Foss Hotel, Glacier Lagoon
Our first stop of the day was at Skeidarasandur.
The heavy girders of the Skeidara Bridge Monument and the accompanying notice boards sitting in a flat, grey landscape tell of the events in November 1996 when the Skeidararsandur sandflats were inundated by a massive glacial flood following an eruption in the Vatnajokull Glacier.
Huge chunks of ice were swept along causing great damage to the road and completely washing away the Gogjukvisi Bridge. Icebergs that reached the Gogjukvisi Bridge were estimated to weigh 1000-2000 tons.
Skeidara Bridge was also badly damaged and work to repair the bridge was completed in 1997. The Skeidara Bridge Monument is a stark reminder of the powers of nature.
The countryside we were driving through was flat and barren on the ocean side with little vegetation but with a range of mountains to the right. It was such a contrast and my neck was constantly on a swivel so I could take in every aspect of this wonderful country.
Before I left for my Icelandic adventure I did some serious detective work into some of the must-see spots, albeit knowing that on a tour you’re basically in a follow the leader situation.
One of the fascinating areas I found when researching was the Eldhraun Lava Field, with lava at a depth of up to 12m and covering 565 square kilometres. The strange lumps were liberally coated with a carpet of brilliant green, woolly fringe moss.
The unearthly landscape is incredibly fragile and the moss takes about a hundred years to grow so it’s imperative that people respect it’s fragility and refrain from touching or stepping on it.
The misty day added to the alien-like atmosphere and I would’ve loved to stop, but as I mentioned before, on a tour you have no choice!
Not so Trivial: In 2016 Justin Bieber decided to spice up his video by having dancers leap and twirl on the moss in the Eldhraun Lava Field. The moss wasn’t too thrilled about it as it will take decades to heal and the authorities were even less impressed!
Our next destination was Vik and a visit to the Icelandic Lava Show. We arranged ourselves around the display hugging ourselves to ward off the cold. The Lava Show recreates a volcanic eruption by heating lava up to 1100C. As the white-hot stream flows into the room and pools at the bottom you can feel the intense heat and hear it crackle. It darkens to red then starts to solidify. It was an educational, interesting display with a gift of a black, glass like piece of lava at the end.
Then it was time for lunch: Black Crust Pizza! I wanted one!
I hot-footed it to the Black Crust Pizzeria but was devastated to learn they only made one size – large. It was one of the few times I wished I had a travel companion to share with, but I didn’t, so with a sad face I wandered back to the Ice Cave Bistro for some delicious tomato soup and a walk along the black sand beach.
The beach was almost deserted, and with the black sand, misty day and sea stacks it made for some really dramatic photos. It was like a scene straight out of Game of Thrones.
The mist eventually gave way to dark clouds as we made our way to Reynisfjara, also a black sand beach but one with a fearsome reputation.
I’d read reports and seen videos of the unpredictable sneaker waves which reach far up the shore with incredible power, and despite the warning signs some visitors have persisted in challenging nature. For some it has been a fatal mistake. Thankfully the waves were relatively mild on the day we were there, but they did cause several people to backtrack up the beach with great speed.
It is incredibly beautiful and with huge basalt columns, towering cliffs, sea stacks and powerful waves it is a place not to be missed.
And neither was our next destination, Skogafoss, one of the largest waterfalls in the country with a width to 25m and a drop of 60m. The sun had been absent all day so there were no rainbows, however, the thundering sound of the water cascading over the cliff’s edge and the drifting mist were enough to make anyone’s heart race. As were the tiny goat willow flowers lining the riverbank, taking photos of flowers has always been one of my passions.
We made a brief stop to take photos of Eyjafjallajokull, the volcano which, in 2010 decided to throw streams of ash 11km into the atmosphere thereby disrupting air travel over Western Europe for several days, before arriving at Seljalandsfoss.
Seljalandsfoss was a wonderful sight, dropping 65m over an ancient sea cliff and with a walkway behind it so you could view the world through a veil of water! Just as I was about to set off on this soggy venture the heavy clouds parted creating a deep blue sky and a rainbow which belonged in a story book. There were many “wow’s” of delight to be heard among the clicks of cameras with everyone jostling to get the best shot for their Icelandic album. Actually that’s a slight exaggeration as throughout the whole tour we were lucky enough not to have to deal with crowds of tourists. At times it seemed like we were the only ones on the road!
Not one to be put off by a little moisture I grabbed my raincoat and set off along the path. The ‘mist’ from the falls was more like a heavy rain and while my top half remained dry, my lower half got drenched.
But the path became uneven, the rocks slippery and with no protective rail I made a regretful decision not to risk life and limb and turned back. My balance, never good at the best of times hadn’t improved over the preceding days.
Within half an hour we had reached our hotel. Sadly, there was only one more full day before our journey’s end and it was to be spent travelling the Golden Circle where another waterfall, spouting geysers, a tomato farm and a walk between the tectonic plates awaited us.
Continue to » Iceland Tour, Day 7
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