"Land of Fire and Ice"

As I mentioned in prior posts, snow has been a bit hard to come by in Leicester so my friends and I had to travel a bit to find some. In January a group of us travelled to Iceland, known as the land of Fire and Ice due to its volatile volcanic and glacial landscape. We planned the trip several months in advance so we picked the weekend of a new moon to increase our chances of seeing the Northern Lights. There were many areas of the country we were hoping to see, so we decided to rent a camper van while we were there to maximize our mobility and flexibility.

As is often the case flying budget airlines, we got a very early start and were lucky enough to catch the sunrise both in London and Keflavik. The start of the day was much brighter over the UK (right) than Iceland, which was rather gray and rainy throughout our first day there.

After landing, we took the shuttle to pick up our van. Once we signed all the paperwork and stocked up on groceries we hit the road and headed to our first destination, a geothermal spa called Blue Lagoon due to its iconic color.

The water appears so blue due to the high silica content. After a long, chilly and rainy travel day it was lovely to soak in the warm water and enjoy some pampering, including a wet and dry sauna, mud masks, and sparkling wine. I also had a quick, refreshing roll in the snow bordering the hot spring. We soaked for many hours before rolling out.

At this time of year, daylight is very limited in Iceland (as you may be familiar). While we were there, we had about 6 hours between sunrise and sunset- roughly 10 am to 4 pm every day. As a result, we wanted to drive as much as possible in the dark so we could do more sightseeing during the day. Most of the destinations we were aiming to see were along the south coast, so we planned to drive as far East as possible along the southern ring road that first night and work our way back the following days.

We drove a few hours before stopping to cook dinner in a parking lot, then continued on for several more to reach a campground near Skaftafell along the southeastern edge of the Vatnajökull National Park quite late. The weather made the drive exciting to say the least, as the rain continued and there was a good amount of fog or something which seemed much more like low-hanging clouds blowing across the road.

Luckily, when we woke up the next morning, the rain had paused a bit and the skies were much clearer. For our second day, we booked a guided tour of the Skaftafell glacier. We met at the outfitter before sunrise to collect the appropriate gear (crampons, spikes, picks, helmets and headlamps) before driving to the trailhead. As we approached the base of the glacier, the sky was beginning to lighten which brought out the impressive colors of the surrounding landscape. Along the shore of the glacial lagoon, the guides told us a bit about the history of the area and pointed out the route we would take onto the glacier. The landscape was surprisingly lively: as we talked, we heard several rocks tumble down the face opposite us and the guides pointed out a fountain of muddy water pouring from the base of the glacier into the lagoon which was apparently a new development that morning.

We continued across a bridge and upward for a few minutes before stopping again to don our crampons and receive a quick lesson on walking with them, as well as how to best use the pick if necessary.

Walking across the ice was breathtaking. The ice itself was surprisingly colorful, largely due to the air trapped within it. Apparently, in different lighting it appears to take on different hues since the color depends on the light reflecting back to you. When we were there, it was gray and dim so the ice looked white and blue. On sunny days it looks more white and black, whereas at sunrise or sunset when the sky is more orange the ice can look green.

It was also very interesting to hear about its history. Our guides estimated that the part we were walking on was anywhere from 80 to about 200 years old. Especially due to the rain the prior day there was a lot of water running down the surface of the ice, and it was so impressive to see the different routes it chose to take on its quest downward: sometimes it carved channels into the ice, other times it tunneled practically vertically downward (forming a sort of pit called a 'moulin'). Unfortunately, the melting has noticeably accelerated in recent years. As we climbed higher, the guides pointed out the parking lot where we'd left our van.

Back in 2000, they said, the glacier used to extend to that point. (If you're interested in seeing some of these changes in action I highly recommend the documentary Chasing Ice, parts of which were filmed in Iceland not far from where we were! It was released in 2012 but still impressive.) Getting higher up on the glacier, we also got to see a portion which was very uneven and seemed to undulate, as if the surface was a snapshot of ocean waves.

Shortly after, we neared the point were we needed to turn around and stopped to take some fun photos as a group and drink water directly from the surface of the glacier. The guides thought our creativity and poses were hilarious!!

As we turned around, the clouds receded a bit more and we got a glimpse of the higher region of the glacier, riddled with ridges and crevasses.

As we walked down and chatted with the guides, we also got some recommendations of things to check out later on in our trip (Stay tuned for Svartifoss and ice cream...)

Once we reached the base again, some clouds had rolled in and it had started to rain again. To make the most of the day, we decided to grab a quick snack and head right back toward the campground to hike to one of the iconic waterfalls nearby and pass several others on the way.

Although the day was gray and rainy, the colors of the landscape were incredibly vibrant. Reds, greens, and yellows stood out beautifully in contrast to the white water and ice and black soil and rocks.

I thought the crystalline ice along the river was beautiful as well, polished and made clear in the rushing water.

The rock formations around Svartifoss offer great examples of hexagonal basalt columns. We learned that when lava made largely of basalt, it forms geometric patterns when it cools which is super interesting!

We saw similar columns in different areas throughout the rest of our trip as well.

Their perfect geometric shape were always amazing to see! In some areas it seemed like the stones had been cut or formed to that shape, really incredible to know they had formed that way naturally.

Despite a bit more rain, we had a lot of fun on the hike, enjoying the scenery and each others' company.

As we descended back toward the parking lot, the sky cleared and the sun nearly came out.

We were even able to spot a bit the glacier we had hiked on earlier in the day.

After we got back to the van, we did a bit of housekeeping before continuing on. Luckily, the campsite had a dryer so while we made some sandwiches, refilled our water, and washed dishes we were also able to dry out our layers, which were quite soggy due to the intermittent rain throughout the day.

Our next stop was a few hours away, and luckily we managed to make it before the last dusky light faded from the sky. We had a few sights near Kirkjubæjarklaustur (just Klaustur to the locals) picked out, and we needed some gas as well. First up was Dverghamrar Cliffs, a columnar basalt formation jutting up from the rolling hills. It is also known as the 'Dwarf Rocks' which refers to a local legend where a shepherd passing the rocks heard singing, but found no one nearby-- obvious answer, dwarves who lived in the rocks were singing.

All kidding aside, with the beautiful yet volatile landscape it is easy to see it as rather mystical and understand how this place inspired such rich folklore as well. The geometric columns of the formation were fantastic to explore, we had a lot of fun although some snowballs did fly before we made it back to the van.

There was a quick drive toward the city centre and then we made a quick stop to see Systrafoss (the sister falls) before heading on. This stop didn't end up being the best of our trip, but it was certainly an adventure. The brief trail to the base of the falls was icy and very slippery, and a few of our group fell or very nearly did. Additionally, we learned that witches are a part of Icelandic Christmas lore: for those of us who made it up the trail, we were greeted by a horrifying effigy of what I think was Grýla the Christmas witch who kidnaps and devours naughty children.

And after that ordeal, the falls were fully frozen over so they were a bit hard to spot. Needless to say, we got back to the van and on the road very quickly.

After a few more hours, we reached our campsite near another iconic waterfall which we couldn't fully appreciate until the next morning thanks to the cloudy, moonless night. We cooked dinner before calling it a night to prepare for a jam-packed final full day on the island.

Overnight, the wind picked up. It gets intensely strong in Iceland: on the glacier hike, our guides told us about a storm which blew in over Christmas that picked up and threw rocks bigger than grapefruits. By morning, it was clear that our van was parked perpendicular to the wind, as it was not only very noisy but also slightly rocking back and forth. Wind is actually one of the biggest hazards with respect to damaging the camper van, which is why the rental company advised us to park facing into the wind whenever possible to avoid the wind catching the door and flinging it open.

We started the day a bit late to give the wind a chance to calm down before getting on the road, which was easy to do since the first stop we wanted to make was just outside our parking spot: Skogafoss, the waterfall I mentioned. It was super impressive, and the strength of the wind was clear since at times it made the falls seem to defy gravity and start to go backwards.

Once we got moving and checked that the roads were safe, we headed to the black sand beach, Reynisfjara in Vik.

Especially due to the wind, the surf was pretty extreme and impressive. One of my friends lost his beanie to the wind and the waves (you might be able to spot one changing from red in earlier photos to blue from now on...)

Along the beach, there were more basalt columns as well:

The waves had worn away a cave in one area, which was really cool to explore. At the edges, pieces of the rock were loose and falling away from the wall.

After exploring the beach, we climbed up above the cave and slid down the packed snow covering the steep slope.

The next place we stopped was another waterfall called Kvernufoss, not far from Skogafoss. On the hike in we passed a group of Icelandic horses across the river, which are a precious, protected animal in Iceland.

We approached the waterfall through a canyon, which acted sort of like a wind tunnel and made the walk in much more exciting. Nearer the waterfall, water blown from it covered the grass, rocks, and everything in a thin layer of ice which made it a bit treacherous but very beautiful.

Next stop was another waterfall, Seljalandsfoss, just off the road back to Reykjavik. It was a quick stop to take a look before we continued on to Kerid Crater, nearer the popular Golden Circle area. We had barely any daylight left when we arrived, but it looked really impressive with the snow, bright rocks, and iced over lake in the center of it.

Since it was sunset, the sky took on some really pretty colors. We did a bit more sliding down the crater and walked around the edge a bit before stopping back at Selfoss.

The town was very cute, with loads of fairy lights and (even better) ice cream!! We got to follow our guides' recommendation and try the creamy ice cream with some delicious toppings. It was pretty delicious.

Since dark had fallen, we drove for a few hours to check out some final sights before leaving the next morning. The first spot was a hot spring called Gunnuhver-- we could really only see the steam coming off it but it was still impressive and we could at least use the flashlights to read a bit about the legend of Gunna, the ghost of the spring. Somehow we had a knack for discovering haunted parts of the island after dark (remember Gryla?)

Gunnuhver is on part of the island known as the Reykjanes peninsula which is really near the sea. We continued on a bit to park near a lighthouse landmark to make dinner and play some games. The sky had cleared up that night, we could see the stars and we were periodically checking for the northern lights but didn't see much.

Later on, we kept hearing trucks drive past us toward the beach so we drove down there as well before heading out. Once we got there, we saw a tour bus and loads of people staring up at the sky. It was only for five or ten minutes, but we were finally able to catch the northern lights!! They were hard to see unless you took a long exposure photo, and then you could catch a slight ribbon of green across the sky.

After the light faded, we drove back to Keflavik to camp at the van rental place overnight and make the early morning drop off easier. It was only an hour or so trip and, luckily, we slept a few hours more than that before packing up and taking our shuttle back to the airport. With five people, we were quite cozy in the van throughout the long weekend, as you can see:

The trip was very eventful, and we were definitely exhausted by the time we boarded the plane home. As we flew out, we passed over the Blue Lagoon and the Reykjanes Peninsula- it was cool to be able to spot some of the landmarks that shaped our experience on the way out.

Even with very little daylight, we accomplished a lot and were lucky enough to see nearly all the sights and places we had planned to. I wouldn't hesitate to return to Iceland to see more, or see it in a different season- it was a phenomenal experience!