Garðar BA 64 is thought to be the oldest steelship in Iceland, built in Norway as a whaling vessel exactly one hundred years ago.
Garðar was launched in Norway in 1912, the year Titanic sank in the North Atlantic Ocean. It was named Globe IV and was equipped with both sails and a steam engine to use when the weather was still. It was specially reinforced to endure the harsh conditions of the Southern Ocean where it was used to hunt whales.
Globe IV was sold to the Faroe Islands in 1936 where it got a brand new name and a somewhat less dignified role in the whale hunting business. At the end of the second world war the ship was sold once again. This time to Iceland. Once here it was given an icelandic name, Siglunes SI 89, and the old steam workhorse which has powered it all those years was replaced with a 378 hp Ruston Hornsby diesel engine. The ship traded owners and names for number of years until 1963 it finally aquired the name it has today, Garðar. It was a good ship and served it’s many owners well for a long time.
In desember 1981 Garðar BA 64 was deemed unfit for duty. Instead of sinking it a sea as was the custom in these days when ships went out of service it was and rammed ashore at Skápadalur valley in Patreksfjörður. Today Garðar patiently awaits it’s inevitable rusty fate in the sand providing tourists with a spectacular scene and just the perfect photo opportunity.
How to get there
Skápadalur is situated in Vestur-Barðarstrandasýsla in the Icelandic WestFjords.
