Iceland

Last week Chris and I took our first cold-weather holiday . . . to Iceland.  Not being skiers, we realized this was very different for us, as we packed plenty of clothes to layer against the cold and snow.  We also made sure to pack our camera equipment in hopes of catching the Northern Lights.

Ranga’s Polar Bear

Breaking from the normal tourist behavior, we rented a 4-wheel drive car and stayed in a hotel 1 1/2 hours away from the tourist hub.

When we checked into the hotel, they told us our room had been upgraded . . . we knew that was a great start to our trip.  But, we were a little surprised to see our room . . .

Staying in Africa with a view of snow outside wasn’t really what we had envisioned.

Hotel Ranga has been said to be the best place in Iceland to see the Northern Lights, and as it may be a once-in-a-lifetime event, we wanted to do it right the first time.  The manager of the hotel is an Aurora Borealis hobbyist.  He researches solar activity, the lunar phase & intensity and weather conditions (cloud cover, visibility & air temperature) to give all the guests an opinion of what to expect that night.  Just in case the lights are visible, all the guests that would like, can ask for a wake-up call when the lights come out.  At that point, you have to bundle up quickly, grab your camera equipment, and get outside.  Sometimes the lights last 20 minutes, but often they only last as little as 2.  We were really lucky and were able to see lights all 3 nights we were there.

Night 1, 1st Sighting

Before leaving, the one thing we DID do to prepare for our trip was research how to take pictures of the Lights.  We are not experts at all, but once we got the hang of what we were doing, we got some pretty neat pictures.  We were, however, very surprised how different the Northern Lights look in person, as opposed to how they look in pictures.  In person, they look like glowing, wisps of clouds . . and at times you can see a little green-ish hue.  Then once you take the picture, with a long exposure, you can see the bright colors.  It was very neat to watch them ‘dance’ and move around.

Night 1

The second night we were there, the lights were out around 8:00 p.m. while we were eating dinner.  The hotel staff came in to tell us and most people left the restaurant, leaving their food behind.

Night 2, 1st Sighting

As the night went on, the lights got stronger and, on our last trip out, the whole sky seemed to be glowing.

Night 2

Admittedly, by the third night, we felt we had gotten some good pictures so did without the wake-up call.  We enjoyed the sunset and went to bed.

It was actually nice to get an uninterrupted night of sleep.  Most of the other guests who did go out said they weren’t as strong as the nights before, so we were grateful we had made that decision.

Our days in Iceland were spent driving on the Ringroad, reading out of our tourist book as we drove, and stopping every hour or so to see a highlight.

Brushing off the Car before Heading Out

We learned that Iceland is very sparsely populated.  They have about 300,000 people in the entire country, and 200,000 of them live in and around the capital, Reykjavik!  So, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that we could drive for at least half an hour before seeing another car or house.

Moss Fields

Iceland only has one and ONLY one main road – the Ringroad.  It’s goes around the perimeter of the island and the ‘interior’ of the country is considered Europe’s ‘last true wilderness.’  Our rental car wasn’t covered for going into the interior.  In fact, if you do drive into the interior, it’s recommended that you take a tow rope, shovel, basic spare parts, and plenty of fuel.  I don’t think we’re that adventurous.

Some of the highlights –

Skalholt:

This is considered a religious center so as we drove through that area, we thought we’d see what was there.  We drove into the little village and found a large church with a visitor’s center next door.  When we tried the door for the visitor’s center, it was locked and there was a note that said to contact a member of staff to have it opened.  We just walked around the church and drove on.

Skalholt Church

Geysir:

Even a couple miles out from reaching Geysir, you could see steam rising from the ground.  We were surprised that this big site-seeing treasure was free.  We just walked in the gates and meandered around the path, watching the steam just rise from the little hot springs.

The ground level itself, not just the little pools, are just off boiling point.  There were signs everywhere not to wander off the path.  Then you come upon the big spectacle, Strokkur, ‘the Churn.’

Strokkur

The original spouter, Geysir (where the actual name originates from), is now relatively inactive.  But, Strokkur goes off every few minutes, shooting about thirty-meters high.  We were lucky to walk up just as it was starting to go off.

Gullfoss:

Gullfoss, meaning ‘Golden Falls,’ is like two waterfalls in one.  We went down the main path to see the falls, but the steps looked rather icy so we took quick pictures and then were on our way back to the car before we decided to go out to the overhang looking down on the falls.  I’m so glad we did because we would have missed the entire Gullfoss!

Gulfoss Waterfalls

You also can’t see it in the picture, but there was an ever-present rainbow over the falls from the continuous mist.

Eyjafjallajokull:

The volcano that postponed our first family holiday from London was definitely on our to-see list while in Iceland.

Volcano Visitor’s Center

We found the little visitor’s center on the side of the Ringroad and pulled over.  It is a renovated garage where they show a film of the explosion and how it affected the people who lived just underneath the glacier.  The film was amazing – to think that they thought about filming before it happened, while it was occurring, and afterward.  The woman who worked there was very nice and showed us around the other little things they had displayed.

Farm under Glacier

When we walked out of the visitor’s center, not far down the road we saw the farm from the film and connected all the clues.  The woman in the center was the woman from the film, the one that lived on the farm.  Such an amazing story of rebuilding.

Skogar:

On the other side of Eyjafjallajokull there are a number of waterfalls from the glacier’s run-off.  The one in Skogar is the biggest of them all.

Skogar Waterfall

Down a bit on the road is a folk museum that was recommended to us, so we stopped in.  The curator of the museum, Pordur Tomasson, has collected all these wonderful things showing much of the national history.  While we were there, he walked around a bit with us explaining a few things.  Then he sat down and played his dulcimer while singing to us.  I wish I would’ve been brave enough to have taken a picture!

My favorite thing about the folk museum was the outdoor portion, where Tomasson relocated different turf farm and other village buildings.  You could walk into all of them and see what it was like to live there.

Turf Farm

Vik:

Village Church

Vik is Iceland’s only coastal village without a harbor.  We stopped in because of the wool factory and outlet (where we didn’t end up buying anything), but were thrilled to come upon the black beach nearby.

We were able to collect some pretty neat volcanic rocks for the kids.  Although, it was a little odd to be strolling the beach while it was snowing.

Behind me in the picture above, there are tall, offshore spires known as Reynisdrangar, or the ‘Troll Rocks.’  These are said to be petrified trolls that were caught by the sun as they were trying to drag a boat ashore.

A Local Tour ‘Bus’

The further out into the country we got, the vehicles changed shapes and sizes.  We got a kick out of this ‘bus’ all suited out for the Icelandic weather.

Day to Day Icelandic Living:

Breakfast Fish

We had breakfast every day in the hotel and we always went for the ‘English Breakfast’ but it was always a surprise to see the fish and vodka there for breakfast.

Breakfast Vodka

It was a little surprising to stop in the local village grocery store and find an ENTIRE row of yarn.  We have a hard time even finding it in a specialty shop here in London and they can get it at the grocery store!  Most Icelanders knit and make their own clothing.

Grocery Store Yarn

It was COLD!  With the wind blowing across the flat land, we would walk outside and instantly freeze.  I’m not good with cold, and this could very well explain why this was our first ‘cold holiday’.

Car’s Thermometer

Seeing the ‘real’ Iceland was definitely one of our favorite things of this trip.  The view out the car windows was always unbeatable!

Icelandic Horses Out to Pasture

It took us a day or so to get used to the idea of no addresses.  Directions tended to be “only house on the left between Heimaey and Vik.”  To help know when you’ve truly arrived at the desired house, each families’ names are printed by the road, pointing to which lone lane you brave to get to the home.

“House Signs”

The best ‘small-town’ feeling we got was when we had to go to the doctor for Chris’s strep throat.  Everyone took their boots off at the door and walked around in their socks.  It definitely helped with keeping the floors dry and it created such a casual atmosphere.

Boots at the Doctor’s Office

Dog-Sledding:

This was the only planned event we had while in Iceland and, I have to say, by far, our favorite memory!!

Chris had signed us up for a 3 hour adventure session.

We got to meet the dogs, . . .

. . . harness them, . . .

. . . and hook them up to the sled.

Once we got everything prepped, we were ready!

Chris Ready to ‘Mush’

Team Just Chillin’

I got to ride on the sled for the first hour while Chris and Keith, our guide, did the driving.  I had a pretty nice view.

Riding on the Sled

There wasn’t much to driving the sled, other than staying on.  The dogs are so trained to go on their normal route, so when we diverted from the ‘norm’, Keith had to get off and run in front of the team until they were back where we wanted them to be.

Keith Leading the Dogs

We rested after an hour’s run and I got to co-drive with Keith for awhile.  Then Keith traded with Chris so the two of us got to lead the dogs solo back to the cabin.  It was really fun!

Enjoying our Rest Half-way

Reykjavik:

On our last day in Iceland, we checked out of our hotel and drove through poor visibility and wind to get to the capital, Reykjavik.

There are definitely a few things to visit the tourist hub for, even if for only a couple hours.

More of the viking history:

Hanging out with a Viking

The highest point in Rykjavik is here at the Hallgrimskirkja church.

Hallgrimskirkja Church with Leif Erickson

You can go up the church’s tower to a viewing platform and get an amazing view across the city.

View of Reykjavik

We definitely hit the tourist shops and got souvenirs for the kids before heading to the airport.

Icelandic Flag

When we arrived home, the kids were excited to see us, but went on and on about all the fun they had with David & Emily Marble, who watched them.  They had a great ‘holiday’ of their own here at home and we’re so grateful to have friends who will play ‘Mom & Dad’ for a few days!

Kids with Marbles (& souvenirs)