little Skilma/fish scare, however stole the thunder, thus the minister of transporting give an extra address. Skilma is one of the payoffs off the collaboration between Fishernet and  Industrial Park-grassroots. Appeared in form of letter clip/bookmark, made out of wood, with information in a small book made out of redness skin. There’s the cultural heritage of vocational education and innovation. Result of this cooperation has range from assisting group of people who were previously unemployed; to create employment for the future by making applied art and souvenirs.

Walk of the beach saunter, from lighthouse to lighthouse                                                                

Folk museum of Gardur flourishes and attendance increases year by year. In Gardur are people considering to expand further, but take one step at time and pay close attention to their own historical roots.  In the last few years, fishernet has mad contribution to the development, most recently the Walking on Midsummer’s night.

On Midsummer night, glittering wishing stones in the ponds, ground vegetation is steeped in growth levels and healing power, the dew has cleaning power.  Because this peoples roll around naked, in the fauna.  Grass healers and witches come to life to gather their crops, which are at their strongest this night. Elves are seen in the process and weird beings hovering in honor and in Holt.

Maybe not all participants were human, in Walk of the Beach saunter, from lighthouse to lighthouse, more showed up than had formally signed up.

The program began with a lecture about sea monsters and more, in which Thorvald Fridriksson, monster expert was the host. After his speech it was obvious that the group could expect a variety of events and maybe was not all it seemed. Eighty people laid her out on the walk from Stafneslighthouse Know Garðskagalighthouse under the guidance of specialists. Maybe there was  good weather, when Thomas Gudmundsson wrote:

To the west the sun sinks

and weakness in the forest falls,

and neat stars stare

the set, blue sound.

But life in the adhesive moves

and slow leaf emanate,

the elf classes go

a meeting in the grove.

It's already decided that from now on Walk of the beach saunter will be on Reykjanes at Midsummer night, and various historical events at the sea side reviewed.

Midsummer festival of Herring Memorial Museum 2010 

It has become annual event for the Herring Memorial Museum of Iceland, to hold a Midsummer festival with seminar during the day and musical festival on in the evening, entitled “Free shift – Sailor requests musical numbers live”.  On the free shift a person known nationwide is honoured. This time around it was Omar Ragnarsson which played along with the band

The seminar dealt with the protection of boats and the tipping point and cooperative with the Herring Memorial Museum in Norway.

The program was:

Saturday 26th June. In Grana at. 13:30

Forums: Boat Protection and restoration of ancient works of culture

Finale cooperative Herring Memorial Museum in Norway Boat projection and North Norway. Meeting in cooperation with the Association of Maritime, SIS. Moderator: Margaret Rose Huns daughter, archivist Herring Memorial Museum.

13:30 Opening. Örlygur Kristfinnsson, Director.

13:35 Eiríkur Þorlákson, representative of the Ministry of Education carries an address.

13:45 Bjorn Lillevoll, boat builder. Boat protection in Norway and cooperation with Iceland.

14:00 Brief introduction to the boat builder project and cooperation between Gratangen and Siglufjördur.

14:15 Gunnar Marel Eggertsson boat builder Icelander build.

14:30 Harold Ingi Haraldsson Gásir - Icelandic medieval boat.

14:45 Coffee Break

15:05 Jon Sigurpálsson, Director and Chairman of the SIS, introduce the project of District Museum of West fjords. Saved from coffin of lost, old production methods comes back to life.

15:20  August Ó. Georgsson, National Museum - Efforts in boat protection.

15:35 Sigurbjörg Arnadóttir, chairman of the Icelandic Lighthouse company and the project manager of Fishernet. Collaborative and comprehensive.

15:50 Representative from the Reykhólar Group discuss boatbuilding and the protection project.  Breiðfirdinga. The documentary "Súðbyrðingur" by Ásdís Thoroddsen is shown (57 min).

Too the seminar were invited all that are interested um projection of Icelandic boats and  boat building traditions. Free admission and coffee sold in the breaks.

The seminar was successful, although it has not been over crowded. Participants said goodbye with a promise to meet in the fall and keep the partnership going.

Norwegian/Icelandic offspring Soffía

The partnership of Herring Memorial Museum and Nord Norsk Nord Norsk fartøyvernsenter and båtmuseum in Gratangen is now over as the project has been completed. The boat Soffia went to her Maiden voyage in last October and was then painted and storied inside the museum. Before the trip Örlygur spoke few words including sea travelling prayer. “The father blesses this raft and its sailor”.

In the summer, the plan is that Soffia will be used at sea. The crew of the maiden Voyage were Skuli Thorodssen, carpenter, and Örlygur Kristfinnsson, museum director. On the picture there is nothing too suggest other than the rowing’s synchronized between them. There were many handclasps that went into the construction of the boats and working with Gratangen has been very instructive and rewarding. On the seminar about boat protection and restoration production methods of ancient culture, a final thrust of the project, said the boat builder Bjorn Lillevoll who also disused boat projection in Norway and making of Soffia.