Iceland in Winter: Golden Circle

 

Winter days in Iceland are quite short, but it does not mean that it isn’t possible to stop to admire the most important sites along the golden circle. A time schedule would be very helpful in this case so that you know how to manage the time. This country is so beautiful it makes it really difficult not to stop for longer time at this awesome sights.

We were there only one week before the shortest day and the light began to come through at about 09:30, and the dark came just before 17:00.

Between the first light and the sun rise we could calculate about 1 1/2 hours and the same was for the sunset. We got real the best weather for this trip!

The sunny hours are something like a very long sunrise and a very long sunset; this means…WOW… golden hours all the day long!

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The first place to visite was the enchanted þingvellir (Thingvellir) national park. The Þingvellir area is part of a fissure zone running through Iceland, being situated on the tectonic plate boundaries of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. In winter we got the chance to see the frozen lake and the Öxarárfoss waterfall

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We continued our trip in the direction of the Geysirs

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Some more time for a quick lunch around this steamy geothermal area. From here in only a few minutes we reached the majestic Gullfoss waterfall.

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The final stop in a natural hot-sprig just before heading in direction of Hella for dinner and a good sleep.

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Iceland in Winter: From the Sky

We’ve been for a few days in Iceland again! Last time we’ve visited Iceland it was in early September and we were so amazed that we found we have to go there.

So we were lucky to find flights for a reasonable time and we could visit our great friend in Reykjavik again and then start our 3 days tour before heading home.

The arrival by plane was breathtaking: many volcanoes covered snow and the Svartsengi geothermal power plant could be admired.

What for an incredible view! We could not wait to start our trip.

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December 20 th (Advent 2016)

 

Hard as stone ?!

December 13th (Advent 2016)

 

              Catching the northern lights: an unforgettable experience!

December 11th (Advent 2016)

 

Time is running like sand between our fingers.

From Djúpivogur to Húsavík, (Iceland, day 6)

After the raining night we woke up and found out the sky was opening and the heavy rain washed our car almost perfectly and shining! A quick breakfast and we continued our trip. We had to cross the island and reach the north coast!

The fist part of today’s ring road started by climbing up the hill on a not paved road. Well, we will get used to that!

On the way further we stopped and enjoyed the amazing view looking down to the point we started. Waterfalls, sheep and a rainbow were worth for some additional pics and a short break.

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At Egilsstaðir a small town on the banks of the river Lagarfljót we bought our lunch and we continued along Jökuldalur Valley and across the highland desert of Möðrudalsöræfi. On a plateau with a great view to many volcanoes was the perfect place to rest and enjoy our lunch.

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Travelling to the north we took another not paved road and visited the powerfull Dettifoss waterfall, the largest waterfall in Europe. These image can give only a little bit the impression of the power of this waterfall!

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From here we proceeded further to the north and drive to Ásbyrgi Canyon, a strange and spectacular horseshoe shaped canyon not to be missed.

 

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Proceeding in the direction Húsavík we reached the sea and once again we were happy to see such spectacular breathtaking light effects.

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Húsavík is sometimes called “The Whale Watching Capital of The World” as it was the first place in the country to offer very successful Whale Watching cruises. The Whale Museum in Húsavík is an educational centre on marine wildlife.

No whale watching for us, we simply enjoyed a warm bath in the hot tubes just outside of the town and a good sleep after the long drive.

 

Post about ICELAND

 

From Kirkjubæjarklaustur to Djúpivogur (Iceland, day 5)

This we had a long drive starting from our hotel and passing by Kirkjubæjarklaustu. On the way we stopped at a river near Foss a Sidu where we played with the exposure of the camera we also stopped to take some pics of the Kálfafell montain and the wonderful landscape.

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A wonderful walk to the Svartifoss waterfall was today’s highlight; hiking on a easy trail trough an incredible beautiful flora with plenty of flowers, birds and small trees we reached the waterfall framed by splendid basalt rocks! Not to be missed!

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Only a few kilometer further we found another place to visit which was not mentioned in the South Iceland t0urist map: the Svinafellsjökull with a glacier landing and melting in a small lake. A great place to have a rest and have our sandwich.

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Finally we arrived at the “Glacier Lagoon”. Huge blocks of ice constantly break off the glacier, Breiðamerkurjökull, and large icebergs float on the Jökulsárlón lagoon and drift through a canal under a bridge and arrive to the sea. The lagoon is not very wide but it is up to 250 meters deep which makes it the deepest lake in Iceland. Breiðamerkurjökull is an outlet of the Vatnajökull glacier. Like diamonds some of the blue ice blocks land on the black sand beach. In the lagoon had the change to spot a seal swimming between the icebergs: what for a spectacle!

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We continued our drive with another stop at Hoffell for a relaxing bath in the “hotpot”. The rain started and did not stop until we reached our overnight place at Djúpivogur on the east coast of the island.

 

 

 

 

From Vik to Kirkjubæjarklaustur (Iceland, day 4)

East of Vik you will find the Dyrhólaey Nature Reserve with the beautiful arch and from where you can see the glacier, the sea coast, the lightroom (now a hotel) and the nesting colonies of seabirds!

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From this place you will have a great look to the black sand beach and the Reynisfjara shore with its basalt steps columns. The cliffs west of the beach are home to many seabirds, most notably puffins which burrow into the shallow soils during the nesting season.

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The first rain drops came just in time before we left the black sand beach Vik and driving further.

 

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Drive across the Mýrdalssandur floodplains and the wonderworld of Eldhraun the largest lava field ever to flow on Earth in historical time which is  now completely covered by moss. Don’t step on the moss, and drive to the viewpoint which has just been prepared for you, you will not miss it! Looks like another planet! 🙂

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A few kilometers before the small village Kirkjubaejarklaustur you enjoyed a walk above the Fjaðrárgljúfur, a narrow and beautiful canyon. Really worth to have a lot at this incredible place.

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Hella to Vik (Iceland, day 3)

Today’s program got a change, as to owner of the hotel suggested us to have a closer view to the active volcano Hekla

We drove back for about 8 kilometers back and after turning right (road 26) we approached the volcano Hekla and the Burfell volcano on other side of the river.

The incredible landscape let us stop for a few photo sessions. The alternative route back to Hella  (road 268) was a gravel road, so after crossing the bride and taking a few pictures of the stunning blue reflection of the river. After about 2 kilometer on that road we found that driving back from the paved road would be the better and easier choice.

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Our next stop was the Seljalandsfoss waterfall which tumbles 60 m over the old sea cliff into a deep plunge pool. It has so undercut the rocks that it is possible to walk behind the cascade.

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This day a second waterfall originated from the Eyjafjalla Glacier is the Skógarfoss (Skogar) Waterfall which brings water from the melting snows between the two icecaps. If you are planning to stop here, I really recommend you to follow the steps and the path up to to the waterfall. It’s really wonderful there and you can spend a few hours enjoying that place. Once you are up, your will enjoy the view and you will not regret the roughly 400 steps behind you. 🙂

If you are planning to stop here, I really recommend you to follow the steps and the path up to to the waterfall. It’s really wonderful there and you can spend a few hours enjoying that place. Once you are up, your will enjoy the view and you will not regret the roughly 400 steps behind you. 🙂

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Going back the car the weather changed, we headed to Vik and spent some time at the black sand beach just by the village (not to be confused with the black sand beach east of Vik by the basalt stones). The humid freezing breeze gave to this place a mystic and dramatic look. We  knew we would go back the next day…

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Golden Circle (Iceland, day 2)

 

Todays program is the famous “golden circle“.

Our first stop is National Park by the he Þingvellir plain, a unique place from a geological point of view and a place of great beauty. Research has shown that this place is a natural wonder on an international scale as in this place the North America and Europe are tearing away from each other at a rate of 1mm to 18mm per year. The faults and fissures of the area are clear evidence of the rifting of the earth’s crust, in addition it is also the most historical place in the country and a place of exceptional beauty. We enjoyed walking around this area a lot.

 

We drove further to see the famous Great Geysir and Strokkur, a very active geyser that spouts every few minutes.

 

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Not only the geysir are are beautiful, the whole area is spectacular and the steam coming out of the ground mystic!

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Our last stop before Hella (our overnight place) is the majestic waterfall Gullfoss one of Icelands most beautiful waterfall near the first Icelandic glacier we saw. Thanks this sunny day we had the chance to see a wonderful rainbow.

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Some more kilometers driving and we arrived to the Kerið crater.

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During our walking and our breaks we had the chance to admire the incredible beauty and richness of this area. At the same withing 1 square meter we also found 3 different kind of berries: blueberries, crowberries (Krækiber) and

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