Iceland #14 - Day 10: Vík to Álftanes

I slept better than expected, given that there were gail-force winds and heavy snow outside all night. My room was on the ground floor of the guesthouse, and I woke up hoping for a view of the blowing snow outside. Instead, as I opened the curtains the room didn't get much lighter as a snow-drift was covering my window.

iPhoneSE view of my window

I got dressed and went upstairs for breakfast, where there was a better view of the storm, although still some on the windows. The storm was still going strong. The sky was dark, a snow-drift covered a fair amount of all the cars parked outside, and the wind howled. Fortunately the place was well-insulated. I sat around for a while, checking the road website every five or ten minutes. Unlike the forecast sites, this actually gave updates on the wind speeds at various sites every ten minutes. The roads were all closed along the southern ring-road. At 9.41am a gust of 52 m/s (116 mph!!) was recorded at Steinar (where my beloved rocks are), although around Vik it was only max gusts of 30m/s (a calm 67mph...).

Screenshot from the very useful road.is

I wasn't going anywhere for a while. I didn't have too far to go (180km), but with the roads closed I just had to sit and wait, and even once they'd opened (if they did!), it'd still be slow-going.

To my surprise, other guests began to leave at around 10am. The roads were still closed, and the wind speeds were generally between 16 and 22m/s along the local stretch of road, but obviously with higher gusts. I didn't know if there were any physical barriers along this stretch of road, but I thought people were very reckless setting off already. The car-park was almost empty by 11am. I went upstairs a little later to get some tea and was surprised to hear "Sophie?!" - I looked round and it was a guy that sat behind me at the job that I'd just left the week before. I'd remembered him talking about Iceland ages before, but to be in the same guesthouse at the same time was a massive coincidence. Also, I hadn't seen him the previous night, or earlier at breakfast, so might have easily missed each other altogether and never known of the coincidence.

Just before midday I went outside to take a few shots - the sky was foreboding but beautiful. It was bitterly cold, especially when one of those gusts came along.

My window was the middle one at the bottom!

It would've been nice to just enjoy the storm and walk around the local area a little, but I did have to leave at some point. I began to get a bit worried about timing as I wanted to be at Sigrún's for 6pm (for supper (!) and before it got too dark) and had hoped to pop into my jewellers beforehand. The latter was looking very unlikely.

Finally at 1pm I made the decision to leave, even though the road was still closed according to road.is; a few cars were now passing by in each direction. The wind speeds were still around 15m/s, but the gusts had come down to around 22m/s. Given that the guesthouse was almost directly opposite the road to Dyrholaey I decided to head down there, to see if I could get any views. The conditions were fine until about half way to the car-park a snow-drift blocked the whole road. I could have tried to drive across it, but being alone it would have been a foolhardy thing to do (no-one to help push me if I got stuck). It also didn't bode well for the rest of the journey to the shore. There was a nice enough view from there and some stunning light in the sky, so I took a few photos before heading back up to the main road and started my journey westwards.

I stopped shortly afterwards as I approached Petursey - the light on the horizon still magical.

Not far after that I pulled in at the almost-empty parking lot for the walk down to the crashed DC3. A couple were heading down there on foot - not the brightest idea, given that the weather could easily get a lot worse very quickly; at least the trail appeared to be marked with yellow way-markers. A raven posed on a fence post for me.

The road wasn't too bad, as the wind had blown most of the loose snow away, so there weren't too many drifts blowing across the road. There were a few cars on the road, but not many. I wasn't caught by any gusts, and the snow storms seemed to be staying to my south. My next stop was rather magical. I've visited Skógafoss on many occasions, and driven past it on more, not bothering to stop. Sometimes it can just look a bit meh, with the water grey, the skies white and the whole place over-crowded. This time, however, I took the turn-off as I thought the surrounds would be snow-covered; I was right. The hillsides were covered in enormous icicles, which themselves were covered in snow. The waterfall still powered on down to the little trickle of river, and visitors came and went, marvelling in this spectacular sight. I took a few shots with the telephoto zoom, which is all I left the car with initially.

After about 20 minutes I went back to the car to get another lens, as I wanted to capture a wider view. It was just wonderful!

As I left, I noticed two Japanese women doing a little photo shoot - I loved the woman's traditional dress, with her skirt layers blowing in the wind. She must have been bloody freezing!

I dragged myself away, next stop Steinar, where fortunately the 52 m/s winds had most definitely died down! Once again I found some stunning light to the south, with snow showers almost obscuring Vestmannæyjar. In spite of the havoc it wreaks, big storms certainly provide some wonderful drama in the skies.

The cloud obscured the islands as I headed down to the shoreline to my favourite rocks. As I approached the frozen water a flock of geese flew up and across the ice, landing a little further along the shore.

The rocks looked striking in the icy waters, and as I was there a break in the cloud revealed some blue sky and the sun even came out briefly. Yup, I love these stormy days and the variety of weather that they bring!

My next stop - and what turned out to be my last - was down the road towards the ferry to the islands. I drove a little way down until I found a decent enough viewpoint. I'd never driven down that road before and it was completely empty (the main road was now relatively busy). I got a magnificent view of the islands again now the weather was giving breaks in the clouds and storms.

To the east I could see the huge storm clouds, and sun illuminated patches of the hillsides.

And if I looked to the north I could see the infamous Eyjafjallajökull and just make out Seljalandsfoss waterfall. It was pretty stunning and if sunset hadn't been so damned early I might've stayed a little longer and explored the views further down the road.

As it was it was already getting late, so I headed onwards, with the last part of the journey ahead of me. I had a slight worry that the road from Hveragerði to Reykjavik might be closed (it was still showing as closed when I checked every time I stopped), but I hoped that it might have miraculously opened by the time I arrived.

The rest of the journey to Hveragerði was uneventful, with the sun now out in between lighter clouds; the worst of the storms appeared to be behind me (or to the south still). I arrived at the foot of the big hill at 4.45pm, so I'd still have time to make it back in time for a 6pm supper, but lo-and-behold, the road was still closed.

iPhoneSE shot of the damned closed road!

I parked at the petrol station at the roundabout, as did everyone else, and wandered up to check with the police. I asked the same question as everyone else: any idea what time the road might open. The guy was friendly and just shrugged, as he had been doing all day. It might open soon or it might not. I had two options: sit it out and wait, or take a rather long detour via the south coast and Reykjanes peninsula to wind my way back to Álftanes. I took the latter option, thinking that the road might not open for hours and I'd just be stuck there. I made the right decision: I checked later in the evening and the pass was still not open. The journey along the south coast was a pleasant one, although it's nicer when there's nothing else on the road. It added 75km to the journey, which was obviously annoying, and all hopes of nipping into Orr were gone, but I didn't end up arriving for dinner too late. As always I had a lovely welcome (and dinner!) from Sigrún and family (including the adorable Jökull the cat).

iPhoneSE shot of the most adorable cat ever!

I told them all about my trip, and heard that they'd both had bad flu while I was away; thankfully they were both better, and also thankfully I hadn't caught it, as that wouldn't be very convenient for a road trip (I had it a month later instead, where it also wasn't very convenient as I'd just started a new job!).  I did my least favourite job of the whole trip - repacking the backpack (trying to fit in the tripod, and beer I hadn't drunk inside boots) and had an early night. My last day would involve a trip to Orr, driving to the airport, and the flight home.

Click here for my blog from Day 9: Jökulsárlón to Vík
Click here for my pictures from the flight home

Iceland #13 - Day 8: A Little Bit of Golden Circle, South Coast, Sunset, and Northern Lights!

I had an ambitious day planned for us on Day 8 of my 13th Icelandic trip, hoping to show Mandy and Mav some of the country's great highlights. Here's what I had listed on my planning spreadsheet: Orr, Nesjavellir (Ion), Kerið, Skogafoss, Dyrholaey, Reynisfjara, Vík, Seljavellalaug, Seljalandsfoss, ending the day at The Garage in Varmahlið to stay (and hopefully see northern lights). We didn't do badly, but certainly didn't end up visiting all of those places!

I woke up at around 8.30am (again, not enough sleep), and nipped out to a supermarket to get some milk and Skyr to have with the granola. We had breakfast, packed up, and headed out on foot to visit Orr, putting enough money in the meter for about an hour. That should do it, or so I thought. We did a bit of window-shopping on the way, the sun shining down on us. Always nice when the sun appears in downtown Reykjavík. We arrived at the shop at 10 o'clock on the dot, and the lovely Heiða was a little late again, but this gave us time to check out all the rings on display in the window. It's always lovely to return, and feast my eyes on the unique silver pieces again, picking out a new treat for myself. I was pleased that both Mandy and Mav each found themselves something, and I picked a silver ring which Mandy also chose. I'd also brought with me one of my earlier purchases (another ring) to resize, as it was slightly too small and felt as if it would give me a nasty knuckle on my right ring finger. Mandy also chose a ring that was a little too small, so Heiða said she would get them enlarged the following day and that she'd come and open up for us before we departed for the airport on Sunday morning (they're usually closed). I became a bit panicky about the car parking situation, as the ticket would be running out and I didn't want a parking fine. I paid for my ring, got the VAT receipt (very important!) and ran back with Mav to the car to put another 20 minutes in. This was enough time for us to pack up the car and nip up to a lovely coffee shop to get some coffee to take with us.

And finally we were off, heading back towards route 1, first destination the Ion Luxury Adventure Hotel. When I drove along the 435 a couple of years earlier I vowed to drive along it again. It's such a cool road, firstly driving uphill in a straight line alongside a huge geothermal pipeline, before crossing some wonderful hilly bits, before coming over to the view down to the steamy hillsides of the Nesjavellir power station, with the lakes and mountains around Þingvellir in front of you. We took the right turn, driving alongside the river, the steam backlit in the morning sun. We arrived at the hotel at just before midday and asked if we could have a look at the Northern Lights Bar, which had been out-of-bounds on my last trip as there was a work conference group in there. Nothing to stop us this time, and we headed down the dark corridors and then came out into the fantastic room. You arrive at the upper level, overlooking the whole of the bar - it really is an incredible space!

We headed downstairs and decided it would be a lovely spot for a beer, given that it was midday. Some staff were showing a couple of guests around and when they left we asked if we could get a drink. They headed off and appeared a few minutes later with some glasses, poured us some Einstök white pale ale and we sat by the window of the beautiful room, enjoying the view and the beer, the sun pouring on us through the window...

*iPhoneSE selfie shot

We had a look at the hot pool down below, took a few more photos, then headed on our way, the sun now being hidden behind some patchy clouds.

We stopped along the road to take a long-distance shot of the hotel and the steamy river on the other side. One day I'll treat myself and stay in the hotel for a couple of nights (maybe if the pound ever recovers a bit)...

We drove onwards, a little later than planned, and had a quick stop at the delightful church at Ulfjlotsvatn, which looked so pretty in the sun that had returned briefly.

Next stop was Kerið, where I thought a quick walk along the crater rim would be good to get our legs moving a bit. It was quite busy, as it had been when I visited in winter, and the path down to the water's edge was open. We walked around the rim, stopping for a few photos. I never seem to go there when the light is right - always too harsh!

We were all pretty hungry so stopped in Selfoss for lunch. Having free data on the phone makes things like this so much easier - as I drove Mandy looked up on Tripadvisor for a good restaurant. We crossed the bridge and parked in town. We had a tasty fish soup at the Tryggvaskáli restaurant before picking up some bits and pieces for dinner at the supermarket next door. Never seen frozen avocado before...

By the time we left Selfoss it was already 3.15pm - my timing wasn't going according to plan at all! The clouds had mainly disappeared and it was lovely to drive along the south coast in such pleasant conditions, past the fields dotted with sheep and bright plastic covered hay-bales. We drove on through the little towns and villages, passing by Seljalandsfoss, and didn't stop again until we reached The Garage - thought we might as well check in and drop off the groceries. It was a lovely place and we chose The Henhouse (Mav preferred the main house, but Mands and I thought that apartment would be a bit more secluded). The setting was lovely, situated under green slopes and craggy peaks, with a small waterfall directly above.

*iPhoneSE shot

After unpacking we drove the short distance to Skógafoss. The sun was out, so there was a good chance of a rainbow (you can't see that from the road - only once you get closer). As expected it was extremely packed, but people come and go and never stay that long. I actually think the colours of everyone's rain jackets nicely complements the rainbow! We didn't stay long either, just took a few pictures of the waterfall and rainbow, not going close enough to get wet from the spray.

It was 5.15pm by the time we set off again, and although sunset wasn't until just after 8pm, we certainly weren't going to have time to do and see all I wanted to. We drove up the windy road to the lighthouse at Dyrhólaey and wandered along the cliff's edge to see the arches (where a photography group were locked tripod to tripod, blocking the view with the best angle for anyone else - one photographer had two set up side-by-side, which is just damn rude when it's such a popular spot!).

A couple were having some wedding photos taken - an increasingly more common activity I've noticed. I did like the way the woman's dress looked with the sun behind.

I also became a bit obsessed with a Japanese couple who were on the other side of one of the safety barriers, at the edge of the cliff, looking out to the west. The woman wore all white, except for bright yellow wellies. She looked pretty adorable, her sleeves billowing like the bride's dress in the wind.

The view from that spot is truly spectacular, with waves continuously lapping against the long expanse of black sand snaking off to the west (the wrecked DC3 is just visible in photos if it's super-clear), craggy green mountains nearby, with the ice sheet of Myrdalsjökull to the north.

The light was becoming a little golden hour-ish, but I didn't want to stay in that spot for the rest of the evening, so we continued on to the other end of the Dyrhólaey peninsula. Wow how it's changed!! Where before a few cars parked at the circle near the beach and overlook to the big rock below, now there was a huge new car-park built before you reach the circle, with a new building too (a visitors' centre, I imagine, not yet opened).

The views haven't changed though...

It was decision time - drive on to Reynisfjara, with all the crowds, Vík beach on the other side of the headland, Seljavallalaug, or back to Seljalandsfoss. Given that the weather was so good, I decided that we should go back to the waterfall - it would be my first time trying to capture the sunset from behind the falls. We drove back to the Garage and picked up our waterproofs, and a couple of cold beers to enjoy at the falls, before driving the short distance back there. The others decided to give walking behind the falls a miss, but I continued on with the plan, head-to-toe in waterproofs, lugging my tripod through the wet spray up the staircase to the right of the waterfall, to join the crowds of photographers already there. I'd done this walk before, on my second visit in the winter, when the spray wasn't quite so bad (and I was the only one there), but this time it was far wetter. The view was pretty spectacular, with the setting sun reflecting on the constantly-falling stream of water above and illuminating the cliffs above.

I walked along the path, trying a few different angles. It was so wet!

I had three tiny cloths in my pocket and used them to wipe the screen before each shot. Some of the shots - because I was using the wide-angle lens - had me in them as I moved out of the way! Fail.

The cloths became soaked pretty quickly, and soon I was trying to wipe the lens with wet cloths - which didn't work at all. I was also being rained on in some spots from big drips from the cliff above.

I was so panicked about getting the sun before it set that I forgot that I had my bag on my back, with more dry cloths in the outside pocket. I did remember that my gloves were in my jacket pocket, so was able to take a few more dry shots. For some of the shots it was just a question of having to crop out the splodges.

As the sun disappeared behind the horizon I took my last few shots before heading back. As I descended the steps (the wettest bit) I was behind a really slow woman who was taking one step at a time.

The others had enjoyed their beers in the setting sun, all nice and dry. I took off my wet gear and had a few sips of beer before driving back to the apartment.

The forecast for northern lights was looking very promising, apart from one major factor - a nearly-full moon. We had a couple of drinks, sitting on the terrace, waiting for it to get dark. Mandy then prepared the most delicious dinner - a large salmon fillet with potatoes and a tomato and mozzarella salad (sitting on a selection of lettuce grown by the fantastic owner, Anna). I kept nipping outside every few minutes to check on the lights situation. There were a couple of really bright outside lights - on the owners' house, and on the main building, so we knocked on their door to ask if they could turn them off. Soon there was near darkness. The first vague hint of aurora appeared, at about the same time that the moon began rising above the hillside behind us to the east. For a few minutes we were suddenly treated to an aurora display, so I took a few photos, knocked on the neighbours in one of the other apartments, and then we enjoyed the brief show. As the moon rose, the lights became fainter. I kept on trying a few shots to see if there were any more lights more visible to a long exposure, but it was fairly useless. The Kp scale and all of the other measures were really good for a fantastic display, but we could see almost nothing, the moon possibly ruining everything (I have seen them with a moon before, though, so maybe they had just shown up somewhere else!).

It wasn't the best display I'd ever seen, but it was pretty impressive for a few minutes, and least the girls got to witness it, if only briefly (better than on my last trip with friends where they sadly didn't get to see anything at all - sorry Scott, Byron & Murray!!).

Mav crashed out quite early, whilst Mandy and I stayed up talking for ages, me popping out again on lights watch (the moon was up and bright, so no chance).

It had been a long day, and we didn't get to bed until past 1.30am. We'd fit in a fair bit, but had had to miss out on a few sights - Reynisfjara the one I was most disappointed about, as it's such a cool beach (well, it's the basalt columns I love the most). We planned to visit the hot pool at Seljavallalaug the following morning before setting off into the Golden Circle, so finally went to bed, setting the alarm for 8.30am.

Click here to see the blog from Day 7 - Hiking to Glymur
Click here to see the blog from Day 9 & 10 - Hot Pools and Other Goodies (& home)