We were up early - very early - out by 4am to catch our flight to Keflavik, Iceland. Like everything in Copenhagen, the bus to the train to the airport was a smooth ordered process. They even provided bags for our 3oz liquids! Upon arriving in Iceland, we were famished, and unlike sunny Denmark, Iceland was solidly mid-March Seattle in weather: 50F and raining sideways, with dark, cloudy skies.
We gathered our bags and headed to the car rental place outside the airport on foot. How had we gone a week without a car and barely noticed? That was about to change.
We had imported our own “DanTaxi” from Denmark
With our Toyota CRH loaded, we headed to Grindavik, by way of the Blue Lagoon spa for some pics of very blue water. It looked like a very un-fun day at the spa.
This was the old road to Grindavik. It turned out that a month after we were there, there was a new eruption that threatened Grindavik and the Blue Lagoon Spa
Water outside the Blue Lagoon Spa
The Blue Lagoon Spa was originally a local hot pot that was created by the discharge of the neighboring geothermal plant (which is still in use). But it looked so cool, that tourists started arriving and there was money to be made, so it was turned into a high end (and most touristy) spa on the island. It is still a special place, but one we’d skip on this trip. It was also not the first time that @mini.turbodb said “wow, what is up with this place, it stinks!”
We moved on, had an unexciting lunch of hotdogs (a very Scandi thing to eat, it turns out) with frizzled onions, and drove up the coast toward more “stinky” geothermal attractions.
The roads from Grindavik. Me thinks this land might have been created by some recent volcanic action…
First stop, Graevatn, a green lake in the center of a volcanic crater.
Seltun Geothermic Area
Seltun Geothermic Area was the first time that @miniturbodb had ever seen bubbling mudpots or really smelled the intense sulfur smell of geological phenomena in action (The Blue Lagoon was eerie and mildly stinky, but not like this). @miniturbodb was beginning to get what kind of adventure this part of our trip was going to be.
We stopped briefly at a yarn store (@mrsturbodb knits) to see the yarn products, and as she had been warned, the yarn was super itchy. Nie!
There was more geology to be had - the Kerid Crater. With all of us a bit tired from our early morning flight, and not wanting to fight the crowds which were mobbing the pay parking lot, we opted to go around the corner, and send our little flying friend to take a look for us.
Our flying friend
Kerid Crater from above. Kind of like Ubehebe, but smaller and wetter
Having only had a hot dog each, it was time to get some more (and better) sustenance - at Café Almafi in Selfoss we downed some delicious sandwiches and pastries, after exploring the nearby grocery store (they had whole lamb heads!). We continued along the flat plane of the Southern coast of Iceland until we reached our little abode for the next three days - the Bru Guest House. It was black, boxy, and just right. It felt very Icelandic. The next stage of our adventure had really begun.
Bru Guest House with Eyjafjallajokull in the distance
But it was now time to hunt for dinner. The place that most appealed was surprisingly the restaurant in the Viking Saga museum where we had burgers (it was the only thing on the menu). The restaurant was better than expected. It felt as though they were very intent on getting guests in the era, as they had transformed a warehouse into a Viking den with wooden stadium seating, horse pelts (with manes) on the walls, and drumming set to loud.
Satiated, we headed back to the Bru House in perpetual twilight, still able to admire the mountain, the distant waterfalls, and meadow in the near distance. Despite the time change, we had no trouble falling asleep - with the window shades decidedly pulled down.
The next day...
It was our first day on the island of Iceland so naturally, the plan was to head to an even smaller island off of Iceland - the Westman Islands, specifically. We hustled out the door, cinnamon raisin bagels and cream cheese barely consumed, only to realize that my timing was off so we were 30 minutes early! The extra time gave us a chance to frolic in the lupine fields that seemed to extend in every direction.
Everyone else was enjoying breakfast as we rushed off toward the ferry
The Westman Islands beckon in the distance
@mrs.turbodb in the lupine
Soon enough, our ferry had arrived and it was time to board. The crowd waiting to board was very international, many eagerly anticipating all of the birds they would see. Much to my surprise, someone recognized my hat - and my college. And as happens once every three years that this happens, they went there too! (@turbodb’s alma mater gear gets recognized at least once a trip - basically, whenever we see people. Not that I’m jealous…) Unsurprisingly, they were headed to the Westman Islands to see the birds as the islands are known for their huge seabird population, especially puffins who nest there by the millions each year. I was praying that the islands would deliver.
Your ferry awaits… to swallow you up… NOM NOM NOM!
The double-decker car ferry, loaded the top deck first, lifting the last car into place, before loading the bottom deck - a clever way to get a full ferry across to the island. We lucked out and the seas were relatively calm (or pleasantly rocking, depending on your point of view). It was fun overhearing Korean, Japanese, Russian, Swedish, and fellow American tourists and guessing where everyone was from. And watching the birds as the islands came into view. Can’t forget the birds!
@miniturbodb
Gull in flight
Bjarnarey Island
As we approached the harbor, we could see more of the islands that make up the small (and ever growing) archipelago. Most had one small little house and a few sheep on them; one can only imagine the isolation.
Unobstructed view
How do you get up there? With sheep?
Vestmannaeyjar, the only town in the Westman Islands, is full of murals
Having arrived, we made a bee-line for the puffin cliffs, but first we had to stop and check out the Icelandic horses - which we had already discovered were almost as plentiful in Iceland as the sheep.
Icelandic Horses sure are cute
Free-roaming sheep. Given the time of year, all of the sheep we saw were ewes and lambs - rams are kept locked up during the summer to prevent untimely pregnancies.
Once at Stor hofdi, the southernmost point on Heimaey Island, we trotted around, along with many of our fellow ferry passengers, looking for puffins in the very gusty wind. Despite tales of millions of puffins, we saw very few: yesterday’s storm meant that they had hunkered down, and today, they were out at sea, making up for lost feeding time. But there were enough for a few cute pictures.
@miniturbodb on the cliffs edge
Puffins!
Lonely cabin
Shaggy sheep don’t care what you think
Pictures snapped, we headed back to town for lunch. Fortunately, the skies had cleared while we were eating, which made our meander around town (once again following Rick Steve’s walking tour, this time in his Iceland guidebook), checking out various murals, interesting housing, including those swallowed by lava, and the lava field itself, much more pleasant. In 1973, the town (and to be clear, the only town in the island chain), was nearly swallowed up when a new volcano (Eldfell) appeared and started oozing lava across the landscape over a few month period. The island grew by 25%.
Teen photobomb
Blatindur House - where the lava stopped before taking over the rest of the town
The rest of town
Rainbow stairs to the top of the lava field. Icelanders really love color, especially rainbow walkways. I like it!
Street signs on top of the pumice were used to help people identify where their houses were buried feet below, and in some cases, to memorialize when the houses were subsumed
On our tour, we walked up a set of rainbow steps that led to the top of the lava field that had buried a portion of the old town. During that time, everyone was evacuated to the mainland. One of the big concerns was the harbor - the lava flow, if unchecked, had the potential of closing off the harbor, and killing the fishing industry with it. They found a clever solution: pumping 9.5 million cubic yards of sea water to stop the progress of the lava, which worked! After the lava flow stopped, and the ash and lava bombs stopped falling, like good Icelanders, they used the residual heat of the lava flow for hot water, heating, and electricity for the town.
The Harbor Entrance (note the lava flow on the right), Danish Fortress remains, and the little black Norwegian church
The little island had had another big issue in earlier years (as in: the 1600s): pirates, including one famous raid where a large portion of the town was carted off to be sold into slavery on the Barbary Coast. As a result, the Danish crown (which ruled Iceland at the time), established a fort (with one canon!) to protect from future raids.
Front and back of the House of the Gods by Niels Christian Frandsen, 1999
With our walking tour completed, we headed up the hill past the two volcanos, Helgafell (The old one) and Eldfell (the new one) to find a light house we could barely see from the ferry. It was a sweet moment of just us, the wind, the sun, and the sea. We had the place all to ourselves.
Found it! (but couldn’t go up it) Note the little tiny house on the distant island all by itself
Sea arch
Soon it was time to head back down to the ferry and to the crush of tourists heading back. Once back at the house, we were glad for a big dinner salad made at home and then off to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a big one and we’d need our sleep!
The Whole Story
