Iceland -- Doing the Right Thing the (Slightly) Wrong Way #3

The next morning, we headed out on our ice cave tour. 

Patterns in the cave wall

As we were getting ready to load up, there was brief moment of rosy red sunrise which would have been really pretty over the lagoon, but it was nice enough from the hotel. Once again, the penalty you pay for not having your own car. We probably would have been at Jökulsárlón for sunrise.

Sunrise

We reached the cave in a Jeep with huge tires, necessary for the rough terrain of the very rutted and slushy road that leads up to and then across the tongue of the Vatnajökull glacier. 

Jeeps on the makeshift road

To get an idea of what the trip was like, click here. 

The view on the glacier was beautiful. The storm had not hit yet and the sun was peeking through the clouds, illuminating the mountains and an outlet lagoon near the cave. 

The blue sheet in the distance is an outlet glacier

Ice caves are formed by water flowing through the glacier during the summer and fall (as you may recall, Vatnajökull is a "water glacier," with streams coursing throughout it). When the weather turns cold, the streams freeze and it is safe to enter the cave. Then, in spring, the water begins to flow again and the caves aren't safe (you could be easily swept away or the cave could collapse). Because of the flowing and freezing, the caves change every year. Here on the edge of the glacier, they are generally open for tours from November to late March.

Cave entrance

Caty and I had been on a tour in January 2015 at what I believe was the same cave (maybe). But, this time, the cave was so much different. It was much, much smaller -- maybe half the size. Back in 2015, the ceilings were 20 or more feet high and this time, maybe 12 feet tops.

The guide told us that the edge of the glacier had receded about 15 feet in just a year, moving the cave entrance with it. This could explain the size difference.

This is 2015: you can see how big and empty the cave was then

Plus, in 2015, the floor was snowy and icy. This time it was rough gravel. The guide showed us some video of a flood that occurred a few weeks earlier when unseasonably warm temperatures and rain (rather than snow) created spring-like conditions. That flooding brought lots of debris through and shrunk the cave. It was near the end of the season anyway, so I shouldn't have been surprised that the cave was different.

When Caty and I went, it was just our tour and maybe one other -- a maximum of 20 people. 

This time, there were multiple tours -- each with the big-wheel Jeeps. 

Several tours at once

Another big difference in the tour was the number of people in the cave. The cave was packed with perhaps 100 people. It made it much more difficult to take pictures and to get around to see everything.

Our group was bigger than in 2015

Despite the crowd, people seemed to be having fun and lots and lots and lots of people were taking selfies.

Our fellow visitors

I am still not certain it was the same cave -- it could have been different. When Caty and I went, we went with Ice Guides (not Extreme Iceland like this time). It is possible Ice Guides have another cave with some exclusivity. Or, it could be just a different season. I should have researched a bit more. I just assumed that all the tours are alike. Once again -- I know better!

Anyway, I did get a good walk-around. 

I particularly enjoyed looking at the debris and bubbles trapped in the ice walls, the many different colors (black, white, turquoise, blue) of the ice and the wide variety of surfaces scraped and sculpted in the walls. Some walls drip as they melt, forming frozen stalactite-type ice formations.

Amazing

After I toured the inside, I went on top (although not directly over the cave -- they don't like that!) and got a spectacular view of the glacier and the mountains.

What a view!

To see video of the cave, click here.

Following the ice cave tour, we went over to Jökulsárlón, the glacier lagoon. The gloomy weather made it tricky to photograph ...

Gloomy

... so I concentrated on the cute little Snow Buntings -- a new bird for me.

Snow Bunting

More impressive on the overcast day was Diamond Beach, which forms the mouth of the lagoon. A narrow channel dumps the icebergs from the lagoon into the ocean.

Diamond Beach

Some make a clean getaway ...

Iceberg at sea

...  but most get stranded on the black lava beach. The icebergs range in size from very, very large (car-sized) to tiny (pebble-sized). 

Some of the icebergs are blue

Some are white

Some look just like diamonds

As the tides come in and out, the arrangement of icebergs changes. So, the beach is always different. While exploring, I came across a flock of Common Eiders at the mouth of the lagoon. 

Swimming in the cold, cold water

These cold-loving ducks live exclusively in coastal arctic and subarctic areas all around the northern hemisphere.

Male, top; female, bottom

They line their nests with their very soft and very fine feathers and down. For centuries, Icelanders have harvested the feathers and down for pillows, mattresses and duvets. That's where eiderdown comes from!

After exploring Diamond Beach, we loaded up the van (a very nice Mercedes Benz van complete with WiFi, by the way) and started our trip back to Reykjavik. The weather was getting progressively worse and Vignir was concerned about the wind. Hurricane force was predicted.

But, he still stopped at a few places along the way.

The most impressive was Svínafellsjökull -- Swine Mountain Glacier. I cannot find why such a beautiful place has such an unattractive name -- but it does sound better in Icelandic. Svínafellsjökull is an otherworldly sub-glacier of Vatnajökull that is easily (well, kind of) accessed by a narrow gravel road. 

Panoramic view

This beautiful craggy blue glacial has been used in many movies -- most notably as the place where Matt Damon attacked Matthew McConaughey in Interstellar.

Great as an alien planet

On the gray, gloomy day, the background just faded into the sky. It looks very cold, but, in reality, it wasn't bad at all. 

A nice portrait

We had a very short stop, but we were able to climb up a gravel hill to get a view of a small lagoon by the glacier. Only four of the people in our group (including Scott and me) did the little hike. So, we got a very exclusive view.

Otherworldly

Most everyone else stayed down by the frozen pond near the parking area.

The pond

After Svínafellsjökull, it started to really blow, making driving a little rocky and, occasionally, including making waterfalls disappear. 

Where did it go?

Luckily, the bad weather was the only rain we had during the week that was originally forecast to be miserable the whole time.

We also stopped to look at a bridge across a glacial stream. If you look at the bridge supports, you can see how much damage has been done by previous floods -- the rocks have washed away the the supports are bent.

Yikes!

We stopped for lunch at the Systrakaffi (Sister's Cafe) in Kirkjubaejarklaustur (the locals just say "Klaustur"). 

Yum!

We had burgers, which are served in many restaurants in Iceland and, while expensive, are usually good. These were tasty.

But, warning: if you don't like rare burgers, speak up! Every burger we saw was pink in the center.

By the time we got to Kirkjubaejarklaustur, the wind was so strong it was hard to stand up. When we crossed over the mountain to Reykjavik, it was snowing pretty hard. It wasn't as dramatic as the whiteout Caty and I drove through in 2015, but it was quite a bit different than the sunny weather we had had the day before. And, it was a time when I was glad we weren't driving ourselves.

Back in Reykjavik, we stepped out to dinner in the howling wind. We didn't want to walk far, so we ended up near the hotel at Sjávargrillið, a seafood grill. It was pricy and most of the items didn't really appeal to me since I was only slightly hungry. We ended up with a salad (yummy, but about $19 for essentially a tossed salad), shrimp pasta for Scott (good but not hot) and fried plaice (good) with a side of boiled tiny tiny shrimp with capers and almonds (interesting and tasty).

On our final day in Reykjavik, the sun came out again! We took a Hop-on-Hop-off bus tour. We did an hour-long loop and saw the sights I had seen on my walk -- Harpa, Sun Voyager, Hallgrímskirkja.

Hallgrímskirkja

On the hill

We were able to see the Perlan, a restaurant and event complex situated in old tanks that used to hold hot water for the city. The tanks were converted in 1991 and now the Perlan is a tourist destination. With its location high above the city, it has a commanding view and can be seen from far away. 

We didn't have time to get out and explore because the bus circuit was a full 60 minutes. 

We also passed a number of active hot water pumping stations along some of the major streets.

Iceland's biggest natural resource

More than 80 percent of Reykjavik gets its heat and hot water directly from the earth. That geothermal water also generates most of the electricity.

This is one area of life in Iceland that is inexpensive. At least there is one.

With its snowy mountains and colorful houses, Reykjavik is quite pretty.

The snow makes it lovely

Following the bus tour, I walked down to Tjörnin, Reykjavik's city pond, for my bird fix. I was rewarded.

Whooper Swan

Greylag Goose

Male Mallard

Male Tufted Duck

Female Tufted Duck

That was rewarding because of what I saw only Mallards can be found at home. And, the birds were not shy, so photographing them was easy.

Whooper Swans

Then, it was off to the airport for out flight. Unlike our nighttime flight to Iceland, this was a daytime flight. Although much of the flight was cloudy, we did get some great views of Baffin island and Labrador. 

Great views

Are there any polar bears down there?

So, what did we learn?

Iceland is a special place.

Aurora borealis

Planning and research are essential.

Sun Voyager

Trips should be planned according to you own travel preferences ...

Skogafoss

... but, for a great deal, it might just be okay to sacrifice a few things.

Jökulsárlón

Even imperfect travel beats no travel.

Reynisdrangar

Trip date: March 5-11, 2017

Iceland -- Doing the Right Thing the (Slightly) Wrong Way #2

The next day, we embarked upon our two-day south coast/ice cave tour. The first half of the first day repeated what we had done the day before. But, we had even better sunshine in some places and, quite frankly, that scenery just doesn’t get old. 

Reynisdrangar

Plus, because we had been the day before, we didn’t mind that the stops had to be short so that we could make it to our destination.

Good tour

The tour was with Extreme Iceland and our tour guide, Vignir, was fabulous. He was very accommodating, but firm about keeping us on schedule. 

He was very knowledgeable – even helping me ID Northern Fulmars as the birds nesting on the cliffs. 

I had been trying for over a year to identify one I had photographed when traveling with Caty. 

We first drove over the mountains to the South Coast. 

Vignir explained that the mountains were the edges of the tectonic plates of North America and Europe. Further south, that edge is a trough.

So gorgeous

We stopped at Selandjafoss ...

This time, I concentrated on the Northern Fulmars instead of the waterfall

... Skogafoss ...

Another great rainbow

... and Reynisdrangar (with even sunnier skies, but rougher seas)...

A pretty day

... before moving on to Vik, where we saw a lovely local church ...

Typical Icelandic church

... and a different view of Reynisdrangar ...

From the other side

Then, we traveled past moss-covered lava fields near Skaftafell National Park, which is home to the massive and extremely impressive Vatnajökull (translation: water glacier). More on the glacier later.

Lava and mountains

The moss covers the lava that has been spewed out by waves of volcanic eruptions. Unlike many places with volcanic landscapes, much of this stuff is from recent eruptions. 

Plants trying to grow on lava

Iceland, which sits on the Atlantic Ocean ridge, has more volcanic activity than anywhere else on Earth.

With a constant flow of molten magma, 33 percent of all volcanic material on Earth and 33 percent of all of Earth's lava flows are in Iceland. 

On average, an eruption occurs in Iceland every four years.

The sculptural cliffs are dotted with dramatic waterfalls.

Waterfalls are all along the coast

... including this one that disappeared into a curving cleft that had been carved into the mountainside.

A waterfall and a rainbow

As we traveled, we got increasingly beautiful views of Vatnajökull, which is the largest and most voluminous ice cap in Iceland and one of the largest in Europe. Its average thickness is 1,300 feet, but reaches 3,300 feet thick in some areas. 

Vatnajökull

Iceland's highest peak at 6,921 feet, Hvannadalshnúkur, is located in the southern edge of Vatnajökull. There are multiple volcanoes under the ice cap. Most of what you can see of Vatnajökull are "outlet glaciers," which each have their own names, but are part of the larger glacier.

Wide view

The frequent eruptions and melting of the temperate glaciers causes many floods, which can wreak havoc on the roads and the bridges that span the wide braided glacial streams. This "sculpture" is actually remains of a bridge that was swept away several years ago.

Reality art

Although we weren’t originally scheduled to stop at Jökulsárlón until the next day, we convinced Vignir to stop while the weather was good because the next day’s forecast looked dismal. Actually, it didn’t take much to convince him – I think he loves the place.

Oh my!

Jökulsárlón is truly unique. It is a deep lagoon carved out as Vatnajökull receded. Because there is a terminal moraine at the ocean side, the lagoon traps icebergs that have calved off the glacier until the tide rises, when they then escape to sea. The most amazing thing is that the lagoon formed as recently as the 1930s, meaning the glacier has receded about a mile in less than 100 years.

The size of the lake has increased fourfold since the 1970s because of the melting of the glacier and its many subglaciers. It covers an area of about 6.9 square miles and is the deepest lake in Iceland, at over 814 feet.

Iceberg

Jökulsárlón has been a setting for four Hollywood movies: A View to a Kill, Die Another Day, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and Batman Begins.

We snapped a few pictures and then proceeded to out hotel, the Guesthouse Gerði at the Hali farm in Höfn. It is in the same complex as the Skyrhúsið Guesthouse, where Caty and I stayed when we went to Iceland last year. The Gerði room was nicer than both the Skyrhúsið and the Skjaldbreid, but dinner was pretty bland (at more than $50 a person) and breakfast was even more meager than the Skjaldbreid.

Home!

By the way, food in Iceland is crazy expensive. It’s not unusual to pay $25 for a burger and fries. If you go, you can save money by eating your hotel’s breakfast (which is generally included with the room) and picking up picnic items.

We really wanted to go to Jökulsárlón that night to photograph aurora – the night was clear and spaceweather.com looked encouraging. Vignir told us he couldn’t take us because tour guides are regulated the way truck drivers and pilots are with mandatory sleep breaks, but we met two young guys with a car who gave us a ride. We returned the favor by providing aurora photography tips.

At first, we just had a beautiful moonlit view of the lagoon ..

Jökulsárlón

... but, it didn't take long for some streaks to start appearing in the sky. While it wasn’t spectacular, we did have some aurora that was actually visible, if pale. 

So-so aurora; great location

We stayed about an hour or so before returning to the hotel. I could have stayed longer, but it wasn’t our car. I should have stayed up – I heard there was more aurora between 2:00 and 4:00.

But, we got some.

Success

The next post will cover the rest of our trip, including the ice cave tour.

Trip date: March 5-11, 2017