Iceland - Southern Beaches & Glaciers

Thursday 7th March was the start of a few days of beaches and glaciers. We stopped in the town of Vik for groceries and diesel. It had rained off and on most of the morning so we popped into the Lava café for a snack and then went to the Icewear store so Sara could buy a belt. Oh dear!  Several hours later we left with a large credit card charge, an excellent pair of wool lined pants for Sara (which she wore for the rest of the trip), a beautiful sweater for John and two hand knitted warm hats - and oh yes a belt! Icewear started in 1972 as a local knitting company with the slogan" Be Warm be well" 

We got a break from the heavy rain and stopped at Reynisfjara Black Sand beach, which has impressive cliffs and sea views. The beach is also known for "sneaker waves" which often push further up the beach than expected. The offshore rip currents are infamous for their strength and ability to drag helpless people out into the freezing cold open ocean.

We carefully took photos, keeping an eye on the waves and the people who were getting knocked down by the sneaky waves. As we were leaving the beach we momentarily took our eyes of the sea and yes, got soaked over our ankles by a sneaker wave! Luckily we stayed on our feet and sloshed back to the van to change into dry boots. The second beach we visited was calmer and more enjoyable! We drove on 150km to Skaftafell National Park which was a great camp ground and enjoyed an excellent long warm shower after the cold wet day.

Friday we were treated to a cold but dry sunny morning and a magnificent view of snow capped mountains. We left the campground and quickly found an excellent view of Skaftafell glacier and stopped for photos, a drone flight and a quick hike. Our next stop was Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon and Diamond beach, and potentially a visit to an ice cave in the glacier. We parked by the beach and walked to the glacier lagoon, enjoying the views of floating icebergs and seals. The ice cave tour was closed due to raising water so we returned to the van and heated up a hot soup lunch, feeling a bit sorry for the people outside in the pouring rain eating their sandwiches. Yes, it was cold, wet and windy a lot in this area!

We got a bit of a break in the rain and explored Diamond beach which has huge pieces of ice from the glacier that reach the sea via the river and have been deposited on the beach. The icebergs are polished by the sea waves to look like incredibly large diamonds lying on the black sand. Enjoy the videos with the sound turned on to hear the waves.

We ended the day at another beautiful ocean beach area next to Mount Vestahorn. We had hoped to see the northern lights over such a spectacular scenery, but the weather wasn't cooperative with clouds and rain. So instead Sara made what John said was the best grilled cheese sandwich he had ever had. Amazing what you can do on a single camp stove inside a van.

Click here to see the photos and videos!

 

Iceland Expedition 2024

We arrived in Iceland late Sunday March 3th after a day and a half of travel, ready for 2 weeks of fun exploring the land of fire and ice! The next day we picked up our camper van and headed into Reykjavik, spending the afternoon wandering the streets and sights along the sea front. The city has interesting architecture and loads of good places to eat; we had an excellent lunch at the Bastard Grill. 

Tuesday the 5th we spent several hours in the hot waters of Blue Lagoon. Quite a unique experience with blue waters, rising steam and white silica face masks. The lagoon had been closed for a few days due to volcanic activity just 10 km away, and we were lucky it reopened. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience and continued to stop at hot springs for the rest of the trip.

After a stop for groceries, diesel and water for the van we headed to our first stop in Thingvellir National Park. We arrived at dusk in wet and windy conditions, something that was repeated for most of the week. Since it is winter most camp sites have basic facilities and we just parked the camper van in the parking lot with the other campers, had a quick snack and crawled into our sleeping bags. The camper van is a Volkswagen Transporter 4x4, converted to sleep two in the back, and a small area with a sink and camping stove. It worked amazingly well for the trip. 

The next day we drove what is called the Golden Circle - an area with stunning mountains, and waterfalls, including Gullfoss and Seljalandsfoss - two very large water falls. It was wet and very windy all day - good thing we had full "foul-weather" gear! We stopped to see some Icelandic horses, who are very friendly and very furry with their thick winter coats. 

We had lunch at a very cool restaurant that is inside the largest indoor tomato farm. Fridheimer's had amazing tomato soup and bread, and we took a delicious olive loaf with us to enjoy in the van. Iceland has huge heated and lighted greenhouses to grow their vegetables inside since the growing season is so short, with cold and dark winters. Energy in Iceland is very cheap, with 73% coming from hydro power and 27% from geo thermal, they lead the world in renewable energy.

We spent the night at Skogafoss campground, right next to the waterfall and were treated to a magnificent view in the morning (Thursday 7th). The weather is very changeable and by the time we had finished breakfast and made the short walk to the falls it started to rain. This was a pattern to be repeated most of the trip. Luckily by the time we got back to the van, rather damp and a little irritable, the weather cleared and John was able to get an excellent photo!

Click here for the photos and videos!