If I Were Going...: Bucket List Biggie – Búðir, Jökulsárlón and in Between

Flowers were blooming across southern Iceland

Our last day of our trip was coming up and I had booked the next night at the Hótel Búðir, where Caty and I had stayed when we were in Iceland in 2015 – and the location where we saw the best Aurora Borealis.

The Aurora we saw in 2015

Búðakirkja

Although only 25 minutes away, we switched to the Hótel Búðir on the south side of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula for our second night.

I knew there wasn't much in Ólafsvík to do beyond a Whale watch. I wanted to take advantage of either evening or morning sun to photograph Búðakirkja, the little black church behind the hotel.

Plus, I knew Hótel Búðir was a nice place, a cut above the utilitarian Við Hafið Guesthouse we stayed in in Ólafsvík.

Caty and I had gotten such nice pictures of Búðakirkja that I thought that Scott would enjoy the opportunity to photograph it as well. Plus, we would still be able to explore Snæfellsnes National Park from there if we wanted to.

Map: Google Maps

Turns out, Scott wasn’t that interested and he was inexplicably antsy. Even though he had not mentioned it during the trip planning, what Scott really wanted to do was go back to Jökulsárlón, the glacial lagoon on the south coast (6 1/2 hours away) that we had visited on our previous trips to Iceland.

Had I known, I would have booked a night there. As it was, we had a non-refundable and expensive (the most expensive of the trip) hotel reserved in Búðir that night and a room booked in Keflavik near the airport for our final night.

But, regardless, Scott decided that we would just make our last day a long one and drive to Jökulsárlón and then back to Keflavik the next day. Now, a 12-hour-roundtrip may seem severe, but it’s not as if Jökulsárlón was the only thing to see. The drive itself is spectacular, so, even if we didn’t make it the whole way, it would be worth the drive.

Búðir

So, we ended up staying in Búðir before departing on our long day trip.

The view from our hotel room

A small hamlet on the Búðahraun lava fields in Staðarsveit, Búðir is a cluster of old buildings, the most significant of which are the hotel and the Búðakirkja. The original old house of the restaurant and Hótel Búðir burned down in 2001 and was rebuilt with a great deal of effort to match the original inn and blend into the existing compound. I couldn’t tell it was new.

There isn't much to Búðir

Commercial ships and fishing vessels have been landing and trading at Búðir since Iceland's first inhabitants arrived. The town was a commercial and trade hub for Snæfellsnes during an extended period of Danish trade monopoly.

Now, you’d be hard-pressed to call it a town.

The black paint and white trim is striking

Local residents

We were tired after the whale watch so, after a hot dog and fish soup lunch at the Secret Spot food truck, we cut across the Peninsula instead of driving through the National Park.

That meant that Scott didn't get to see the sea stacks or blowhole or cute little villages, but he was OK with that.

We checked into the Hótel Búðir in the late afternoon.

Initially, Scott made reservations at the Hotel Búðir dining room, which is quite fancy (and expensive). But, we weren't really hungry, so we cancelled the reservation and just ate some of our picnic goods. We were tired and had a busy schedule planned for the next day.

I was both pleased with the hotel (it had a bathtub!) and disappointed (we had to walk up two flights of stairs and the room was stifling). After we finally figured out how to open the skylight-style window, the room cooled down and everything was fine.

A Common Redshank on the Búðakirkja roof

As it turned out, we did have a bit of time to photograph the church, which isn't as old as it looks. The first Búðakirkja was built in 1703, but was eventually deconstructed due to lack of parishioners.

The current church was reconstructed in 1987 after a single member of the church lobbied to have the chapel brought back.

Scott did take some photos after all

It has a historic graveyard as well as relics such as a bell and chalice from the time the church was first erected. However, its pure black paint job and rugged, isolated location are the real attraction to the site.

Búðakirkja (with that Common Redshank on the roof)

The Long Drive

So off we went and, as we drove, the previously sunny weather became cloudy and drizzly. Before it got too bad, we did stop near Borgarnes to photograph what turned out to be two Great Cormorants that were sitting off the bridge across Borgarfjörður.

Great Cormorants

But, then we continued on into the fog and rain. Because of the gray weather, we ended up not stopping at any of the waterfalls along the route …

Seljalandsfoss, Skógafoss, Systrafoss, 2017

We also didn’t stop at Renisdrangar, the black beach overlooking incredible basalt sea stacks. It just made more sense to keep moving.

Renisdrangar, 2017

We did, however, stop in Vík to get a look at Renisdrangar from across the water.

Renisdranger on this trip

And, it was in Vík that we started seeing the flowers.

Purple Nootka is everywhere

Unlike brown Snæfellsnes, the south coast of Iceland was green, green, green (wet, foggy, rainy weather will do that).

Green, green Vík

Along the coast, the fields were filled with purple flowers. Purple flowers as far as the eye could see.

Purple Nootka

These flowers, interestingly enough, are not native to Iceland. Rather they are Purple Nootka, or Alaskan Lupine, which was introduced in 1945 to lowland areas in the southwest as a means to add nitrogen to the soil and also to function as an anchor for organic matter. It took off like crazy. It is everywhere.

I hope the Nootka is good for the environment because it is certainly lovely.

At Vik, we spent a short time on the beach, looking at the Sea Stacks and listening to the Northern Fulmars nesting on the nearby cliff.

Nesting Northern Fulmars

Jökulsárlón

Jökulsárlón

I hadn't planned visiting this trip because we had been so many times – summer, winter and even once at night where we photographed a very weak Aurora Borealis. I have blogged about Jökulsárlón here.

I usually try to go to new places rather than return again and again to the same place. However, I did not factor in how much Scott loved the Lagoon.

So, we were off to the Glacial Lagoon, even if it meant a very, very, very long day.

Vatnajökull Glacier in the distance

The Vatnajökull Glacier created the lagoon in the 1930s when icebergs coming off the glacier simultaneously dug a depression near the foot of the glacier and pushed up an underwater moraine at the mouth of the narrow outlet.

Arctic Tern over the Lagoon

The moraine is low enough that icebergs can escape at high tide, but they become trapped at low tide.

Vatnajökull Glacier up close

In the summer there are boat tours through the lagoon up to the face of the glacier.

Icebergs (the red speck in the distance is a tour boat)

Across the street, where the water (and icebergs) flow out of the lagoon is “Diamond Beach,” a black beach that is usually studded with spectacular chunks of ice washed back up after they escape the lagoon.

Diamond Beach with no "diamonds"

The beach was virtually empty, most likely because the weather was calm and the waves mild. That was a disappointment. Here’s a comparison.

Lots of "diamonds" back in 2015

Some small pieces of stranded ice

There was a small amount of ice here and there, but the sun and the waves were melting it almost as quickly as it got washed up on the shore.

So, we drove all that way for a so-so experience at Jökulsárlón. I am glad we have been there before so we know how incredible it can be.

Female Common Eider on a mission

And, don’t get me wrong; it was pretty this time, just not mind-blowing. See it here.

Ice can be incredibly beautiful

While there, we did see some more Common Eiders, which love the icy cold water. I believe the first Common Eiders I ever saw were on this spot. This time, however, there were ducklings – adorable little Common Eider ducklings.

Common Eiders

I also saw a mysterious brown bird that turned out the be a dark morph Parasitic Jaeger. That was pretty cool; I didn’t even know such a thing existed, but the dark morphs are apparently pretty common in Iceland. I saw one on Diamond Beach …

Dark Morph Parasitic Jaeger

… and another in the Lagoon ...

Dark Morph Parasitic Jaeger

I have always been blown away by the icebergs in the Lagoon and on the beach across the road.

Some of the icebergs are quite large

Because it was gray and we were there in the afternoon of a day in which the sun would not set until near midnight, Jökulsárlón was a bit flat.

Iceberg

In the winter, the low sun can give it a pink or golden glow that greatly enhances the photography opportunities.

Of course, a sunny day would have rendered it very photogenic, as well.

We were just somewhere in the middle and even Photoshop couldn't pull a rabbit out of that hat.

Still, there were large, impressive icebergs jammed up near the outlet to the ocean. I think we were there a tidal change because, at first, they appeared to be heading out, and then, they seemed to be coming back.

One of the cool things we witnessed was an iceberg breaking apart. I heard it before I saw it and was able to catch just a splash. I was hoping it would flip over, but it didn’t.

Splash after an iceberg break-up (that's a section rolling in the front)

At Jökulsárlón, we usually see a couple of Harbor Seals in the Lagoon. But, this time was special, there was a group of them hauled out on Diamond Beach – many more than I have ever seen there.

Harbor Seals on Diamond Beach

Harbor Seals

Harbor Seal showing off his V-nose

Also known as the Common Seal (because they are!), the Harbor Seal is the most widely distributed species of pinniped (walruses, eared seals and true seals). They are found in coastal waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and the Baltic and North Seas.

A good scratch

Harbor Seals can be brown, silvery white, tan, gray or mottled. Some individual harbor seals possess a unique pattern of spots, either dark on a light background or light on a dark. Many variations are often found within the one group of Seals.

They can be identified by their distinctive V-shaped nostrils. Their bodies and flippers are short and their heads rounded. As a true Seal, Harbor Seals have no pinna (ear flap), although an ear canal may be visible behind the eye.

An adult can attain a length of 6 ft. and a mass of up to 370 lbs., which includes a thick layer of blubber that helps to maintain body temperature.

Females are generally smaller than males. Pups can weigh up to 35 lbs. and are able to swim and dive within hours of birth. They develop quickly on their mothers' fat-rich milk and are weaned after four to six weeks. Females can live to 30-35 years and males up to 25 years.

Harbor Seals are generally solitary, but often haul out in small groups, usually sticking to familiar rocky areas, pack ice, sand bars or beaches where they are protected from weather and predation.

Swimming Seal

They tend to be coastal, not venturing more than 15 miles offshore. They may spend several days at sea and travel up to 30 miles a day in search of feeding grounds; they have also been known to swim more than a 100 miles upstream into fresh water in large rivers in search of migratory fish like shad and salmon.

You can see the ear hole behind the eye of this mottled Seal

Harbor Seals frequently congregate in harbors, bays, sandy intertidal zones and estuaries in pursuit of prey fish such as salmon, anchovy, sea bass, herring, mackerel, cod, whiting and flatfish, and occasionally shrimp, crabs, mollusks and squid. Although primarily coastal, they can dive to more than 1,600 ft.

Swimming buddies

The global population of Harbor Seals is 350,000-500,000, but subspecies in certain habitats are threatened (not in Iceland). Once a common practice, sealing is now illegal in many nations within the animal's range.

On the Road

On the way back to Keflavik, we stopped a few times – first to photograph some Barnacle Geese with their Goslings …

Barnacle Geese

Once to photograph some Redwings that were flitting about in the beautiful flowers ...

A Redwing among the flowers

And, a few times just to photograph the beauty ...

A ghostly kind of beauty

As we drove back, we noticed an interesting hole in one of the glaciers atop a mountain that was probably in Skaftafell or Vatnajökull National Park. It looked like a heart – mirroring a small rock Scott had found earlier in the day – and a large rock I had photographed first time I was in Iceland with Scott.

I guess Iceland really has heart!

While we spent most of the day driving, it was glorious – especially those phenomenal purple flowers. It was a nice (almost) ending to a lovely trip.

Iceland has my heart

Keflavik

The next morning we had a short amount of time before we had to get to the airport for our trip home. It was a reasonably blustery – and briefly sunny again – morning, but we had to get going.