Iceland 2014 - Day 3: From Höfn to Jökulsárlón - Rain, Rain and More Rain

Today's blog is a very short one. Sadly the weather today has been absolutely appalling - probably the worst day I've ever had in Iceland (and I've had some bad days before!). The rain has fallen all day, accompanied by strong, cold winds, and visibility has been limited, the mountains only just seen beneath the cloaks of cloud and fog. Occasionally there was a small amount of contrast in the sky, but generally it's been grey and wet.

The drive from Höfn to Hali, where I'm staying (13km from Jökulsárlón) was a quick one with very little to see along the way. There was no point in returning to Stokksnes to revisit Vesturhorn as the conditions when I left were awful. I did stop a couple of times along the way, which lifted my spirits temporarily!

Apart from those two stops, it was straight to Hali, check-in (got a bigger, better room this year, with a view of the mountains too!), and then on to Jökulsárlón to see if there was any chance of capturing the icebergs on the beach.

There were icebergs on both sides of the river this year, but I stopped before the bridge and re-dressed in all my waterproof gear. Apart from the gloves, it turned out to be sufficient to protect me from the rain and spray. The next car problem then happened - the remote control for the car stopped working, so I had to lock the car with the manual key, and hope that the remote worked to start the car when I returned (fortunately it did, but has been temperamental ever since).

Unfortunately the wind was coming in from the sea, bringing with it endless spray and the now heavy rain. The hood for my lens managed to protect the lens from the water for about 2 seconds. I tried to clean it with a microfibre cloth, but it just smeared the salty water around the filter. I managed a few long exposure shots before the water got the better of the filter, before trying a few with the lens naked. Within a few shots there was water on the front of the lens, so I finally gave up.

Here is the view from my room; this was taken at "sunset". The weather forecast for tomorrow is much better - sunny from 9ish, so hopefully I'll have a bit more luck and get some lovely iceberg shots that I'm so obsessed with taking! The sun should be back too.

Click here for blog from Day 2b
Click here for Day 4a blog