Iceland #19 - Day 7: Rainy Drive to Stafafell

Day six was a complete write-off. I slept in late, woke up feeling quite rough - a little bit of a raised temperature, slightly groggy and headachey and tired. I had the usual coronavirus vs Garun hangover question, but think it was the beer - that stuff just doesn't agree with me any more. I didn't get the DSLR out once, or leave the cabin except to drive around the headland to go into Vík to try the burger at the Smiðjan Brugghús (which was delicious, as were the chips!). I looked out of the window often during the day, and could basically see nothing but rain and the wind blowing the grasses nearby. The cabin can be pretty noisy with wind bashing it, but it's nice and cosy, so a good place to hunker down and wait out the storm. Cars came and went, and I could see people battling the wind as they headed down to the beach. The benefit of having been to this spot on numerous occasions is that I didn't feel compelled to go and see it or take any photos, which would've been pointless and miserable.

So yes, my first ever day in Iceland where I didn't take a single photo (except for one on the iPhone of the burger!). It was so frustrating, as this was supposed to be my day to explore and hike up at Þakgil, a short drive away. Oh well, that is life.

Day seven was better, although it was still windy and rainy when I woke up (so no sunrise trip down to the beach either). I felt much better - no more headache, temperature normal, so didn't feel as if I had the 'rona! It was pretty foggy as I left, stopping for a quick chat with Raggi before heading off. In the day and a half that I'd been there the covid-19 situation had worsened, and they were about to bring in a new regulation whereby tourists visiting from most countries would be required to have a second test, 5 days after their first. It didn't apply to those - like me - who were already there, which was handy, as I didn't want to have to drive out of my way for a second test.

I set off in the drizzle, barely able to see the hillsides of Reynisfjall. When you know how stunning a landscape is it can be infuriating to see it covered up. As I turned right onto the pass around towards Vík there was a slight rise in the clouds. I noticed a motorcyclist that had come off the road, but wasn't hurt - not great driving conditions. I stopped a little further around the big bend to take a couple of shots of the mysterious looking landscape. It was miserable and wet, but atmospheric.

My plan for the day was to drive to Stafafell, stopping for some more food in Höfn, with stops at Lómagnúpur and Jökulsárlón along the way. I drove straight through Vík which seems to have more and more new buildings up on every visit (and no doubt some of the owners will sadly now be bankrupt...). I passed the turn-off up to Þakgil, the road heading off into the fog and murk. I passed the turn-off down to Hjörleifshöfði - could barely see the inselberg in the distance. I drove on and didn't stop again until I reached Foss á Siðu, where I usually stop for a quick snap.

It wasn't too windy, so the waterfall wasn't blowing sideways or upwards, as I've seen it before, but it was still pretty unpleasant with constant drizzle. I next stopped at a little parking area not far from the Fosshotel Núpar, thankful that there was a portaloo there (I suffer so much with a weak bladder, and much of my trips are spent trying to find somewhere to pee!!). The landscape there was pretty too.

I stopped again a little further down the road, as I noticed a couple of upward waterfalls above the turf-roofed houses as Núpsstaður.

Next stop was a brief one at Lómagnúpur, where the cloud had lifted a tiny bit for me, and I was almost able to make out the top. Almost.

To the east I noticed that there was a little break in the cloud cover, and I could just make out a tiny patch of sunshine on a distant glacier - it gave me a little hope for some better weather in my future!

As I got back into the car I noticed that I still had the key to the cottage at Reynisfjara - not the first time I've forgotten to give a door key back, and won't be the last. I was far too far away from there now to turn back, so I sent Raggi an email apologising and promising to pop it back on my return journey the following week. I hoped that he had a spare (he must do!).

I drove on, and stopped at one of the car-parks along the side of the road on the approach to Skaftafell, as there's wonderful views of various glaciers and mountains. I could see both Svínafellsjökull and Skaftafellsjökull; both looking wonderful. With the long lens I was even able to capture some of the detail of the craggy hillsides and glacial ice from there.

I continued on, glad to have some long-distance visibility and views of peaks, and took the left turn towards Svínafellsjökull, which I only visit every few years. I hadn't been since my birthday in Feb 2018, when it had been extremely glassy and slippery. I had thought of hiking around the moraine to the south side, but I could hear some noisy people along there and that put me off. Instead I just walked through the gate and hiked along the path overlooking the edge of the glacier. I was horrified to notice how much it had receded since my first visits. I remembered seeing a couple of guys hiking on the ice in the distance and then below me - now there was no way that you could hike to this side, as the ice no longer reached the side beneath me. I took a few shots of the dirty ice in the distance with the long lens, with no way to understand the size or scale, and then headed back to the car, feeling a little sad.

As I reached the car there were some wonderful undulating clouds overhead to the south-east; I love how quickly the sky changes in Iceland!

I stopped at the petrol station nearby, not having the usual burger on this occasion, since I'd had one the previous night, and I still had enough bread and cheese for my packed lunch instead. I tried to fill the car up, but for some reason it wouldn't allow me to put in enough to fill it up. I stupidly put my credit card back in my trouser pocket on my leg, instead of in the phone wallet (where it usually lived), being rather flustered by the whole not filling up experience, and off I went, next stop Jökulsárlón (yay!!).

As I approached my beloved Jökulsárlón the weather had deteriorated again, and was now raining again, with low cloud obscuring any mountains - wish it wasn't quite that changeable! I crossed the suspension bridge and drove down into the east car-park, got geared up, and headed down to the beach. The rain seemed to be coming in every direction, so it wasn't possible to just take shots away from the rain, which is usually the solution to shooting in crappy weather there! There weren't a huge number of icebergs on the beach, but generally I prefer it that way, so that I can concentrate on one or a group against the black sand and white waves. I wasn't very happy with either the conditions or compositional options, so I took a handful of shots before heading up to the lagoon on foot, under the bridge (I was actually more pleased when I reviewed and processed a couple than I initially thought!).

The lagoon was also murky and the drizzle wasn't letting up. I was surprised to see that the beach along the edge of the water was no longer there - the water level was obviously about a metre higher than it is in winter (or autumn, for that matter). As a result the options were to walk along the ridges overlooking the lagoon. There was a real mish-mash of icebergs in the lagoon, and I couldn't even see the glacier in the distance as visibility was so poor. There were some blue icebergs but my favourite was one that was rather dirty and looked like a bar of Toblerone, with jagged chunks.

I wandered back to the car, stopping to take one last shot with my iPhone. 

I got back to the car, and for some reason noticed that I didn't have my credit card. I checked every pocket about 5 times, and inside the car, under all the seats, etc... I walked back up to the spot where I'd taken the iPhone shot, as that was the first time I'd taken my phone out since the petrol station, hoping that maybe it had fallen out there. No sign of it anywhere. I got back to the car, checked inside the car yet again, and then phoned the petrol station to see if anyone had handed it in: definitely no sign of it anywhere. So I sat in the car, at the edge of Jökulsárlón beach, cancelling my nice credit card with no foreign transaction fees - grrrr! At least I had a couple of other cards, so wasn't stuck (always carry more than one!!).

I drove off, unbelievably annoyed with myself for being so careless, and headed towards Höfn, passing lots of favourite places (the tree line, the wonky tree) but not stopping until I got to the supermarket in the town centre. The new rules in place didn't make a great deal of difference - just had to use hand sanitiser on arrival at the shop. I know my way around the supermarket now, and picked up some salmon fillets, fresh salad leaves, tomatoes and avocados, and then off to the dairy section for some fresh milk and Skyr for cereal. And then I was back off in the car, and on the last bit of the journey towards my yellow cottage, my home away from home. As I left Höfn I noticed an old man with a sheepdog, who was dragging the man forward excitedly. I soon realised why - there was a puddle and as soon as the dog reached it he went mad, jumping around in the water like a puppy. It was an adorable sight; I smiled as I drove past, the man smiled back. I don't think this was the first time the dog had enjoyed such a simple, fun pleasure.

I continued on, with the weather still dire, with no visibility at all - no point making a detour to Stokksnes, as I wouldn't see a thing. I hoped that maybe coming out of the tunnel I'd suddenly be greeted to clearer skies, but alas no, still rubbish! 

I arrived at Stafafell and was greeted by Sigurdur and we chatted briefly about "the situation". He hadn't bothered to open the hostel this year, but had still had plenty of business in the cottages, which I was pleased to hear. I got to the cottage and took a shot on the iPhone to show how miserable the weather was before settling in and making myself some tea.

One benefit of travelling to Iceland in the summer is that the days are long, which gives you more opportunity to for the weather to change during the day. This, at least, is the hope on days like these! Sadly on this particular day the drizzle was set in, so I just had to lump it. The other benefit is that even if the weather's rubbish, there are still more hours of daylight in the day, so at 7pm off I went to Skútafoss, a little waterfall nearby that I've visited on a few occasions. On the way there, I noticed a police car parked at the Hrafnavellir guesthouse, which was strange - I'd never seen a police car on the stretch of road east of Höfn. I got to the waterfall and hiked up there, hoping that given that there was a cave at least I'd get some shots without having rain on the lens after every shot. The water was raging - far heavier than I'd seen this waterfall before. The turquoise stream of the waterfall and the pool into which it falls was still there. Above I could see little trickles of waterfalls coming out from the foggy hills.

I had to clamber over a few rocks to get into the cave, whereas usually the water level is lower and there's no barrier. I felt nervous that the water might be rising even higher, so kept a close eye on it while I was in there. It's a tricky spot to take photographs from, and when I set my tripod up I realised that the knob that tightened the panning mechanism had fallen off. This had happened in Costa Rica too, but I'd seen it lying by the car and tragedy was narrowly avoided. Not so lucky this time - the knob was most likely long gone (and I'd already checked under the car seats for the credit card and nothing had appeared). I could still use the tripod, just had to hold it steady, which kind of defeats the purpose of a tripod! 

After awkwardly trying a few shots in the cave I then headed up onto the rocks above, where I hadn't thought to photograph before. It was great to get a different perspective, but the rain was problematic, so I didn't last long.

The rain began to get heavier, so I called it a day, walking back down to the car. On the drive home I was interested to see that the police car was now in a lay-by near the guesthouse, waiting to nab speeding drivers going past. Fortunately I was driving less than 90kmph as it was so wet and miserable, but often I do go a little over that. There were so few tourists or locals on the road it seemed a little odd for them to be doing it, but then the penalties are quite good, so maybe it's worth it for a little extra police revenue...

I got back home and diced up and fried a chunk of the salmon and served it with salad and washed it down with two divine sour beers (especially the Dr. Schepsky's Passion Fruit Sour - divine!). 

The forecast for the following day was also poor, with more rain, or at least cloud cover all day. It wasn't windy at least, but still annoying. I had a full day there, so hoped to visit Stokksnes, Hvalnes and maybe Skútafoss again if the weather improved. I was also looking forward to the lovely swan lake, Lónsfjörður, although in this weather it was unlikely to be as amazing as usual.

Click here for my blog from Day 5 - Red Volcano and Dark Canyon
Click here for my blog from Day 8 - A Wet Day Around Stafafell

Iceland Nov 2015 - Day 2: from Vík to Jökulsárlón

I woke up to the sound of heavy wind and rain; not an uncommon occurrence. The view of the church on the hill opposite me could only just be seen through my rain-covered window (once it had got light). The winds were forecast to die down at around 10am, though, so at least the whole day wouldn't be too bad, and the drive wouldn't be dangerous.

Before packing up and heading off from the Guesthouse Carina, I had a delicious breakfast of a tasty waffle with maple syrup and bread with homemade rhubarb jam. I set off at about 9.30am, knowing the journey ahead pretty well by now. Sometimes when I can't sleep I picture it, trying to remember each landmark along the way until sleep gets the better of me. Today the landmarks were shrouded with mist and drizzle, with the tops of the hills hidden by low cloud; at least there was some contrast in the grey clouds from time to time. I drove without stopping much, given how nasty the drizzle was - and also given that I was rather excited to be returning to my beloved Jökulsárlón. I drove straight through Kirkjubæjarklaustur and didn't stop until I reached Foss á Siðu, the rather nice little waterfall that sometimes seems to flow upwards, when the wind catches it. I pulled off the road and caught it blowing to the side a bit, but the wind wasn't strong, so no upwards movement. 

Not far from there is my favourite Icelandic mountain - the mighty Lómagnúpur. I was actually surprised to be able to see it all, as the cloud was getting a little denser, but there she was, proudly jutting out of the land. Usually I drive along a small track that runs perpendicular to the road, and take a few shots of the mountain reflected in the ponds, but given how damp it was I pulled off the road before the track and just took a couple of quick snaps before racing back into the dry car and heading onwards.

The next stretch is pretty barren, particular when the weather's poor, so I just continued on until Skaftafell came into view. The glaciers that pour off the Vatnajökull were glowing brightly, in spite of ominous clouds above. I could just see the two waterfalls that I've passed in the Skaftafell park - including Svartifoss, but had no intention of visiting them today, in this weather.

I was making pretty good time, so I decided to take the little detour to Svínafellsjökull and see how it was looking. Unfortunately, I arrived at the same time as a shower hit, and the tops of the mountains weren't visible under the mist. There were a few other cars in the car-park, and I could see couples silhouetted against the glowing flow of ice. I took a few photos from the car (through the window between windscreen-wipes!) and drove back down the very pot-holed road, stopping to get a shot of the car against the rugged background.

I found out a few days later that on either that day or the next day two huge icebergs in the lagoon at Svínafellsjökull turned over (I watched a video on youtube) - so if I'd made the effort to get out of the car I might have witnessed the spectacle myself. Ho hum; being so close to Jökulsárlón made me just want to hurry away to the icy beach as quickly as possible.

And so I drove the final 65km to Jökulsárlón, feeling increasingly excited, wondering what I'd find on the beach. Would there be icebergs on both beaches? Would there be many, would they be small, big, interesting shapes? Would the tide be in and create beautiful trails over the bergs? The journey is pretty quick, in spite of a few windy sections and soon I passed the turn-off to Fjallsárlón and knew that I was close. I drove with the moraine on my left, knowing that the lagoon was hidden behind the dark mounds, clouds still obscuring any of the mountains behind the glacier. I saw the electricity pylons converge and then finally the two white structures of the small suspension bridge came into view. I actually had a few tears in my eyes as I trundled across the bridge and turned right towards the east beach. If I had to think of my one favourite place in the whole world (and I've been to some incredible places) then this would be my pick every time. It is just so special to me! Having said that, I parked up and looked down towards the sea, which was blocked by a massive clutter of icebergs and it didn't look that pretty! I got all geared up, picked a lens to take (the 24-70mm - my go-to lens) and my bag filled with filters, grabbed the heavy tripod and headed down towards the ice.

It was actually a little disappointing, for once, mainly because the beach was so cluttered full of bergs that it was impossible to get to the sea shore, picture any individual bergs, or really appreciate any of them individually. I did find a few that I rather liked, but none of them won the prize for "favourite iceberg"! I'd seen it like that once before, and it just made photographing it a little unsatisfactory. It was also drizzling slightly, although it was directional, so I managed to avoid getting the lens wet by photographing away from it (and also using the hood). I took a few close-ups of the detail in the ice, which can be wonderful.

The sun began to break through and there was some break in the clouds to the north, so I headed across the road and the bridge to see how the lagoon was looking from the west side of the river. It had fewer icebergs than I'd seen before, although there was some large ones near the shore (which would be washed up on the beach in smaller bergs over the next few days or weeks, presumably). As I arrived the cloud and fog began to lift from the tops of some of the mountains behind the glacier. Visitors on the hill were silhouetted, often taking selfies using selfie sticks, and looking ridiculous.

I decided to head across to the other side of the bridge just as the wind began to increase. In just a few minutes the weather had changed from fairly calm to gale-force gusts! A man had set up a time-lapse a couple of minutes earlier and had to abandon, as the tripod wasn't strong enough versus the wind.

I parked on the other side overlooking the lagoon and a shower battered the windows. My view was obscured, but there was no way I was going out in that. I was amazed to watch a man struggling along the shore wearing jeans. Seriously, the amount of people I see in Iceland wearing jeans is just astounding. Have these people never experienced wet jeans before??!

The rain finally stopped and the storm clouds moved on, but the gusty winds prevailed. I took one last shot before heading off to my lovely little refuge nearby, Hali.

As always, the forecast was for wind, rain and 100% cloud-cover overnight, and there were no northern lights forecast either, although this didn't stop me checking the forecasts every five minutes. I chatted to a friendly Taiwanese guy as I ate my pasta and later on did the usual Skyping home and enjoying a couple of nice Icelandic beers. I set my alarm early enough to be up a couple of hours before sunrise, in case of nice morning skies on the beach and had a nice early night and long sleep, happy to be back in this part of the world, that has somehow become my spiritual home.

Click here for my blog from Day 1 - From Keflavík to Vík

Click here for my blog from Day 3 - Just Jökulsárlón