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| Rough Surf in Vík |
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| Typical South Coast view |
So, basically, we had a relatively stress-free day planned, letting weather dictate what we did.
Landeyjahöfn
Since we were leaving on a ferry early the next morning, we decided to start our day by checking out the ferry dock and seeing how close it was to where we would be staying that night.
First, we drove by the farm where we had booked a "farm stay" room.
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| It was, indeed, a farm; Photo: Guide to Iceland |
I'll talk about the accommodations at the end of the blog. But, we were happy that it was -- while very rural -- just minutes from the ferry.
The dock, which I thought I photographed, but couldn't find any photos, sits by a beautiful black sand cove.
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| Landeyjahöfn: a beautiful beach with, this morning, beautiful blue skies |
From the beach, you can see Vestmannaeyjar (Westman Islands), a 15-island volcanic archipelago that is home to the world's largest Atlantic Puffin colony.
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| Tomorrow's destination |
The next morning we would be headed to Heimaey, the only inhabited inhabited island in the group.
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| I was excited for this |
We walked around a bit, enjoying the sea air and sunshine, before moving on.
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| A good start |
Two Falls
Our next stop was the first major waterfall along a route renowned for waterfalls, Seljalandsfoss, a 197-foot waterfall that tumbles down into a creek.
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| One of Iceland's most popular waterfalls |
I've been to this waterfall on every Iceland trip, so we didn't stay too long. Basically, we were there long enough for a break in the clouds that gave a nice warm glow to this very pretty waterfall.
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| Sunshine, blue sky and some rainbows! Who knew? |
Then, we drove down a dirt road to what used to be a parking lot for Seljalandsfoss' lesser-known sister, Gljúfrabúi (also called Gljúfrafoss), the "hidden waterfall." I hadn't known about it before, but we "discovered" it on our last visit. Yep, everyone else in the world knows about it, but we are a bit slow.
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| Gljúfrabúi means "Canyon Dweller" |
This waterfall is inside an open-air cavern and can only truly be seen by walking inside. Since I hate slippery rocks and I didn't have rain gear on the last time we went, only Scott ventured inside. This time I was prepared to go inside.
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| Scott in Gljúfrafoss in 2021 |
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| A short trip ON the appropriate trail |
Scott went in first and took some cell phone shots. Then, he came out and babysat my good cameras so that I could venture inside.
Did I like the walk in? No, I did not. It was slippery. Most people don't care that much (teenagers sprint in like Gazelles), but I have a fear that crosses into phobia of falling on slick rocks. So, I slowly picked my way in. I didn't go too far because it looked even more treacherous farther in.
I wanted unoccupied photos, but two huge groups of young people needed to take multiple -- exhaustively multiple -- group photos on a big rock. It got to the point where I was concerned that Scott would think I had fallen and died, so I satisfied myself with someone else's vacation photos.
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| My ok, but not great, photos |
It's hard to photograph because of the contrast between the bright sunlight above and the dark cave inside. But, I did it and I saw it. And, it is pretty cool.
Ásólfsskála
So, having conquered a phobia, we headed west toward our next planned stop, Skógafoss.
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| We stopped to photograph fairy shed along the route |
Next, we noticed a pretty little church off the road. We had nowhere to go, so why not explore?
I like getting off the main road because it's easier to stop and get out. Icelandic roads can be narrow and often don't have pullouts where you want to stop.
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| Looks interesting! |
When we turned off the main road, we saw a sign for Írárfoss, another famous South Coast waterfall that we may have visited before (there are a lot and they get muddled).
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| Everything I found online indicates that Írárfoss is "lesser-known and not-often-visited" |
Írárfoss (Irish River Falls) is a 135-foot-high waterfall that, because it plummets into a narrow gorge, has a concentrated flow that ends in a small pool.
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| Nice find! |
Also nice were the Icelandic Horses grazing along the road.
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| We hadn't yet seen many horses on this trip |
And, the lovely Ásólfsskálakirkja, a typical red-roofed white Icelandic church located on road F-246, in the so-called Skálakrók in the town of Ásólfsskála.
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| Pretty setting that seems miles from the main highway |
There had been a church at Ásólfsskála in the Middle Ages dedicated to King Ólaf of Norway, but it was demolished around 1550. Nearby Holt had been the site of the local church since 1888, when the third church was blown away by a storm and floods caused land damage. Although there were plans to move both the vicarage and the church to Ásólfsskála, only the church was moved through a trade of half the church's property for half of Ásólfsskála. The first church, built of wood covered with corrugated iron, was in the cemetery.
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| There is stll a cemetary by the church |
In the 40s, construction began on a new church, which was originally designed to have two towers. Funds ran out in 1944 after the foundation was poured. Construction of a simpler church recommenced in 1951 after a landslide. The wooden church was demolished in 1952 and the current church was consecrated in 1955.
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| Ásólfsskálakirkja |
The church was not open when we went by, so we didn't get to see the interior, which boasts an 18th century winged altarpiece.
As we were looking at the church and cemetery (and I was chasing birds -- I think Redwings skulking in the thick trees), we discovered that we were literally next door to where we would be staying in two nights after out trip to Vestmannaeyjar.
Skógafoss
Next was one of Iceland's most famous waterfalls, Skógafoss, just a few miles down the road. The weather looked a bit sketchy again for about a minute.
But, when we got there, the sky cleared and gave us the best things you can get at Skógafoss ...
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| Sunshine! |
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| And a rainbow! |
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| Skógafoss at its best |
So, we took lots of photos ...
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| A Northern Fulmer on the cliff by the falls |
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| Sheep on the hill |
... and then, later, I photoshopped all the other people out ...
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| It was really crowded |
To read more about some of the falls I just discussed, click here.
Vík
We at lunch at the nearby café and then headed west another 20ish miles toward Vík, even though we knew we'd be passing that way again in just a few days. One goal was to pick up some snacks at the grocery store in Vik and another was to see what we could see while the sky was blue.
But, as happened every time we got close to Vík on this trip, the weather gods frowned. It was raining and windy and gray and miserable. We drove down the road to Reynisfjara, but didn't even walk out to see the cave and the sea stacks.
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| Sea stacks on a sunnier day |
We stopped at a Krónan, one of Iceland's major grocery chains, to get some food for later and the wind was so fierce I could barely open my car door. Then, came a deluge (always bring rain gear to Iceland!). After a treacherous walk across the parking lot and some shopping, the rain and wind slowed enough for us to at least walk out to the black sand beach where we could view the sea stacks from the other side.
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| Just around the corner |
Yes, we could see them, so at least it was clear enough for that.
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| The surf was pretty wild |
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| The wind was whipping around |
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| The ever-present Fulmars weren't flying off the cliffs |
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| Even this little Wagtail was walking rather than flying |
To get the full effect, watch this.
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| Still worth the drive |
We just stayed a short time at the gloomy beach and then headed back east towards our evening accommodations. We knew we were coming this was again in a few days.
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| Another South Coast view |
Accommodations
We stayed at a "farm stay" in Lágafell-Austur-Landeyjar, which was a very basic apartment down a dirt road on an actual farm. We arrived too late and left too early to take advantage of free barn tours and we really couldn't see too much of the farm. But, we could hear cows mooing and see a silo.
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| Nice, simple digs |
This kind of lodging can be found throughout Iceland, which is highly agrarian. With the increase in tourism in Iceland, land has become more valuable and hostelry more lucrative, but many Icelanders don't want to give up farming. So, they either convert existing farm buildings into rooms or they build cabins or apartments on property. This unit, which had a bedroom, living area, kitchen, bath and washing machine, appeared to be the latter.
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| Our "farm stay;" Photo: Guide to Iceland |
On our Hringvegur trip, we stayed at two farms.
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| Converted shed in Westfjords; Fancy farm in Myvatn; Right: Scott Stevens |
We settled in, made dinner from leftovers from our Skógafoss lunch and grocery store finds, used the dryer and handy coat racks to dry out our wet gear and got ready for our next morning's trip to one of the few places in Iceland we hadn't visited before.
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| Hoping to see Puffins! |
Trip dates: September 5 - 30, 2025
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