Ring Road Day 6-Varmahlio to Selfoss...

Today is the 6th and next to last day on our tour. We are driving through the highlands through the heart of western Iceland. There will be little to stop and see on the way, mostly rocks and mountains. We left our guesthouse just before 9:00 AM under a promising sky, maybe no rain today.

At first we pass through lush landscape but when we turn onto 35, (Kjolur highland road), the road turns to gravel and the landscape becomes rugged. Driving anything less than a 4 wheel drive would have been difficult!

Cold winds blow into the back of our car so we constantly pass through the dust we just kicked up. As the morning progresses, the sun warms the car, the temperature reaches 20 C and we are sweating. Was it just yesterday we wished for warmer weather? The car has no air conditioning and with the wind and dust, we can't roll down the windows. Road conditions keep our speed below 50 km.

A car kicking up dust in front of us

Steep snow and glacier covered mountains rise to the east and west, breaking up the starkness of the land. We pass a runner with a small backpack (no support vehicle in sight) and a bicyclist pulling a gear trailer. We cringe as we pass, knowing each is forced to eat our dust.The road is not wide enough for two cars much less the tourist buses that blow by us at top speed so John pulls the car to the side of the road more frequently than we would have expected in the backcountry. We are neither in a hurry or feeling particularly aggressive so we don't mind. One stop required the opening and closing of a gate. Property boundaries we think.

Will closing the gate

Our car showing the effects of hours driving through the dust

173 km after turning onto Highway 35, we finally hit pavement again. We have been traveling on gravel for 5 1/2 hours. Just down the paved road, we turn into the parking lot for Gullfoss (Golden Falls), one of the most beautiful and best known waterfalls in Iceland. Two cascades (32 meters) make up Gullfoss followed by a long , steep walled canyon. Gullfoss makes up one point of the Golden Triangle (Gullfoss, Geysir geyser and Thingvellir national park), the most visited tourist sites outside of Reykjavik.

After the falls, we move on to an equally impressive site, Geysir . One of the most famous spouting hot water springs, Geysir is the source of the English work "geyser". Geysir is believed to have first spouted in the 13th century but stopped at the beginning of the 20th century when it was found to be mostly blocked. It is believed that tourists trying to activate the geyser, threw rocks and turf in the spring. Geysir was reawakened in 1935 but spouts only infrequently (sometimes to 60 m high).

Several hot water springs are close to Geysir, including Stokkur which spouts with great frequency (every 5-10 minutes)...

Our last stop before wrapping up the day is Skalholt, a farm, a church and the seat of bishops between 1056-1796. Skalhot is the site of the beheading of the last Catholic bishop, Jon Arason, along with 2 of his sons (1550). The area southwest of the church is in the process of an archaeology dig to uncover the old structures and to discover a bit about the culture.

The current cathedral is relatively new and is decorated with important works by Icelandic artists including incredible stained glass windows.

We located our guest house for the night after some effort. Hestakrain (farm # 684) is located in southwest Iceland with a Selfoss address. We are a little confused over the address and we expect the guest house to be in Selfoss but it turns out that the name Selfoss covers a region and our lodging is 18 km outside of town. We should have known this, with the exception of the hotel at Lake Myvatn, all of our lodging has been located in the countryside.

Hestakrain is a stable converted to a guest house. Our rooms are about average for the trip although this farm is listed as a Category IV (highest on the list) by Icelandic Farm Holidays.

John and I decide to stay at the guest house for another delicious dinner of Arctic Char, while Will and Kim choose to drive 1.5 hours (for lobster). After dinner, we are not sleepy so we walk for several miles, talking about the many places we have visited on this trip and enjoying the sunset. All in all, it was a very pleasant last night on the road.

Ring Road Day 5-Myvatn to Varmahlio...

After another large European breakfast, we are back on the road. Day 5 began on the northern shores of lake Myvatn where we gazed at the very indented shoreline, lava rocks and pseudo-craters. Rich plant life abounds.
Today is all about lava and geothermal. Dimmuborgir (dark crags) is our first stop. In Icelandic folklore, Dimmuborgir is believed to connect earth with the infernal regions (the gates of hell) and is home to elves and trolls. In reality, Dimmuborgir is an incredible lava landscape with unusual formations, columns, caves and arches. Dominating the scenery is an enormous arch, Kirkjan (the church). The entire area was once a lava lake.

According to the guide provided by Icelandic Farm Holidays, we were about 1/2 day behind schedule visiting sites so we hurry on to Hverfjall. Hverfjall is a round crater about 140 meters deep, 420 meters high and 1,300 meters in diameter. It is said to be one of the largest such craters in the world. Scientists estimate Hverfjall last erupted in 2500 BP and if I understand the mathematics of BP (before present), the crater last erupted in 550 BC (before Christ).

A well worn path leads to the crater rim! It is worth noting that in 1968, Neil Armstrong trained for the first moon landing in a nearby area.

Our first glimpse into the interior of the crater was amazing! Postcard from the rim... Can you tell the wind is about to blow us off the crater?Looking just south from the crater rim, we see steam rising from nearby geothermal pools. This area is called Namafjall.

A pool in front of the crater.

As we leave the lake area, Hverir is on our right. With stinking steam vents and boiling mud pits, Hverir is a mass of geothermal activity. The topography is other worldly.

Steam vents. This hissing and crackling is surprisingly loud!!

Bubbling mud pits... "Double, double, toil and trouble, the cauldron will bubble" (Macbeth)

Hverir is surreal, how many ways can I say that?!! Although paths meandered around the steaming, bubbling ground, the area was noticeably lacking barriers to keep tourist from sticking their hands or feet in the wrong place.

Grjotagia, a rift (or fissure) lies south of the steam vents. Grjotagia was once a popular soaking place but additional disturbances in the 1970's caused the water to be too hot for bathing.

Once again lunch was bread and cheese in our laps.

Another stunning waterfall on the side of the road, Godafoss (Gooafoss), falls of the gods. While not the tallest of falls, Godafoss is considered one of Iceland's finest. According to the Icelandic Sagas, Porgeir of Ljosavagn threw his statues of the gods into the falls when Iceland converted to Christianity in 1000. You will have to read about Porgeir of Ljosavagn.

River just below the falls.

Finally Akureyri comes into view. Akureyri, population 17,000, is considered the capital of Northern Iceland and the 4th largest town. Located on Eyjafjordour, one of Iceland's longest fjords, Akureyri is a center for trading, commerce and fishing. It is a very picturesque, clean city.

We stopped to walk around town. It is dinner time and after checking the menus at several restaurants, we decided on Greifinn. John ordered lamb chops, which he said were excellent. Kim and I ordered fish hash, a mix of fish, potatoes, cheese and other ingredients. Both are traditional Icelandic foods.

Farms, mountains, clouds and lakes fly by our car windows, as we returned to Highway 1. We are still a couple of hours away from our night's lodging.Finally, after a few wrong turns, we arrived at Steinsstaoir (Farm # 320) a guesthouse in the Varmahlio area (northwest Iceland). Our arrival time was just after 9:00 PM. Steinsstaoir is a recently renovated school house and we find it the most charming of our accommodations. While tired, the sky is still bright and we have trouble winding down so John and I walk around the property and take photos of the sunset.

We found art to be a major focal point in every guesthouse we stayed. Some featured photograph, other paintings, all portrayed something about Iceland.

Sunset... scenery around our guesthouse.

Ring Road Day 4-Egilsstooum to Myvatn...

Today we head north. The day will end at Lake Myvatn (#4 on the map) where we will explore lava fields, geothermal caves and a large crater.

Today was the kind of day we are coming to expect in Iceland, cool and gray. We left the farmhouse in a rain shower but it is hard to be unhappy with the weather. Iceland is very dramatic in the rain. The landscape is surreal, a gravel desert of sorts.

One might comment on the lack of trees in Iceland, we certainly did on many occasions. Our research indicates that Iceland was "deforested" early in it's history, the wood used for charcoal, housing and fire. A few pockets of forest still exist, but heat is now geothermal, houses are of other material and we guess that charcoal must be imported.

Some 165 km from our starting point in Egilsstooum, we turned onto Highway 864. The road turned to gravel and we began 60 km of rough riding. We scanned the map for a place to stop and discovered a tiny village called Grimssstaoir, the only one for miles. A road sign, gravel drive and 4 buildings mark the town’s existence. In front of the second building is a hand lettered sign advertising coffee and cakes. We brought the car to a stop and headed to the front door. John pushed the front door open and paused, the building is clearly a private residence.

A young girl greeted us and we asked if this is the cafe. She smiled and pointed to the next room where 4 Brits sat chatting at a table, 1 of 2 tables in the room. We noticed that 3 bedrooms and the all important water closet satellite off the main room and realized we had stepped into the only B & B in this lonely stretch of Iceland. After trips to the WC, a bit of chit chat with the Brits and a take away cup of coffee, we are off again.

Our first stop is Dettifoss. Considered Iceland’s largest and Europe’s most powerful waterfall, the ground shakes as 212 tons of water per second thunder over the top. It was pouring rain as we pulled into the parking lot. Cars and large tour buses filled every available spot. Tourists in all styles of rain gear, moved to and from the trail to the falls.

We pulled on our rain jackets and hiked the short hike to the falls. Upstream is Selfoss but we stayed around Dettifoss, took photos and headed back to the car. Will and Kim hiked on.

John was hungry so we broke out the cheese and bread while sitting in the parking lot. The windows fogged with the moisture but we were cozy and dry in our little environment.

We continued on toward Jokulsa Canyon National Park. More incredible landscape!

Jokulsa Canyon National Park is considered the Grand Canyon of the North. The Jokulsa a Fjollum, one of Iceland's greatest rivers, formed the steep walled canyon which includes Dettifoss and Selfoss. The national park also encompasses an incredible forested canyon that was created by a massive flood of the Jokulsa a Fjollum some 8,000 to 10,000 years ago. The flood packed so much power, that rocks washed away creating this canyon in 2 hours. Jokulsa Canyon is considered one of Iceland's most beautiful natural wonders.

The canyon floor is filled with trees, lush foliage and purple and yellow flowers.

Kim, Will and John walking toward the canyon walls.

During the flood, the river split into 2 tributaries leaving behind a horse shoe shaped rock formation. Local legend has it that the formation is the hoof print of the god Ooinn's magical stallion, Sleipnir.

Next stop on our journey was Husavik, a fishing village of 2,278. Located on the Eastern Shore of Skjalfandi-bay, the town is known as the whale watching capital of Europe. Unfortunately, we have no time to take a whale tour.

We were greeted by Icelandic ponies on the outskirts of Husavik. The ponies are smaller than most US horses, have beautiful manes, sturdy legs and sweet faces (the description of a non-horse person).

Whale watching boats at the harbor at Husavik.

Our final stop was Skutustaoir on the banks of Lake Myvatn where we spent the night. The photo below was shot as we entered the lake area. Hverfjall crater is visible on the left (partially hidden by the clouds).

We had reservations in the Sel-Hotel on the north side of the island. The exterior of the building looked like a rundown seacoast hotel and I was a bit nervous about the interior.
Not to worry, the rooms were charming, the best on our trip so far.

Days of dusty driving had taken a toll on our car. No question the dust permeated everything we carried with us.

After a pleasant and relatively inexpensive dinner of hamburger and fries at a local restaurant (maybe $25-28 US/each), we ordered dessert and took it back to our room...chocolate cake, fresh whipped cream and milk! There is no down time on this trip. We go 15 or more hours a day and are beginning to feel the effects.

From the front of the hotel, we have an incredible view pseudo craters. This area is all about lava and geothermal activity.