Iceland Day 2
This turned out to be a very long and eventful day (as just about every day in Iceland was). We started the day with renting our 4x4 in Reykjavík, and heading east along highway 1 (the Ring Road) along the southern coast of the country (starting our counterclockwise journey around Iceland). First stop was the Geothermal Power Plant. Along our eastward travels, we stopped at Hveragerði Geothermal Park, Seljalandsfoss, Skógafoss, Mýrdalsjökull glacier and Sólheimajökull outlet glacier, Reynisfjara Beach, the town of Vik, and Dyrhólaey
Geothermal Power Plant
This facility provides Reykjavík with all of its hot water and much of its electricity.
This facility provides Reykjavík with all of its hot water and much of its electricity.
Hveragerði Geothermal Park
Small town that has its own Geothermal vents centrally located and provides hot water to the town. We toured the small park while passing through on the ring road.
Small town that has its own Geothermal vents centrally located and provides hot water to the town. We toured the small park while passing through on the ring road.
Seljalandsfoss
Beautiful waterfall that is quite unique, in that it is one of the very few in Iceland that you can walk behind and stay relatively dry. We battled the rain prior to arriving here and waited it out in the 4x4 until it cleared up. We got luck and were able to explore for more than an hour without any more rain coming down on us.
Beautiful waterfall that is quite unique, in that it is one of the very few in Iceland that you can walk behind and stay relatively dry. We battled the rain prior to arriving here and waited it out in the 4x4 until it cleared up. We got luck and were able to explore for more than an hour without any more rain coming down on us.
Skógafoss
This was one of our favorite stops of the day. After climbing to the top of the waterfall on the east side, we were able to travel upstream of the waterfall where the scenery was even more beautiful than the waterfall itself.
This was one of our favorite stops of the day. After climbing to the top of the waterfall on the east side, we were able to travel upstream of the waterfall where the scenery was even more beautiful than the waterfall itself.
Mýrdalsjökull glacier and Sólheimajökull outlet glacier
This was a great stop. There was no other soul in site for the majority of this hike, and we were able to see (and touch) our first glacier. The area was beautiful, quiet, serene and desolate. The glacier was covered in volcanic ash as it receded towards Mýrdalsjökull main glacier during the summer.
This was a great stop. There was no other soul in site for the majority of this hike, and we were able to see (and touch) our first glacier. The area was beautiful, quiet, serene and desolate. The glacier was covered in volcanic ash as it receded towards Mýrdalsjökull main glacier during the summer.
Reynisfjara Beach and the town of Vik
Beautiful beach with many hexagonal basalt rock formations situated in the cliff along the shore with eroded areas in the cliff side making small pseudo-cave-like coverings in the cliff wall. Spires of basalt rock formations just off shore in the distance. There was a gentle gradient of large-to-small rocks covering the beach, which evolved into finer particles (and eventually black sand) as we approached the water. The town of Vik was quaint, but we had no time to stop, as it was about 10:30pm at the time that we made it there (and still needed to see Dyrhólaey on our way back).
Beautiful beach with many hexagonal basalt rock formations situated in the cliff along the shore with eroded areas in the cliff side making small pseudo-cave-like coverings in the cliff wall. Spires of basalt rock formations just off shore in the distance. There was a gentle gradient of large-to-small rocks covering the beach, which evolved into finer particles (and eventually black sand) as we approached the water. The town of Vik was quaint, but we had no time to stop, as it was about 10:30pm at the time that we made it there (and still needed to see Dyrhólaey on our way back).
Dyrhólaey
This was a great viewpoint for many reasons. We got there close to midnight (still daylight!), and didn't get the best views possible of this rock formation, but it was still beautiful. The beach of black sand along the east side of the rock formation was completely deserted as we walked along the basalt cliff-side. The roaring sound of the waves echoing off the surrounding rock was soothing.
This was a great viewpoint for many reasons. We got there close to midnight (still daylight!), and didn't get the best views possible of this rock formation, but it was still beautiful. The beach of black sand along the east side of the rock formation was completely deserted as we walked along the basalt cliff-side. The roaring sound of the waves echoing off the surrounding rock was soothing.