Iceland! The ultimate road trip!

I think I am finally ready to write about my trip to Iceland.  Why Iceland people ask. I have been drawn to Iceland for the past 10 years.  The people, their love of poetry and art and the landscape, oh my heavens I have never seen such beautiful photos.  Waterfalls, glaciers, mountains and valleys. I looked for people to go with me, but no one seemed too interested. 

My husband finally said, "Just go." My friends said, "Just go." So I went.  I planned a 15 day trip at the end of July and into August 2014.  And Yes I went by myself.  

Iceland is not an inexpensive vacation.  I searched for inexpensive
places to stay months in advance, I scoured car rental companies and carefully planned a budget.  I  decided that I would be able to afford it if I camped about every third night.  Iceland is full of campgrounds.  Almost every small town has a campground.

I carefully packed my bags almost to the ounce.  I took a suitcase that weighed 50 lbs, a carry on, and my camera bag, a Click Elite camera bag, that was as heavy as  backpack. On top of the camera back pack I had secured my tent. It was quite a sight!

The flight was long, but not uncomfortable.  I had a short layover in New York and then a night flight to Iceland.  The lady I sat next to was also a solo traveler. She wanted to do something that extend her comfort zone.  Is that why I was doing this as well? Maybe.

The airport was very small for an international airport.  I showed my passport to the man at the counter who was very serious.  I snapped a photo of this sign while I was waiting.

Oh I was in Iceland that is for sure. The land of Vikings and sagas. 

I had given the wrong flight arrival to my rental car company before I left and there was no one to pick me up.  MY phone didn't work because apparently Verizon doesn't work internationally, they don't have the right service.  I was going to borrow a phone from a man, a former bishop, who owned a travel agency, but I didn't have it yet.  So I waited for an hour and tried to find the right phone number.  I finally asked one of the people at the desk if they would call for me.  No luck.  Found another phone number and finally got ahold of the agency. By the way, the car rental company was Iceland 4x4 car rental.

They came to pick me up which was a relief.  I had reserved a suzuki jimny, but they gave my a Hyundai Tuscon because they were worried about me driving a smaller vehicle for such an extended trip.  I am glad they did.  The Tucson was an automatic, but that was OK.

So here I was in Iceland, armed with a map and a GPS to help me navigate my way.  I had the address of the bishop, so I punched that into the GPS and started to drive.  Instead of red lights at intersections there are a lot of roundabouts.  It was difficult to tell which way on the roundabout the GPS wanted me to take.  I finally made it to the address the GPS was telling me, but while English is spoken in Iceland, the signs are not in English.  I was in an industrial area and it was hard to figure out where to go.  I finally decided to just go without a phone. 

 It was raining and hard to see, but I did find a grocery store.  I then said a little prayer and decided to just head out to my first destination. Pakgil Campground.  Once I got at of the city, the driving was much easier.  Very similar to what I am used to driving in Utah.  I still needed a phone so I stopped in Selfoss and stopped in the library and they directed me to a place that sold phones. Almost 75.00 for a cheap little plastic phone that I would never really use.  Oh Well.  I felt safer.

The landscape was just as I had pictured and had seen from other photos.  Green and wet.  

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My first stop was Skogar.  This is an old farm that has been restored with turfed roofs. It was closed, but I wandered through it anyway.  Then I noticed that someone was in the gift shop and not wanting to break any trespassing laws I knocked on the door.  A young lady answered the door and with a look of disdain that I didn't often see in Iceland told me to not worry about it.

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My first waterfall stop was Skogafoss.  Oh my heavens it was magnificent. I can still hear the sound of the roaring falls in my memory. Unfortunately it was still raining and it was difficult to keep my camera dry. 

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View from on top of Skogafoss.

While I was taking photos a family came riding up on their Icelandic horses.  I snapped this photo of them before they rode away.  I talked to the little girl and she said the horses were her grandfathers.  Imagine going on a horse ride in a place like this.

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I still had several hours to make it to the Pakgil campground.  This campground was really out of the way and the road was not paved, but this was one place that I just had to see.  When you read Lonely Planet travel books, it puts you in touch with out of the way places. I guess you could say, "This is a ranch exit."  I passed through the town of Vik which was absolutely enchanting, but I had scheduled this stop tomorrow, so I went through the town and finally arrived at Pakgil campground.  It was beyond description.  All throughout my trip it was hard to believe that I was actually here and seeing things for myself rather than looking at picture books.

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This photo was taken about 2:00 in the morning.  It had finally stopped raining and I crawled into my sleeping bag with ideas and pictures of the day swimming in my head.

I was up early the next day, mostly because it is hard to sleep when it is light, but also, because I was in Iceland!  Who can sleep.

Day 2

I was very excited for my next stop-- The back sanded beach near Vik Iceland with it's sea stacks rising from the surf.  It had stopped raining and the sun was peaking through the clouds.  I have never seen such light and cloud combinations in my life.  The lighting when it is not raining is a photographer's dream.

I was not disappointed.  As I walked along the black sanded beach and listened to the surf pounding on the rocks I was overwhelmed with gratefulness to Heavenly Father who made this incredible world for us.  I felt like I was in a dream and I know a smile never left my face.  I have to admit.  I brought a bit of the black sand home with me.

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As I was getting gas on the car, I looked up at the little church on the hill and the clouds had parted and the sun was shining only on the little church.  I grabbed my camera and took this photo.  Every small community has some sort of a church.  Some of the farms are so far away from towns that they have their own churches as well.  The churches are used mostly for community centers, only about 10% of citizens attend a church service regularly.  Still, they are well kept and a comfort to see.  75% identify with the Lutheran Church and only .06% are LDS.  I wanted to attend an LDS church service, but there are very few branches.  Several in Reykjavik and one in Akureyri  In fact Iceland belongs to a stake in Denmark.

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I had brought 6 Book of Mormons with me that I intend to give out. I ordered them in Icelandic and had the kids write their testimonies on the front cover.  I ended up giving all six away.  More stories on some of those experiences later.

I was headed to Höfn and then on to a small hostel called Statafell.

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Photos along the way.

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I stopped at Skaftafell, but it was way too crowded so I didn't stop, but Vatnajökull National Park is the largest national park in Europe. You are very close to the glaciers.

The next stop was one I was excited about. It is Jökulsárlón  or 

glacier lagoon.  Again I wasn't disappointed.  It was misty but not raining and the light was absolutely fabulous.  Words can't even describe how I felt watching those icebergs float out to the sea and the gurgle the bubbles made as they escaped from the water.  One thing about traveling by yourself is that you have time to reflect without being worried about carrying on a conversation. I think that is why sometimes I like to go by myself.  I talk to people all day long at my job.

I stopped in Höfn to see the harbor and also to try some lobster or

Langostino. It was good, but it cost about 45.00 which was most of my food budget for that day.

The harbor was picturesque.

 

Then a stop at  Hof Church, another church I wanted to see.  There are only 5 original turf roofed churches left in Iceland.  I visited four of them.  One of them was on private property and I could not reach it.  The Hof Church is the newest church.  It is first mentioned in 1343, so it has been a ecclesiastical site for almost 700 years.  The core of the current church as built in 1884 and was the last turg built in the old Icelandic style.  It's walls are assembled of rocks and it's roof made of stone slabs, covered in turf. I left my first Book of Mormon here.

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The inside.

The hardware is original.

From here I attempted to find Stokkness or the Batman Mountains. I didn't have a lot of information but I was able to finally locate it. I couldn't read the highway signs. The place I wanted to take a picture had a sign in front of the road.  I thought it said "No trespassing" but now I think it said, "Dead end."

Stokkness.

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And from there to my 2nd night.  I had made a reservation for Staftafell, but the man at the door did not have a record of it. I was worried becaue there weren't too many places near here to stay.Fortunately there was a room available with a bathroom! Yeah!  No bed linens, but that is why I brought my sleeping bag.  This room was 45.00 a night.

Day 3

From Statafell I was headed to Neskaupstaður about a 5 hour drive. I drove about 3-5 hours every day with lots of stops to see things 
along the way. I had to check into the hostel by 6pm. The hostel was located above a record store, and was one of the nicest I stayed in.  Here are some photos along the way on road 96.

Streitisviti Lighthouse 

Hafnarnes Light, Fjarðabyggð, 

I saw this guy golfing on a small golf course and stopped to talk with him.  He said that he will go golfing in Florida and Scotland during the long winter months.  There is a whole group of people that go every year.  Now that's the way to beat the long Icelandic winters.

To get to Neskaupstaður takes nerves of steel. First you travel on the highest highway pass in Iceland.  630 meters.  Then you travel through this long one lane  half mile tunnel with only pull out places to pass. The first time I saw headlights coming my way was scary.   Then you swoop down into this little town, one of my favorites in Iceland.

My home for the night on the top floor of a record store!

Always a diet pepsi!

The next few hours would prove to be some of my favorite times spent in Iceland.  I drove out to this very lonely lighthouse that is located at the end of a very long winding road.  the Dalatangi lighthouse is the oldest in Iceland.  There is a new lighthouse, orange of course, that was built next to this.  To get there I had to go back up the mountain, through the tunnel and over to 
MJÓIFJÖRÐUR.  

I was pretty much by myself this entire time. The lighting again was fabulous. The road was easy to drive, even if it was dirt and even though this is the narrowest fjord in Iceland. Near the top of the mountain going down into Mjóifjörður I took this photo. The distances you can see in some spots are incredible, because there are no mountains to get in the way.

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Klifbrekkufossar

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And this.

And this.

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I finally get to the lighthouse.  And there is a lightkeepers home nearby.  They are sitting on the back porch and they wave and I wave back.  Just like it would be the most normal thing in the world for a single middle aged woman to be out here in the middle of no where.  Here is a photo of the light house. 

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I  wasn't sure if I should have made this journey to Dalatangi lighthouse.  It was late when I started, of course, the summer sun never sets in Iceland, but I was glad I did.  It was beautiful and soul searching  On the way back I saw this.

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Then back down the road, up the mountain, through the tunnel and down into Neskaupstaður.  I got back to Tonspil about 1:00am.

Day 4

Today will be one of the longest driving.  I am headed to Godafoss where I will camp pretty close to the falls.  I could just do the ring road, but I want to experience some of the interior.   So I am taking a bit of a detour into the interior. I am a bit worried about the roads and if I will be able to navigate my way.  My map isn't all that great.  I haven't been able to find a map I like.

I stopped in Egilsstaðir to get gas and found a tourist book in a store. Maybe this can help me navigate my way through the interior. I heard some people talking English and talked to them for a few minutes. They are from New York and even though in America we probably wouldn't have even noticed each other, here we talk like long lost friends! 

 This particular town is full of Europeans of every nationality.  It is probably the most touristy town I have been to.  There is a ferry that comes from Faroe Islands (another bucket list destination) once a week. Many Europeans bring their own cars to Iceland on the ferry.

My route is going to take me past Lagarfljót a pretty large lake that has beautiful camping spots in the trees. One thing that Iceland is lacking is trees and is a place that Icelanders flock to because of the trees.  Icelanders joke that if you get lost in an Icelandic forest, all you have to do is stand up!  Lagarfljót also has a creature living in it's depths, not unlike the Loch Ness Monster or the Bear Lake Creature. It is called, ready for it, the worm.

I stopped at Skriðuklaustur an old monastery for lunch and for about 20.00 they have a great buffet with  recipes using local mushrooms, angelica, berries, etc. One of the few places in Iceland that takes advantage of the local wild food source. Icelanders love hot dogs.  Every gas station I stopped at had hot dogs.  And ice cream, go figure.

Skriðuklaustur is also the former home of Gunnar Gunnarsson a popular writer.  Icelanders celebrate their writers and poets like none other.  Almost every town has a writer that they celebrate and own.

This is the Highlands

This particular farm is the highest in all of Iceland.  Möðrudalur, of course like many isolated farms has it's own church.  There was a rainbow as I pulled up so I quickly got my camera out.

I had wanted to make it to Askja a volcanic cauldron, but there had been a landslide there not to long ago and they were asking people not to go there. 

By the time I made it to Goðafoss campground I was pretty tired. the people at this Fosshotel were not as friendly as other people I had encountered.  I pitched my tent in the campground which was only 500 yards from the waterfall. I noticed they had a laundry room leading into the basement and I hadn't washed my clothes during the trip, so I put some clothes in.  Somehow they got stuck in the dryer  and I couldn't get them out.  I finally did, but I can't remember how. I ended up just throwing my wet clothes over the back seat of the car.

But my this waterfall was a joy to photograph. I spent many hours, way into the night (2:00 am) taking pictures. This was another memorable soul searching and finding night.  Not only because I was the only soul there after 10:00, but also because this was the coldest night I have had in Iceland.  I had brought some hand warmers with me, but I was too cold to go to the car.  I think I slept a few hours, but not much.  I was worried about making it to Dalvik the next day for my trip to the Arctic Circle. The ferry left at 9:00am and it was an hour and a half drive to get there.

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Day 5

I am so excited.  Today I am going to the Arctic Circle and I am going to see some puffins.  I saw my first puffins near Vik beach, but they weren't too close.  I made it Dalvik OK and waited for the ferry to take me to Grímsey Island. A part of Grímsey lies 
in the Arctic Circle.  The water was pretty choppy on the way to the island.  Lots of people were sick, but it didn't really bother me.

When we got to the island, the first thing I did was find the seasonal restaurant for lunch.  They had some pretty exotic items on the menu.  One of which was puffin.  I think the puffin is similar to our magpies.  The locals don't like them too much.  They are noisy and messy and they dig their nests into the island, slowly eroding it away.

I didn't try the puffin, but I guy next to me said it was pretty good,.  I had the local fish catch of the day.  After eating I went in search of puffins.  I asked a local kid where they might be and he said, "Walk that way.  You will find them."  Also, on this island are thousands of arctic terns.  There are so many of them, they have to clear the runway so the planes can land.

 Puffins

                    Arctic Tern Chick

Loving Life








I was so enthralled with the puffins I didn't make it to see the church or the lighthouse.  The island is about 5 square miles with 100 people and the only way to get around is by walking.  Another great day!  A dream come true to see puffins so close.

Me at the Arctic Circle.

The ferry got back into Dalvik about 7:00.  I was going to camp this night, but I was worried about the rain so before I left I booked a room into the Fosshotel.

Fosshotel.  Shared bathroom, but really nice accomodations. I liked this hotel.

Day 7

After a good night's rest and a long warm shower, I had a Icelandic breakfast, very similar to a Scandinavian breakfast with lots of protein, boiled eggs, cheese, herring a bit of anchovy paste and fresh vegetables.  

The Icelanders love tomatoes and cucumbers because that is one thing they can grow in their hot houses.   Their greenhouses are heated with geothermal heat as are most of the homes in Iceland. Other produce is quite expensive.  I think a paid 4 dollars for a banana.  

In fact when I went into grocery stores I noticed that people were very selective about their food.  It is very expensive here.  They eat a lot of processed food for that reason.

They do have a wonderful treasure called Skyr (skeer). A kind of yogurt but thicker like sour cream.  I ate a lot of skyr and cheese and crackers on my trip.

This was a typical lunch.

So back to day 7.

I spent this day in the at Dettifoss, Asybergi,  the town of 

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Húsavík.  Dettifoss is extremely powerful.





Dettifoss

Húsavík Harbor

I was going to go whale watching in Húsavík, but I decided I had already done that in Alaska.

Along the way

I spent the night in Akureyri in a very nice quest house.  The owner  of the quest house had several properties around town.  When you got to the door, you pushed a button and you spoke into a speaker.  I suspect she lived nearby, because she said, "I'll be over in a minute."  My room was on the top floor and had a nice view of the town below. Akureyri has the second largest population in Iceland.  18,000.  About the same size has my home town--Brigham City.  I had dinner at a hamburger joint and walked around town a bit.  Driving was hard today so I was kind of tired.  Guess what the hamburger joint served with it's fries?  Fry sauce.  Yep.  Just like we make in Utah.

Day 8