The Land of Fire and Ice

When Mike initially told me he had Iceland on his “bucket list”, I asked “why Iceland”?  But the more I looked at pictures of the island nation, with its thundering waterfalls, geysers and bubbling geothermal hotspots, and other-worldly lava fields from volcanic eruptions from the beginning of time to as recently as nine years ago, I began to see what captured Mike’s imagination, and I, too, soon became fascinated with The Land of Fire and Ice.

Icebergs float in the Jokulsarlon lagoon before drifting out to the Atlantic Ocean

Our friends Ralph and Adrienne were also captivated by this geological wonderland, and the four of us decided that the best way to explore Iceland would be a self-driving tour.  We worked with a tour planner by the name of Gudrun Eiriksdottir, from an Icelandic tour company called Nordic Visitor, who arranged a rental car, secured nightly lodging in hotels and guesthouses all around the island, and provided us with a guidebook of the highlights of Iceland, and a map of our route, annotated with interesting stops that weren’t necessarily in the guidebook.  Mike and Ralph shared driving duties, while Adie navigated.  Oh, and what was my job?  Sheep “herald”.  Don’t underestimate this vital safety responsibility, as these docile, ambling creatures, often left to graze freely, can pose a problem on one-lane roads.

The number of sheep in Iceland peaked in 1978 at over 890,000. Today there are about
432,700, due in part to declining prices for lamb and mutton.  Prices dropped by 10%
in 2016, with an additional drop of 35% in 2017, but have held steady since then.

We flew from St. Louis to Minneapolis to Reykjavik, where we spent a couple of days to get oriented and get an overview of this vibrant city, the world’s northernmost national capital.  Reykjavik is filled with cafes, bakeries, restaurants, bookstores, shops that boast Icelandic hand-knit sweaters and other woolen products, and a plethora of museums.  Laugavegur is the main shopping street in the historic downtown area.  Literally, Laugavegur translates as “wash road” for it was this street that the original townswomen would walk down to take their clothes to wash in the hot springs.  The old harbor area is another part of the city which offers cultural attractions and restaurants. 

The Hotel Fron in Reykjavik. We stayed here for two nights
before our driving tour, and for one night following it.

Many of the streets are adorned with flowers, and all of
the streets are very clean, with almost no litter anywhere

Until 2017, Coca Cola was bottled in Iceland, using pure
Icelandic water.  Today, the Coke you buy in Iceland
is imported from Sweden.

Hallgrimskirkja is a Lutheran parish church. It is the tallest church in
Iceland, at 74.5 meters (244 feet) and among the tallest of all buildings
in the country. Icelanders simply refer to it as "the big church."

Construction of the church began in 1945. The main tower and its
wings, designed to resemble volcanic basalt columns, was completed
in 1971, and the nave and sanctuary were completed in 1986. 

The view from the observation deck (note the windows near the top of the tower in the
previous picture) looking out over Reykjavik harbor. The church was named in honor of
the Icelandic poet and clergyman Hallgrimur Petursson, author of the Passion Hymns

The view from the opposite side of the observation deck. The church's
pipe organ was built by German organ builder Johannes Klais. It has
5,275 pipes, is 15 meters (49 feet) tall, and weighs 25 metric tons.

Leaving Laugavegur Street, walking down Frakkastigur Street toward the harbor

Standing at the corner of Stjornarradshusid and
Laekjartorg, in front of the Prime Minister's office.
The building in the distance is the Harpa concert hall 

Tjornin ("the Pond") is a small lake in the center of Reykjavik, in front of the City Hall.
It is a gathering spot for people and waterfowl year around. When it freezes in the winter,
it is used for ice skating, but a small section is always kept clear of ice for the birds

This one might be a bit larger than some, but the design is typical of
many homes in Reykjavik. Most have metal roofs and metal siding

Solfar (the Sun Voyager) is a stainless-steel sculpture situated on the harbor. It is
pointed northwest, in the direction of the setting sun in summer. The sculpture is by
Icelandic artist Jon Gunnar Arnason. It is reminiscent of an old Viking ship.

Harpa, the concert hall and conference center, opened in May 2011.  Designed
by a Danish architectural firm, the building is covered in geometric glass panels.
It is home to the national opera company and the symphony orchestra

This locomotive was one of two used to haul rock from a quarry when Reykjavik harbor
was being constructed, 1913 to 1917. Today there are no trains in Iceland, although the
increase in tourism has prompted discussions of a train from Keflavik airport to the city. 

There are many museums in Iceland. This one, the Phallological Museum, features 256
"members" (examples of penises and penile parts) from all species of land and sea
mammals in Iceland, including, yes, Homo Sapiens. Their slogan is "Seeing is Believing!" 

Many government and private buildings are adorned with "street art", commissioned
by the buildings' owners. Many of the most prominent "street artists" are women.

The "Cabinet House" (Stjornarrad) contains the office of Prime Minister Katrin
Jakobsdottir. It was originally built in 1765-1770 and served as a prison until 1816.
It was the first building constructed of materials more permanent that turf or timber.

Construction is booming in Reykjavik. These three cranes are working in the
downtown area, building new hotels, but we saw at least a dozen cranes in
operation all over the city.

Trolls are featured prominently in Icelandic mythology and folklore.
We found this larger-than-life carved one on a street in Reykjavik.
(In reality, trolls, like leprechauns, are much smaller creatures.)

After two days in the capital, we set out for our two-week adventure in our 2019 Nissan X-Trail, a comfortable, well-equipped, diesel-powered SUV.  Within 100 kilometers (62 miles) of Reykjavik is an area known as “the Golden Circle” containing three major tourist attractions:  Pingvellier, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet; Geysir, Iceland’s counterpart to “Old Faithful”, that erupts nine times more often; and the voluminous waterfall Gullfoss, considered by many to be the most beautiful waterfall in Iceland.  For many visitors, the Golden Circle (and perhaps parts of Reykjavik) are all they see of Iceland, as many of the brochures boast that you can see the Golden Circle by bus in one day and be back in the city in time for dinner.

We followed the Ring Road (Highway 1) almost all the way around the country. In the
northwest, we left Highway 1 to travel through the Westfjords area, rejoining the Ring
Road for the last leg back to Reykjavik. We drove 2,597 kilometers, about 1,614 miles. 

Ralph, Mike and Adrienne pose with our Nissan X-Trail SUV in front of Skogafoss
waterfall. Notice that at this point it is still pretty clean...it didn't stay that way.

The Vikings established the world’s first democratic parliament, the Alpingi (also Alping) in the year 930 A.D. at Pingvellier, a fissured rift valley, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.  The area is also associated with many Saga-era (epic tales of the Vikings) sites.  

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is the name given to the boundary of the North American and
Eurasian tectonic plates. It lies along the floor of the Atlantic ocean. The section of the
the ridge that includes and bisects Iceland is known as the Reykjanes Ridge.

Shifting and interactions of tectonic plates are believed to be the cause of most earthquakes and
volcanic activity on earth.  While most activity occurs at the bottom of the ocean, where the ridge
crosses land, it is not surprising that there is a lot of volcanic activity in places such as Iceland.

The Geysir geothermal area contains the original hot-water spout which gives its name to all other geysers in the world.  The Great Geysir was active for a period of perhaps 800 years, but has been essentially inactive for the last century.  The name Geysir comes from the Icelandic word "geysa" meaning "to gush."  The geyser Strokkur, located less than 20 meters (65 feet) from the Great Geysir, shoots a plume of water 15 to 30 meters (50 to 100 feet) in the air every 8 to 10 minutes – water that comes out of the ground at approximately 80 degrees C (about 176 degrees F.)   The area is very active and a visitor can walk among steaming vents, turquoise pools, and multi-colored mud formations.

Strokkur (Icelandic for "churn") is currently the most active and the
most visited geyser in the Haukadular Valley. Records of geyser activity
in this area date back to 1294, when the Great Geysir became active 

Stokkur was first reported in 1789, and erupted regularly until 1896, when
an earthquake inactivated the geyser. Local people succeeded in unblocking
the "plumbing" in 1963, and Stokkur has been active and regular ever since.

Generally, all geyser field sites are located near active volcanic areas.  Surface water works
its way down to an average depth of 2,000 meters (6,600 feet) and comes in contact with
hot magma. The pressure of the boiling water and steam results in the geyser eruption.

The Great Geysir (or Stori-Geysir) has been dormant since 1916. It came back to
life only briefly in 1935, and just as quickly went back to sleep. In 2000, it awoke
following an earthquake, erupted for two days, and went dormant again.

Looking down into the Great Geysir today.  Notice that, unlike Yellowstone
National Park, there are no walkways to or barriers around any of the
geysers, and no Park Rangers to warn you to stay back.

Litli-Geysir, the miniature geyser along the path from the car park,
bubbles and boils but does not erupt - at least not yet!

Some 9 kilometers (5.6 miles) from Geysir is Gullfoss, a two-tiered waterfall where the River Hvita drops 32 meters (105 feet) before thundering down a 2.5 kilometer (1.6 mile) long canyon.  Because of erosion caused by the sheer force of the water, the canyon is lengthened by approximately 25 cm (9.8 inches) per year.

Gullfoss means "Golden Falls."  The upper falls is 11 meters (36 feet) and the lower drop
is 21 meters (69 feet). The average water flow over Gullfoss is 109 cubic meters (3,849
cu. ft.) per second. The record flow is 2,000 cubic meters (70,629 cu. ft.) per second

After visiting the amazing “Golden Circle”, our first overnight outside of Reykjavic was at Brekkugeroi Guesthouse.  That evening, we had dinner at Skalhot, where the first Catholic diocese in Iceland was founded in 1056.  The last of 32 Catholic Bishops, Jon Arason, was beheaded here in 1550, along with his two sons.  (Iceland today is predominantly Lutheran).  A very famous school – the center of learning, culture and worldly power in Iceland - was located at Skalhot from 1056 until the 17^th century.  A monument to the Arason family can be found in the churchyard.

This "hypothesis" turf house was built at Skalhot in 2011-2012 from the ruins found on the
site of a temporary chapel that dated back to 1527, built after their timber church burnt
down. The "temporary" chapel was in use from around 1530 to 1784.

There are only five original turf churches, one reconstructed one,
and several "hypothetical" (we think that is what they looked like)
turf churches in Iceland. There are many original turf houses.

Our journey continued along the Ring Road (Iceland Highway 1) toward the village of Vik I Myrdal (or Vik, as the locals call it), a seafront village on the south coast.  Waterfalls are in abundance.  At every turn – and there are a lot of turns – there is a vista that includes a sparkling, dancing waterfall.  The Seljalandsfoss waterfall, located on the Seljalandsa River and the lovely Skogafoss waterfall, tumbling down to the foot of the Eyjafoll mountain range, are two of the largest and most impressive that we saw on this segment of the journey.

A typical vista on the Ring Road in south Iceland:  Mountains, volcanoes and
glaciers on one side of the road, lava fields and the sea on the other side, and
sheep and horses everywhere.  Speed limit?  90 Km, about 56 miles per hour.

Icelandic sheep have a long outer coat called tog and a fine inner coat called
thel. The tog and thel are processed together to produce a fine, distinctive
knitting wool called lopi, which only comes from Icelandic sheep.

Mike in front of the Seljalandsfoss waterfall. The water falls 60
meters (almost 200 feet) and the way it comes off the cliff
makes it possible to walk behind the thundering water. 

Skogafoss waterfall.  Legend has it that the Viking who settled Skogar
around the year 900 A.D., Prasi Porolfsson, hid a chest behind the falls.
The first man who goes there will find a great treasure.  

The village of Skogar. There are signs at the highway turn-off for each town
or village, with a map of the village showing public buildings, hotels, and the 
location, as well as the name of the owner, of every home in the village. 

We stopped at this dairy farm, which was recommended as a good place to buy homemade
ice cream. The dairy operation milks 220 cows each day. The entire operation, from feeding
to milking to tracking each cow's milk production and nutritional needs, is computerized and
automated and it only takes four full-time employees to run the dairy operation.

Approaching Vik, Iceland’s southernmost village, we stop to view Reynisfjara, the most famous black sand beach in Iceland and the Reysindranger sea stacks.  Legend has it that these basalt columns are not actually rocks at all, but are petrified trolls.  (Trolls are featured prominently in Icelandic folk lore.)  From the overlook at the visitor center, you can see the Halsanefshellir sea caves and and Gardar cliff, and to the west, an imposing view of Dyrcholaey, a lava cliff jutting out into the sea, with a distinct hole in its face, caused by the force of the waves.

A lone visitor watches out over the empty beach at Reynisfjara black
sand beach, the most famous beach on the South Coast of Iceland.

The Reynisdrangar Sea Stacks are towering basalt sea stacks that jut out of
the ocean and rise some 66 meters (217 feet). If you are a fan of Game of
Thrones, you might recognize this location - it was seen in season 7.

Going straight south from this beach, the next land mass is Antarctica,
giving the waves the entire length of the Atlantic Ocean to build up
and crash onto this beach.

The beach is closed to the public because of the dangerous rogue waves that
can come from seemingly nowhere, even on the warmest, calmest summer days.
Because of the cliff, there would be no way to escape these massive waves.

Because of the strength of the waves, many fatal accidents have occurred
at Reynisfjara. One good rule of thumb is to never turn your back on the
sea. Visitors to the beach are warned to stay 30 meters (98 feet) from 
the water to avoid being swept out to sea.

Just off the south side of Highway 1 are the Dverghanrar or Dwarf Cliffs.  These unusual hexagonal basalt cliffs are thought to have been shaped toward the end of the last Ice Age.

Eyjafjallajokull erupted in April 2010, causing enormous disruption to air travel over the
first six days as ash drifted over much of western and northern Europe.  About 20
countries closed their airspace to commercial jet traffic, affecting some 10 million passengers.

Despite being covered in moss that took decades to grow, Eldhraun lava field is
also surprisingly very fragile which is why walking on the lava field is not allowed.
Eldhraun is the largest lava field in the world.

Once the longest highway bridge in Iceland, all that remains today of the Seiodara bridge
are these two twisted girders. The bridge was wiped out by massive flooding in 1996
when a volcanic eruption under the glacier sent house-sized icebergs rushing to the sea.

Dverghamrar Canyon is full of unusual, hexagonal basalt columns. Basaltic
columns are formed as lava cools.  These columns can be found all over 
the world, but Iceland is one of the best places to see them

These hexagonal columns are thought to have been formed
at the end of the last Ice Age, when the sea level was higher
around Iceland and strong waves were battering these rocks.

Dverghamrar, or the Dwarf Cliffs. Icelanders believe dwarfs are Christian
and they call them "Light Elves."  Dwarf Cliffs is just one of many places 
where these "hidden people" live. The girl in the blue coat is NOT a dwarf.

In 2008, Skaftafell National Park in southeast Iceland was incorporated into the spectacular Vatnajokull National Park.  Driving through the area, the terrain is almost other-worldly:  volcanic boulders, fields of volcanic debris, acres and acres of moss-covered lava bisected by meandering glacial streams, small lakes and the ever-present tumbling waterfalls.  It is a short 20-minute walk from the information/visitor center to the Skaftafelsjokull glacier tongue.  On the day we visited, a torrential downpour made the trek slightly difficult and rather uncomfortable, but added to the adventure.

Skaftafellsjokull is a glacier tongue, an outlet for snow and ice from Vatnajokull, the
largest glacier in Iceland.  At the end is a lake where icebergs calve off the glacier.

Continuing east is the amazing glacier lagoon at Jokulsarlon.  Huge slabs of ice that have broken off of the Breidmerkurjokull glacier drift in the icy mist and slowly make their way down the river and out to sea.  Seals were swimming and playing in the frigid water, popping up between the huge chunks of ice.  Icebergs that have calved off of the glacier can spend up to five years floating in the lagoon before making their way out to sea.  Recently, climate change is having an impact on the area, causing the glacier to melt more quickly.

Vatnajokull is the largest glacier in Europe, covering about 8% of Iceland's
land mass.  It has a surface area of approximately 8,100 square kilometers
(3,127 miles) about one and one-half times the size of the state of Delaware.

Icebergs from older glaciers have little internal air or reflective surfaces. When
light from the sun hits them, the light is absorbed rather than reflected. The
light transmitted or refracted through the ice is returned as blue or blue-green.

Some of the icebergs in Jokulsarlon lagoon are black or are streaked with black,
the result of volcanic ash being embedded in the glacier before the iceberg calved off.

Seals play in the water between the icebergs.

We have managed to get pictures of brides from
around the world: Vietnam, China, Russia and more.
We didn't expect to see a bride in a driving rainstorm in
Iceland, getting her picture taken in front of an iceberg.

Our travel days typically found us packed and meeting for breakfast at 8:00, and on the road by 9:00.  Breakfast was provided in every hotel and guesthouse where we stayed.  It was typically European style (Iceland is, after all, a European country) – sliced cold meats and cheeses, hard-boiled eggs, bread (oh, what delicious bread and pastries), Skyr yogurt, juice and tea or coffee.  On one or two rare occasions, scrambled eggs and bacon were included on the buffet.  At several breakfasts, “squeeze” caviar from Norway (in a tube that looked like a toothpaste tube) and cod liver oil, complete with shot glasses from which to drink it, were included.  (We all passed on the cod liver oil, although Ralph, the most adventurous eater of the group, did try the caviar and sardines.)

Lunch was often purchased at a bakery, grocery store, or a café located in a filling station.

Dinner was usually at a local restaurant near our hotel or at the hotel itself – sometimes because where we were staying was so small that the only place to eat in town was the hotel’s dining room.  Menus, for the most part, had five or six entrée options, typically lamb, fish, a “meat” dish, with a vegetarian dish always included as an option.  Root vegetables, potatoes, and cucumbers were common vegetables, along with tomatoes, which are grown in lighted greenhouses, heated by hot geyser water.  Probably the most expensive part of our trip were the meals.  Fish and chips was around $24 per person, whether it was for lunch or dinner, and fish was often, ironically, one of the more expensive dishes on the menu, even though fishing is an important commercial industry.  Food was expertly prepared and presented, although our options were somewhat limited, since none of the four of us cared for lamb.  My downfall was bread (whether homemade or bought from the bakery) and pastry.  We all agreed that the pastries, so flaky and melt-in-your-mouth rich, were some of the best we had ever experienced.

Typical menu prices all over Iceland would be: breakfast 2,000 - 2,500 ISK ($19 - $24);
lunch 2,100 - 3,700 ISK ($20 -$35), and dinner 2,600 - 4,225 ISK ($25 - $40).  A beer or
a glass of wine was about 1,160 ISK ($11). Our breakfast was included for free each day.

The view from our room at the Magma Hotel: a lake rich with bird life, moss-
covered lava fields, a black sand glacial river, and on the other side of our
individual private cabins, views of volcanoes and the Vatnajokall glacier.

So, our journey around the “Golden Circle” and along Iceland’s southern coast draws to a close.  Next, we’ll start north and explore the scenic east coast and the rugged northern part of the country.  We look forwarding to sharing more from The Land of Fire and Ice in the next edition of ROAD STORIES.

The lake at Magma Hotel on Friday night, September 6, 2019.
Not quite a full moon, but if you look and listen closely, you might
see or hear a troll. Trolls can only survive in the darkness of night. If
they are caught in the sunlight, they are immediately turned to stone.