Flashback Friday - Finishing the Ring Road 2019

It was the end of the tour, but it did not go out with a whimper.  Our last morning we woke up to a clear sky so we finally got another glorious sunrise. This morning we drove to Hvitserkur.  The land had eroded away leaving clumps of volcanic rock standing stark against the sky.  Legends say they were trolls that were turned to stone as they walked the coastline. 

It was a bit of a scramble to get down to the beach, but the view was incredible.  I found a little piece of ice that mimicked the rock formation for my picture, and then chucked it back into the sea so my image will always be unique!  After we finished and driving back along the main road, I saw a little farm nestled between two mountains that just seemed too perfect to me for a photo stop.

We carried on back towards Reykjavik, having lunch an a lovely little lunch at a small town with a little museum we could explore.  Travelling along we stopped many times to take pictures of the various mountains and rivers along the road.  You really would have to work hard to take a bad picture there!

The tour wrapped back up in Reykjavik, and my family was a little worn out, so the other guest and myself went for one last walk around town and had dinner had a lovely restaurant.  They had some local delicacies on the menu, and while I have tried some weird things while I travel, I did not want to try the fermented shark.  Nor the horsemeat.  I’m not judging! Those just did not appeal to me, to each their own.

It was an absolutely wonderful trip, I came home with thousands of pictures to sort through and an amazing experience with my dad and stepmom.  I still need to go back again, the guide assured us that everyone needs to see Iceland at least twice, once in the winter and once in the summer.  

Flashback Friday - Northern Iceland 2019

 Our drive back towards the west was a little fast than the one east.  There was not quite as much to see in the north of Iceland as our tour wound down.  We started out in the morning headed for Akureyri for lunch. It’s called the capital of the north, and was an absolutely beautiful small town.  It can get very busy in the summer apparently.  It’s another fishing village and a great spot for whale watching tours. 

Along our drive after lunch, we stopped at the Hraundrangi mountain range, which has an interesting spire peak.  Right below it also sits a single isolated farmstead.  I thought it made an absolutely stunning image for the isolation in Iceland. It might be one of my favourite images, though I think it’s under-appreciated as the little house is so small.  

One of the really interesting parts of the tour, as has been mentioned, was the local professional photography expert as our guide.  I learned so much from him, and he knew so many of the best places to take some landscape photography in his county.  He had his camera with him, and used it occasionally.  There was, however, a lot of been there seen that.  So while we were photographing Hraundrangi, we suddenly noted him hurrying down the road way with his camera.  Looking left quickly we spotted the sun and clouds over the mountains that had attracted his attention, so we all followed suit. 

We stopped for sunset along a river with some waterfalls along the road.  In those days at least, there was a lot of common sense assumed for tourists.  Walking past the small caution sign advising us of the cliffs, the guide and I clambered down into the gorge a little way.  The rest of the group was a little more cautious, though still explored the site for some amazing shots.  I don’t think our guide expected me to be quite so bold and to follow him in climbing up to some breathtaking spots for pictures.  I have some many great ones so this post is going to have more than my usual token example.

We stayed that night at a guesthouse in Hunavellir that used to be an old boarding school.  It was quite simple, but a nice spot for our final night before we had to head back to Reykjavik for the end of our tour.  We still had one more sunrise, which was going to be the best one since the first morning of the tour.

Flashback Friday - Myvatn 2019

 As we headed north along the eastern edge of Iceland, we had to cross through some tunnels to get through the mountains.  The crazy thing about Iceland’s geothermal energy, is our guide pointed out the external temperature as we travelled.  It went from freezing temperatures outside in the snow to a balmy 20°C in the middle of the tunnels.

We passed along some increadible waterfalls and canyons as we went, with more of the basalt stone columns.  We passed along the edge of the central highlands of Iceland.  Our guide said they really aren’t travelled as much as in the winter due to the extreme weather they can get.  We stopped for some pictures of the sunset, the snow was blowing drifts across the plain in beautiful patterns.  I wasn’t quite enough of a photographer to manage the low light, but it was a great spot to stop and admire the scenery.

We got to Myvatn that night, where we would be staying for a few nights. It’s named for the large lake in the area.  It is a spot known for geothermal pools, northern lights and spring mosquitos.  I am glad we were there in the winter.  The first night was the clearest evening of the trip.  We finally had some northern lights activity! After dinner every one trooped back outside into the dark to learn to photograph this amazing display.  While we only had some green lights low on the horizon, I was very happy to get to see them.  While this trip was about photography, it was also about the experience.  I had seen the Lights before, but it is always a humbling experience. 

The next day was exploring the area.  Our guide Aaron knew it well, he said his grandparents lived in the area when he was a child so he would visit often.  The first stop was to photograph some mud pools.  It was pretty crazy, they were so hot the mud was bubbling and steaming.  We also stopped at a ridge in the landscape that had a geothermal pools in it.  Our guide said he had swam in it as a child but now the water was too hot for humans.  It was still very photogenic.  Sadly so, apparently the cave had been used for a famous scene in Game of Thrones with Jon Snow, so while trying to get our pictures, a bus load of GOT tourist pulled up and shined flashlights everywhere! 

We also had lunch at an adorable little farm, I had an amazing lamb stew, a tea made from herbs plucked from the lava fields, and bread that is cooked by burying it in areas of higher heat so the rocks cook it!  I also got a phenomenal hand knit touque made by the families grandmother.  She was in her 90s if I recall correctly.  She couldn’t make the complicated sweaters anymore, but was still making simple stuff.  I loved that hat so much. 

We also went to a lava fields, where the harder rock has made columns and arches that stand out from the landscape, and finished with another sunset photo shoot over a small lake. Again the clouds were against us.  I won’t complain about the location though!  That evening our guide asked if anyone was interested in going to the hot spring in the area.  My dad and step mom weren’t interested, so it was just myself and the other guest.

The hot spring was amazing, the water was deliciously warm, the facility well built.  And I ironically got my wish for the experience I wanted.  While floating in hot water (one of my favourite things as a water soul who hates being cold) the northern lights started up..  We had a brilliant show that lasted close to an hour. Part of me cursed not having my camera.  Then I remembered my wish to just experience them, and what better way to do it? I was floating in a hot spring with a beer in hand watching the skies dance.