Stuck in Iceland
Usually, the turnaround between missions is remarkably short. Sometimes there is just a day to change the sheets, check the boat, fix anything that has come loose and get everything ready for the next group of scientists. Somehow, the crew has become quite accustomed to the pace. And, until now, the weather has been on our side. Despite the long distances and challenging conditions the Malizia Explorer has sailed through this year, the weather never seriously got in the way of an expedition. Until now.
It has been a busy year onboard the Malizia Explorer. One scientific mission has followed the next, with hardly any time in between. Even the deliveries and transits between expeditions have become missions in their own right, with every mile sailed also used for outreach, education, maintenance or simply getting the boat and crew where they need to be.
Now the mission is simple: get home. But for the moment, the Malizia Explorer is stuck in Akureyri, Iceland, waiting for a weather window to continue the journey south.
For Marin Moreau, first mate onboard, the journey home has been a long time coming. He has spent much of the past year at sea, sailing on two Antarctic expeditions, through the Baltic during the summer and most recently to Greenland onboard the Malizia Explorer. After all those miles, he is now hoping to make it back to France, where he lives whenever the ground beneath his feet should stop moving.
There are worse places to be stuck © Marin Moreau / Team Malizia
The end of a chapter
The crew arrived in Iceland in September after almost two weeks in Greenland with researchers from the Alfred Wegener Institute. They had spent their time in Kangertittivaq, also known as Scoresby Sund, the largest fjord system in the world, studying the soundscape of the fjord and the effects of human-made noise, as well as the influence of Atlantic water entering the fjord and glacier melt.
For Marin, arriving in Iceland marked the end of the expedition. “It was nice to arrive in Iceland. This was the end of the mission and we left all the scientists here, so it was like the end of the end of the chapter.”
The five researchers left the Malizia Explorer with their samples and data, heading home to their respective laboratories. For the crew, it was time to turn the page and start thinking about the journey back to Lorient. “Then we started looking for a weather window to continue the journey.” It sounded simple enough….It wasn't.
Getting home
The Malizia Explorer has covered a lot of ground since her last major refit in Uruguay at the end of 2025. Since then, she has sailed to the Antarctic Peninsula three times, crossed the Atlantic, spent weeks working in the Baltic and headed north into the Arctic.
After such a busy season, another refit is now due. The plan is to return to Lorient for the winter, where the boat will undergo maintenance and preparations before the next cycle of scientific expeditions begins in spring.
With the weather window however still nowhere in sight, the crew has also had to adjust to an unexpected change of plans. So, what do you do when your boat is ready to sail but the weather isn't?
Working through a job list in a beautiful place © Marin Moreau / Team Malizia
Making the most of being stuck
After taking some time to rest following the Greenland mission, the crew has started working through all the smaller jobs that can be done while they wait. One of them is looking after the dry suits, which are an essential piece of safety equipment for the crew and were particularly important during the Danger Islands expedition in Antarctica.
With the forecast looking “really, really bad”, nobody knows exactly when the Malizia Explorer will be able to leave Iceland, so for now, the crew waits, watches the forecast and works their way through the jobs one by one.
And, if you have to be stuck somewhere, Akureyri isn't a bad place to be.
“Where we are, it's actually really, really nice. There's a lot of waterfalls around and it's a small town, but it's a nice community. People are friendly. At least that's a nice place to be stuck.”
After a year of almost continuous sailing, perhaps a few extra days on land aren't the worst thing after all.
The Malizia Explorer will continue her journey to Lorient as soon as the weather allows. Then, after months of expeditions and thousands of nautical miles, the boat will finally get the winter break and refit she needs before heading back to sea next spring.
© Marin Moreau