Móskógar

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Editor Lára Margrét Arnarsdóttir Writers Anna Elísabet Sæmundsdóttir Gunnhildur María Sæmundsdóttir Lára Margrét Arnarsdóttir

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Photos From photocollections of family members Drawings Lára Margrét Arnarsdóttir Design and layout Lára Margrét Arnarsdóttir Proofreading Anna Elísabet Sæmundsdóttir Breki Melax Printing London College of Communication Copies 28 Special thanks Anna Elísabet Sæmundsdóttir Ása María Guðmundsdóttir Breki Melax Elín Helga Sæmundsdóttir Herdís Ásu Sæmundardóttir Gunnhildur María Sæmundsdóttir

Content

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Sæmundur Árni Hermannsson

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Ása Sigríður Helgadóttir

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Children of Ása and Sæmundur

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The land of Móskógar

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Skógar

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Háskógar

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The house in Móskógar

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Nature in Fljótin

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Blueprints of the house of Móskógar

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Family tree

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Guestbook

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Poetry book

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Photo album

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Songs of Móskógar

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Sæmundur Árni was born on 11th of May 1921 in Ysta-Mór in a fjord called Fljótin in Skagafjörður, North Iceland. He was the sixth child of nine siblings born to Hermann and Elín. Hermann had moved from the town Bíldudalur to Skagafjörður but Elín was born and raised in Skagafjörður. After living in Hofsós and on the island of Málmey for a while they moved to Ysti-Mór in Fljótin where they started a farm. Back then living conditions were pretty hard but Sæmundur‘s parents were considered upper class in the fjord. Farming conditions on the land were good but it called for many hands for a good harvest and all the siblings worked on the farm from a young age. Sæmundur always wanted a good education but living conditions did now allow for all siblings to follow a path of education. Sæmundur then suggested that the youngest sibling should be educated from an early age and not have to work on the farm. Sæmundur valued education to the fullest and he put emphasis on that his children would get a good education.

When Sæmundur was around 18 years old he got to chance to finish what we can call today a primary school education. Following that he started working in customs at Keflavík International Airport where he got the chance to attend a variety of short courses that in the near future would open doors for new job possibilities.

When Sæmundur was thirty years old he moved to Vestmann Islands to start a job as a hotel manager at a new hotel. There he met his future wife Ása Sigríður at a dance, but Ása always talked about how she fell for the guy that danced so good. They got married 1952 and moved to Reykjavík and then to Sauðárkrókur five years later where

Sæmundur took a job at the hospital as a manager. Sæmundur was very hardworking and always had a lot on his plate as he also participated in a many social activites in the community. He and Ása had seven children together and did Ása mostly take care of the home and the children like was common in those days. Even though Ása did most of the work around the house, Sæmundur had his opinions regarding the upbringing of his children and tried as he could to teach the children life lessons that the children have carried with them through life. He made sure that Ása had a moment to herself everyday to read her books and when the children had moved away, he always made sure that they would come and visit regularly.

Sæmundur was a generous man, whether it was for his own family or other families that needed help. He saw it as his duty to help others that were not in the same position as him and he helped a lot of families financially and sometimes it would happen that things would dissapear from his own home since he believed that others needed them more.

He always emphasised how important education and hard work is and preached to his children that they should not waste their lives doing nothing.

Despite a successful career as CEO and manager he was a farmer at heart and he kept horses and sheep on a small farm outside of Sauðárkrókur. He felt good on the farm, he could forget rough days when he took care of his animals.

Sæmundur Árni Hermannsson

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Ása Sigríður Helgadóttir

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Ása Sigríður Hegladóttir was born on the 18th of March 1930 in Vestmann Islands and was the oldest of three sisters. Her parents were Helgi from Vestfjords and Ellen Marie who was danish and had moved to Iceland from Denmark. Helgi and Ellen moved to Vestmann Islands where Helgi worked as a fisherman while Ellen Marie looked after their girls and took care of the home. Even though money was scarce, life was good and the sisters could live a careless life running around the island. Ellen Marie fell ill and died in 1941 when Ása was only eleven years old. At that time her sisters were only nine and six years old which resulted in Ása needing to take on more responsibility around the house. This was not easy since her father continued his work as a fisherman and got nannies to help around with the girls. Despite this tragic event, Ása carried on and when she was eighteen years old she got a job as a receptionist for a fishing company. She worked there until she met Sæmundur and moved to the capital with him and then later to Sauðárkrókur, where she lived out the rest of her life. Ása was a work at home mom but when the kids got older she started working in accounting at the town hospital. Ása had a thirst for knowledge and she loved to read and learn something new. She always had a book by her side and it would sometimes happen that the stove would boil up while she forgot herself in an exciting chapter.

She went to night school to learn english and german and the solution for juggling both children and education was reading her school books as a bed time story, translating as she read. She was diligent in adopting to the latest technology and a whole other

world opened up to her when the internet came. All of a sudden she had access to the entire world and everything there was to find and learn. She always dreamt of travelling and before travel became more common she travelled through her books which then later in life resulted in her travelling the world. Ása was a very calm and kind woman with a lot of patience. She had a relaxed attitude which has no doubt helped her run a large home with seven children, but Sæmundur always made sure that she had her alone time. She was generous with her children and approached her grandchildren as equals where common interests were for example computer games and adventure movies. Her children somtimes said that when she spent time with her grandchildren she would adapt to their age.

She welcomed everybody with open arms and showed people interest. She made it her mission to get to know people on common ground. She had a good relationship with her sisters as well as having good friends that she would meet over a cup of coffee.

She also always stayed in touch with her mother‘s family members in Denmark and old friends from Vestmann Islands. She participated in social activities in the Vestman Island community and it did not matter to her that she would have to drive five hours to Reykjavík to attend a meeting. In the meetings she was in the company of women she knew when she was little and she loved connecting with them through storytelling of old times from the island.

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Children of Ása and Sæmundar

Elín Helga Sæmundsdóttir Born 1st of March 1952

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Herdís Ásu Sæmundardóttir Born 30th of July 1954

Hafsteinn Sæmundsson Born 18th of February 1956

Gunnhildur María Sæmundsdóttir Born 22nd of May 1957

Margrét Sæmundsdóttir Born 27th of December 1960

Hermann Sæmundsson Born 19th of June 1965

Anna Elísabet Sæmundsdóttir Born 14th of November 1966

The land of Móskógar

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Móskógar is the eastest land on Bakkar in Fljótin. The land lies up to Laugaland Westward, down to the sea North-East and up to Ysti-Mór Southward. The land is in total around 140 hectares and are farming conditions good, though no farming is done there today. Crops on the land were never bigger than 4-5 hectares. The land of Móskógar is mostly made up of ancient hills that fell from the mountain. Móskógar is in Barðscounty and in early days there were great benefits from seafood and wood that drifted ashore.

Margrét Þorvaldsdóttir was the first known owner of the land but she bought the land from the church of Reykir in Flókadalur with wood and half a whale that drifted ashore. The land was then either inherited or purchased up until 1962 when the last inhabitants moved away and the land was deserted. In 1964 the land was owned by the coop of Fljótin and two years later, or in 1964, Sæmundur Árni Hermannsson bought the land. The land had then been deserted for four years and it stayed like that up until 1973 when Sæmundur rented a portion of the land to his friend Gottskálk Rögnvaldsson for the price of one whiskey bottle. Gottskálk built the summer cabin Skógar. Skógar is 42m2 with considerable amount of cultivation surrounding it. The next house to be built on the land is the summer house Háskógar which was built in 1989. Original owner was Níels Friðbjarnarson from Siglufjörður but he later on sold it to Erna Rósmundsdóttir and Jóhann Rögnvaldsson who renovated the cabin in order

to expand it to 46m2. In 2010 the owners of Móskógar bought the cabin and later in 2016 renovated it again. In 1991 Sæmundur and Ása finally decided to build their own summer cabin on the premises. A cabin for all their family to gather at.

You can find many ruins on the land of Móskógar that all have their own unique history. While laying grounds for district heating in 2016 they found ruins of an old farm located near the Háskógar cabin. They were not able to determine exactly the age of the ruins but everything points to it being the oldest known farm on the land.

The best known farm is the one located near the old road that runs along the roots of the mountain. That is where the old farm built with turf walls stood. People lived in that farm up until after World War Two, thereafter the owners built a wooden house that was inhabited until the land was deserted.

The timber house stood around 100 meters down the old road which is today around 4,4 km from Haganesvík.

On the land you can find an old boat from the herring years that Baldur Björnsson, previous owner of Móskógar, bought. The boat was delivered with a truck and put down by to road but in a storm shortly after it was delivered, the boat flew up into the air and landed upside down in a swamp.

Nothing was done about it and the boat still stands there today, broken and upside down.

The view is excellent from the land of Móskógar and that is considered one of the best traits of the land. From the main cabin you can see all over the fjord, look over the sea and all the way to Haganesvík village.

You can watch the boats sail by but in the old day there was a lot of life in the harbor of Haganesvík. From Móskógar you can see the beauty of the East mountains but discussion about how the snow falls on the East mountains has through the years been a popular topic in the fjord.

Despite of Móskógar probably not being the best arable land, are current owners very pleased with what the land has to offer and they often vacation there to get out of the city and breathe the fresh countryside air.

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...\5610AFST Móskógar lóð.s01 7/7/2008 3:03:41 PM

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The house in Móskógar Sæmundur Árni started building the cabin for his family on the 2nd of June 1991 after carefully going over where he wanted the cabin to be. He had his ideas on what the cabin should look like and he commissioned his son-in-law Guðmundur Ragnarsson to draw blueprints to the house in accordance with his ideas. Sæmundur wanted a big house where the family could be together and his children and grandchildren could enjoy being together as well. On the 29th of December the same year, Sæmundur and Ása decided to give each of their children a share in the land and the grounds for a cabin that was ready to be built. The ownership was divided into eight parts, one for Sæmundur and Ása and one for each child.

New owners started right away taking responsibility for the ownership and decided to establish a company that was run by them to oversee construction and operation.

That day the first board was formed and owners have ever since taken turns sitting on the board. The company holds an annual general meeting each year where they go over invoices and tasks ahead.

The cabin is a two story building, with ground floor being around 123m2 and in total 140-150m2 counting the second floor.

The ground floor is made out of two bedrooms, one bathroom, an entrance hall, a living room and a kitchen. On the first floor you can then find three bedrooms, a tv room and a storage. It took a few years to build

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the house and the siblings did a lot of the ground work, but in the end the company decided on hiring carpenters to finish the work. Since the house was built, efforts have been made to improve facilities around it.

For example making a lawn surrounding the house, building a gate and parking spaces as well as planting trees and other plants.

A shed for storage was built and by popular demand they bought a hot tub.

Owners and their descendants very much enjoy going to the countryside for vacation and there is a lot that you can do there as well. There are boardgames, books, old computer games and tv material that can be used for relaxation. The best thing in everybody’s opinion though, is to go there and grill a lamb, which is a big part of the culture in the fjord, and drink wine that almost always ends up in a good family sing-along with the guitar.

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Nature in Fljótin

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Fljótin are a part of the northernmost part of Iceland and nature and climate reflect on that geographical position. Fljótin is not a big fjord but they are divided into two areas in regards to snow and wind. From the beginning of inhabit, inhabitants of Fljótin have always talked about East-Fljót and West-Fljót and is that the definition that is still used to this day. The reason being that East-Fljót cover more mountain area and therefore catch a lot of snow. There is less snow to be found in West-Fljót and the snow disappears more quickly. Fljótin overall has hard winters and inhabitants have always said that the snow fully disappears around the 17th of June. The summers are always very pleasant, not a lot of wind or rain but that has not affected farming in any wasy since soil is always wet after the massive amount of snow. These weather conditions have made inhabit at Fljótin possible.

Nature is vivid and especially in the summertime, a lot of birds, both shorebirds and moorland birds and in Fljótin is one of the biggest Arctic Tern rookery of Iceland. The rookery in Fljótin has through the ages been a great source of down used for duvets and other necessities. In Fljótin you can find a prosperous fishing area where cod can be caught easily. There are three beautiful bodies of water named Miklavatn, Hópsvatn and Flókadalsvatn where both salmon and

trout can be caught. In the fall, the hills are covered in berries you can pick, they grow both blueberries and crowberries. In Fljótin you can also find a lot of streams and rivers.

In two of the, Brúnastaðará and Nesá, you can find beautiful waterfalls and there is nothing better than walking along the rivers and waterfalls listening to the water flowing, birds singing and sheep bleating. Enjoying the creation of the nature, that’s where the wonders of mankind and nature become one.

Since Fljótin are located this far North on the globe there is a big difference in daylight hours. The winters are dark and long, it gets bright late in the morning and gets dark again early in the afternoon. The summers on the other hand are bright all hours of the day and the sun never sets. There is nothing more beautiful than a summer night in Fljótin.

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Móskógarmerkið

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The sign of Móskógar hangs in front of the house welcoming everybody that walks up to it. The sign is a piece after the artist Sigurður Sigurðsson and was a gift to the family. Sigurður talked about how the reason for the sign being shaped like an apple is

that the name of the land suggests that once had been a big forest there that most likely contained apple trees. Sigurður was the father of Arnar which is Ása and Sæmundur’s ex son-in-law. To this we can also add that the gate into the parking lot in front of the

cabin was designed and built by Arnar. The owners are extremely grateful for these one of a kind art works that have become a part of the house.

Guestbook

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Gu e s t b o o k

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Móskógar

Photo album

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Songs of Móskógar

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If the sun will shine in the Fljót so fine, the trolls go into hiding.

And laughter in the hills divine, mountains are providing Yes here is life and here is fun and here I’m always happy In Móskógar, in Móskógar trallalalala We don’t let life just pass us by without enjoying it a bit And now’s a good time to relax, enjoy, have fun before we recommit Everybody lift their glass and sing this happy summersong Trallalalalalalala.

When the winter comes with days so long and lots and lots of snowing The creatures go and build a hole, avoiding the unknowing We then take out our skiing gear and maybe fall on our asses In Móskógar, in Móskógar trallalalala We don’t let life just pass us by...... / Guðmundur Ragnarsson

Here I stand in my place, Here I stand and watch with grace, How the people who are coming and visiting me Feel like they’ve come home again Here I stand and witness all of life’s enjoyment and sadness falls How times will change and people as well Yes everything I’ve seen I am not only timber I am not only steel I’m a big ass house with a big ass soul I take good care of all my people if they come and visit me I’m the cabin in Móskógar The beauty is such in Móskógar much, And mountains so tall, make you reAll around is life to see call Bleating sheep and one old stream Why you love this place And horses enjoying to eat and play A small fox finds holes to survey You find happieness here in Here I stand and witness all... / Guðmundur Ragnarsson

this atmosphere in the hill in midnight sund I’ll never forget this place The bay calls us Don’t be in a rush watch and enjoy

You find happieness here...... / Hermann Sæmundsson / Guðrún Sesselja Grímsdóttir

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Neðsta röð frá vinstri: Sigurður Jóhann Árnason, Birkir Hafsteinsson, Auður Ragnarsdóttir, Lára Margrét Arnarsdóttir, Sigurvin Arnarsson, Helgi Grímur Hermannsson

Fourth row from the left: Bergþóra Ragnarsdóttir, Kristján Tjörvi Kristjánsson

Third row from the left: Gunnhildur María Sæmundsdóttir, Ása Sigríður Helgadóttir, Sæmundur Árni Hermannsson, Sæmundur Árni Hermannsson, Hermann Sæmundsson

Second row from the left: Margrét Sæmundsdóttir, Herdís Ásu Sæmundardóttir, Elín Helga Sæmundsdóttir, Ása María Guðmundsdóttir, Anna Elísabet Sæmundsdóttir, Guðrún Sesselja Grímsdóttir, Guðmundur Ragnarsson

Top row from the left: Jón Ernir Berndsen, Sigríður Ólöf Þóra Sigurðardóttir, Ragnar Sveinsson, Hafsteinn Sæmundsson, Tjörvi Berndsen, Helgi Sæmundur Guðmundsson, Árni Kristinsson, Arnar Sigurðsson

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