Love found at the South Pole leads to island life in Iceland

An unlikely romance blossomed in the stark, frozen landscape of the South Pole, leading to a unique life on an Icelandic island for Felicity Aston and Gísli Jónsson. The couple, who met during their time at a research station in Antarctica, now call Vigur island in Ísafjarðardjúpi home, having purchased it seven years ago.

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The adventures of love happen everywhere!

Aston, originally from England, pursued a career in astrophysics and atmospheric science, driven by a fascination with stars and planets. Her research later shifted to climate change, particularly its effects on the Antarctic region. She worked with the scientist who discovered the ozone layer's thinning in the 1970s and joined the Rothera Research Station at age 23, signing a 39-month contract that immersed her in the harsh Antarctic environment for three years.

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What fascinated me about the field was tackling challenges like calculations and modeling, but at the same time, it required being outdoors. I started looking at climate change in the Antarctic, and there, in the 1990s, we were already seeing signs of its effects.

Life at the research station presented its own challenges, especially during the long winters when most personnel departed, leaving a small group isolated. Aston recounts the experience with a laugh, admitting not all twenty colleagues were easy to live with. It was during this period of isolation that she met Gísli, an Icelander who was also working in Antarctica.

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I applied for a position as a meteorologist at the Rothera Research Station in Antarctica. I was 23, just finished university, and on my way to my first real job! I arrived there in December 2000 after flying by military plane to the Falkland Islands and sailing from there for six weeks. Landing was incredibly daunting. What was perhaps most daunting was that I had signed a 39-month contract and knew I would be there summer, winter, summer, winter, summer, winter, and summer before I went home again!

Their shared adventurous spirit and connection forged in extreme conditions led them back to Iceland. They eventually purchased Vigur island, a place now teeming with puffins, black guillemots, Arctic terns, and eider ducks. The couple raises their young son, Þráinn Freyr, on the island, earning a living from eiderdown harvesting and tourism, offering visitors a glimpse into their extraordinary life.

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During the winters, almost everyone went home, and we were only about twenty left at the research station and were completely isolated from everyone in the world.