Europe trips

Our trip was almost over. What an unbelievable two weeks it had been. The day before our return, we drove westward towards Reykjavik.

Iceland Road trip Krýsuvík

Just east of Hveragerdi we past another place where it is very visible how intimidating the forces of the inside of the earth, just below our feet, can be. The slopes along the Ring Road were totally black. There must have been a massive landslide of a whole mountain made of fine lava split. It almost looked like a quarry.

Iceland East of Hveragerði

Iceland East of Hveragerði

Iceland East of Hveragerði

On this trip we had barely visited Reykjavík. But we had another short meeting there. Just before we went to the arranged place, we more of less accidently drove by a house that seemed of some importance, judging by the buses standing on the parking lot. And indeed, it was a historical place: Höfdi, the house where Ronald Reagan and Michail Gorbatchov had met to have their détente discussions, which eventually led to the most important political events of the late 1980's and early 1990's: the opening of the East Block countries and the end of the Berlin Wall.

Iceland Reykjavik

Our hotel was a bit outside of Reykjavík: Bergas Guesthouse close to Kevlavik. But before we went there, there was one last area that we liked to visit: the highly volcanically active area of Krýsuvík.

Driving down on the road where also the Blue Lagoon is (which is famous, but not really natural: it is in fact the effluent lake of a geothermic power plant), we passed an insignificant place where something seemed to be seen: the Dollan Lava caves. It is hardly a touristic site, but quite impressive by its own right. It is one of the few places where you can access caves within a lava field. We did not have the right gear with us, so we didn't really go inside, but marked it for next time after reading about it. Because in fact, behind the hardly interesting entrance, there seems to be a much bigger cave.

Iceland Dollan Lava Cave

We had lunch in Gríndavík, and then drove by some quite impressive lava fields. There are four signs explaining the significance of this place, which is part of the North Atlantic ridge, where the earth crest is cracked, continents are pushed apart and new earth is formed all the time.

Iceland Húshólmar Lavafields

The highlight today was Krýsuvík geothermic mud volcano field. A well maintained boardwalk leads the visitors along boiling puddles, steaming cracks and bubbling scorching hot mud pots, where mother earth is cooking and boiling and venting. Steam, filled with rotten egg smell (sulphur) blows all over the place. A sign warns not to step outside of the board walk, and frankly, if you see the place you would be pretty damned stupid to ignore that warning. A grim black lake, next to this site, seems lifeless. How on earth could anything live here anyway? But a tiny dead fish on the black lava beach, and birds that were obviously trying to catch their meal from the water, told us otherwise.

Iceland Krýsuvík geothermal mud volcanoes

Iceland Krýsuvík - a lifeless lake?

Iceland Krýsuvík - a sign of (former) life in the lake

That evening we did actually go to Reykjavik on the way back, because we passed it, and had some good pub food and a nice beer. We both didn't feel like really visiting the city on this trip. We had seen so much, hiked such long distances, taken in so many impressions, been outside all the time. For now, sitting in this pub was just good enough, and the rest of Reykjavík will be for a next time.

On our last day, we had an hour left before going to Keflavík and turn in our car. So we drove a few kilometers to spend a little while outside in Sandgerði, a little port with two lighthouses.

Iceland Sandgerði

It was cold and windy, and we drove back to the airport, and then... our faithfull Sad_Car, that had been our trusted companion for all these kilometers, started to stutter and puff and the engine almost left us.... just one kilometer before the parking lot of the airport.

We just made it there, I would not have dared to drive it back to the rental company anymore. We called them, explained what happened and it was OK, we could leave the car there, with the keys and the ticket of the parking lot inside... oh, and don't lock the car. Thanks so much, guys. It was great.

You see? This is Iceland!

We came back home with only good memories, deep impressions, and the promise to ourselves that we will visit again!

The next day we left early to drive the Ring Road more to the west. We had in mind to visit the Westman Islands (Vestmannaeyjar), a group of volcanically formed islands just out of Iceland's centraal south coast. However, given the very uncertain weather, we decided to book our hotel on the mainland, just in case going to the islands would be a waste of time. We would see what the weather would look like tomorrow. Right now it was still cloudy with showers. Our hotel was another one in the middle of nowhere: Welcome hotel Lambafell, not very far from Seljalandfoss at the Ring Road.

00 lambdafell 1

00 lambdafell 2

00 lambdafell 3

The hotel is located very close to the place where the Eyjafjallajökull erupted in 2010, one of the biggest eruptions in recent decades. The scenery clearly shows the marks. Another reason why we left early was, because we wanted to have lunch on one of our last days in Iceland in an eatery in Stokkseyri that is famous for its lobster soup and langoustine dishes: Fjorubordid Restaurant. Almost all reviews were raving, and we could only agree: the langoustines were (almost) the best we had, and the lobster soup was to die for. The prices are in accordance with the restaurant's fame. It was by far the most expensive restaurant were we ate in Iceland. The service is a bit formal but very correct, and the location is nice with some view, although this day it was a bit grey and we were glad we were sitting inside... We would give it a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Hotel Lambafell is an "unmanned hotel". There is no reception and no staff but you use a code to check in and get the key from the little locker next to the room. If there is any question, there are phones to call the manager. The hotel has a variety of rooms with own bathroom and with shared ones, and there is a big hot tub outside that can be used day and night. In the morning, breakfast is brought by two staff, and it is all right. Not very lavish, but just right. The breakfast is in a kind of large kitchen and the fridge can be shared by the guests.

The next morning the weather looked good, so the decision was made: we were going to the West man Islands. We had seen the ferry port and the islands from high above earlier during our trip, but now when we drove there we discovered that the whole strip of land between the Ring Road and the ferry port is just one barren desert of black lava. Amazing and a bit intimidating at the same time.

01 ferry westmann Islands

00 on way to westmann ferry a

00 on way to westmann ferry b

02 westmann islands port c

There is a large parking lot at the ferry port and the island is in principle car-free except for people living there. The crossing to the islands was a bit windy but very nice. After arriving everybody got off the ship, and one thing that struck us was that, yes, this was a port, but no, there was no port activity whatsoever. It looked like everybody had taken a day off. Strange...

01 westmann islands arrival

02 westmann islands port b

02 westmann islands port d

02 westmann islands port e

02 westmann islands port

02 westmann islands port f

The island where the ferry arrives is called Heimaey (Home Island), and with about 4,500 inhabitants it is the only permanently inhabited island of the 15 islands and 30 rocks that form the archipelago. All the islands are younger than about 12,000 years, and in fact they are all part of one big volcanic system with cones above and below the water. One island, Surtsey, wasn't even there yet until 1963, when an underwater volcano started to erupt. In a period of 4 years, the island was created by lava building up and solidifying. Over the decades plant life and birds have started to live on the island, and this is why it is of extreme interest to biologists. For tourists, the island is totally off-limits. Good thing, there are more than enough other places to see!

On Heimaey, two volcanoes dominate the landscape and it is very clear which of the two is the youngest. In 1973, the Eldfell erupted violently, and the whole island was evacuated for months.

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21 westmann islands

20 westmann islands

03 westmann island volcanoes

The island is characterized by high, steep cliffs with all sorts of amazing patterns and cavities showing the powers that have been at work to shape these islands. The cliffs are a birds paradise. We decided to walk to the west end of Heymay, a not too long walk that leads to the golf course, but behind it is a path that you can follow along the cliffs. From here there are also some amazing views over smaller islands and rocks.

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06 westmann islands

07 westmann islands

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12 westmann islands

13 westmann islands

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28 westmann islands

When we walked back to the main street we saw two traditional houses with grass roofs that give an impression of how people lived here in earlier times.

05 westmann islands

The way back to the village passes the soccer stadium. You can't miss it, a large football marks the roadside. Of course with the UEFA European Championships still in mind where the Icelanders surprised everybody by making it to the quarter finals, and charmed the world with their "Hakka" ritual, we realized that this was one of the holy spots of nowadays. We even had the chance to sit in the stadium of IBV, the island's major league team.

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24 westmann islands

We had lunch on the island, and a nice pastry as dessert.

29 westmann islands

By the time we finished lunch we saw that clouds started to build up. We had been lucky again. We almost had to go to the ferry anyway, and the major part of the day had been sunny and had given us wonderful views and photo's. In the village we observed some kids walking around with cardboard boxes. They also came asking in shops and even in the restaurant if they had some empty boxes left. It turned out that this was the time that young birds, especially puffins, were supposed to start flying out of the nest. Some of them were clumsy enough to land at the ground near the cliffs and had no chance to make it to more open terrain or the sea, where they could catch fish, catch their breath and get airborne again. The kids picked them up and brought them to the ferry, from where they were put overboard (the puffins, not he kids).

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When we boarded the ferry, the wind had picked up quite a bit, and there was a play between dark clouds and sharp sunlight. Standing on the rear deck, this made the view on the sea and the islands particularly impressive.

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40 westmann islands

This day we really needed sunny weather! And we were not disappointed. After an early breakfast we drove the 34 kilometers to Jökulsárlón. When you read this name, it may not ring a bell, but when you see the picture it will most probably look familiar. For example from the James Bond movies Die Another Day and A View To A Kill.

It is a much visited place, quite far from the cities though. That is why we believed we had to go early and be there before the group tourists would swarm the place. It was the right choice. I am not going to write much here, the pictures will be enough.

Just know that this place would not exist without global warming. 60 years ago, the glacier still ended at the sea. With worldwide glacier detoriation due to rising temperatures, this place is no exception. Icebergs broke off from the glacier, and the end of the glacier has moved more and more inland, by now already 2 kilometers. A very deep blue lagoon started to develop in the deep glacial valley, starting on the side by the sea. With every new large chunks of glacier disappearing, the lagoon keeps growing at an alarming pace. It is already more than two times as big as in 1975. Even the staunchest climate change denier will be convinced after learning and seeing what is happening here. It can't be stopped, but hopefully our ruining of the planet can be slowed down before it is all too late to glaciers worldwide.

Sorry, I think this had to be said. But at the same time, this place is an incredibly beautiful natural wonder by itself. We spent a good part of the day here. Nothing more to tell, for now. Here are the pictures:

Two rainy days during our fifteen days in Iceland means that we have been lucky, especially in September. But yesterday ended very wet, and also this morning it was pouring. We just had our breakfast when all cell phones in the restaurant of Smyrlabjörg Hotel started to beep. It was a general SMS alert broadcast from Iceland's Met Office, for everyone in the area, with the following text:

“During the last 24 hours, the level of the Skaftá river at Sveinstindur has risen significantly. These observations suggest that a glacial outburst flood (jökulhlaup) is in progress.
It is likely that the flood originates from the western Skaftá ice cauldron, which last drained in June 2015; however this is unconfirmed until visual observations are made.
The discharge of Skaftá at Sveinstindur is presently 270 cubic metres per second. The flood is not expected to cause any downstream disruption, although the following points should be kept in mind.
Hydrogen sulphide is released from the floodwater as it drains from the Vatnajökull ice-cap. The gas is particularly potent at the ice margin, where concentrations will reach poisonous levels. Travellers must stay away from the edges of Skaftárjökull and Tungnaárjökull while the flood occurs.
Crevasses will develop rapidly around the ice cauldron, so travellers on Vatnajökull should stay away from the region.”

We looked at each other, and then out of the window: the tiny waterfall behind the hotel was unrecognizable: we now saw that it was at least three times as wide. That morning we stayed in the hotel. We played cards in the restaurant and had a pretty darn lot of coffee.

Iceland, Höfn, eastern Vattnajökull glacier tongue

One of the local waiters explained to us how to understand the SMS message:

"Vattnajökull is the largest glacier and ice cap in Europe. It does not just cover mountains, these mountains are volcanoes. Because at least three of these are more or less active volcanoes, when one of the volcanoes becomes unquiet, a lot of water at the bottom side of the glacier melts. This water accumulates in cauldrons, deep inside and underneath the glacier.

The pressure in these cauldrons rises with the temperature, and this effect may get stronger by warming from above (temperatures, lots of water above freezing point, landing on the glacier area). When the locked in water heats up, and pressure rises even more, something has to happen.

Compare the ice cap with the safety valve of a pressure cooker. When the pressure inside the kettle reaches a certain point, the valve will open and there will be a release before it closes again. Exactly this is now happening with the ice cap. The pressure underneath is so high that the ice cap is liften for a short while, and there is a puff-out happening right now. We call this a "Jökulhlaup", a glacier run.

In the case of Vattnajökull, even a slight temporary opening of the lid means an eruption of an enormous quantity of water, steam and sulfur loaded gas (hydrogen sulfide, or "rotten egg gas"). This natural but toxic gas (H2S), which is always present in volcanism, is now escaping in such high quantities, together with the water, that people must stay away from the swollen rivers, especially where it just appears from under the ice. Otherwise you can be killed."

He reassured us that this does not mean that a real volcano eruption is coming up anytime soon. There is some outburst building up, we know that because seismic activity is indeed growing, but a real outburst could still stay away for years.

After lunch the rain stopped, and the afternoon was mostly dry. My girlfriend wanted t take it easy and didn't feel like going out today, but I wanted to buy a certain book about the birds of Iceland. After promising that I would stay away from stinking swollen rivers, I drove to the nearest little town, which was about 40 kilometers to the east: Höfn. In a shop next to the visitor's center I found what I was looking for.

Iceland, Höfn, eastern Vattnajökull glacier tongue

Iceland, Höfn

Iceland, Höfn

Iceland, Höfn

Iceland, Höfn

On the way back, I could add another species to the list of wildlife that we had seen. In the grass land I spotted a reindeer. He was not impressed about me looking at him, because of the distance, but probably also because I was just by myself.

Iceland, Höfn, raindeer?

Iceland, Höfn, reindeer!

In the 40 kilometer to Höfn and the same distance back, I did not see a single other car, except on the land strip on which Höfn is situated.

Iceland, Reykholt

Yesterday we had taken a really quiet day in the surroundings of our guesthouse Árbakki near Reykholt (the southern one, there is also a Reykholt near Borgarnes). We took a long walk to see a unmanned geothermal electricity generator near a steaming hot creek, and played a bit with the horses there; and we had a vegetarian soup-lunch in Friðheimer. This is a complex of greenhouses, where tomatoes and other vegetables are grown, using purely the geothermal energy under their own land for heating, growth lighting and all the mechanics of the greenhouse.

Iceland, Reykholt, using geothermy to generate power

Iceland, Reykholt

Iceland, Reykholt

Iceland, Reykholt

Before alternative energy became the buzz word in Europe, an average up-to-standard greenhouse in northwestern Europe would typically have an annual energy bill of Euro 100,000 or more per hectare per year! Energy was the largest cost factor for decades, even more so than labor. And here it would have been even harder, because this is Iceland: much colder, and during the winter season also much darker. So having a zero energy bill for them is an extra blessing, otherwise the tomatoes would have to cost their weight in gold to get anywhere near to break-even.

I am from a Dutch family, of which many relatives are greenhouse farmers. Much more advanced greenhouse technology exists in Holland than what they have here in Iceland. But leaving a 100% carbon-free footprint, and having a greenhouse that effectively works as a powerplant (by supplying back to he grid), that is still a future dream for many greenhouse farmers outside Iceland. The Icelanders live on top of a never ending energy source.

Iceland, Reykholt

Our resting day was finished in style, by having an afternoon dip in the hotel's volcanically heated hot tub in the garden, and nice early dinner close to Laugarvatn.

Iceland, Laugarvatn

But now it was time to move on again. We had breakfast in the homey kitchen of , and we checked out. We would have a pretty long drive to our next hotel, somewhere on the southeast coast, between Jökullsárlón and Höfn. And before this we even had to go to a place close to Reykjavik for a brief meeting. Anyway, we were looking forward to the things we would be seeing the next couple of days.

Iceland, Reykholt

In the early afternoon we first had lunch at a restaurant in Hveragerði, which is on the Ring Road nr 1, almost at sea level at the mouth of a river into the sea. Coming from the west, the road makes a long descent, and the you see the steam plumes everywhere in and around the village. It is famous for its high volcanic and geothermal activity, and lots of energy are just below the surface. The town is popular with scientists, amateur geologists, backpackers, outdoors lovers, and overall a young crowd.

Iceland, Hveragerði, Restaurant Kjöt & Kúnst

Iceland, Hveragerði, restaurant Kjöt & Kúnst

At restaurant/pastry paradise Kjöt og Kúnst (Meat and Art) we stopped to have fish stew and one of their pretty good burgers. The restaurant is especially known for the fact that everything is cooked in their unique outdoor ovens and stoves, which are heated by super hot steam (170 °C hot and a pressure of 14 kilobar), right from inside the earth. Well, it is a simple place, something between a bakery and a diner, but the food was delicious, and yes, I did give in to their very rich and tasty dark chocolate cake too.

Iceland, view on the ocean and Westmann Islands from high above, close to Seljalandfoss

Iceland, the coast along Ring Road 1 between Seljalandfoss and Smyrlabjorg

Iceland, ocean cost line along Ring Road 1 at the south coast

Iceland, Seljalandsfoss waterfall

Seljalandsfoss

Iceland, Seljalandsfoss waterfall

We continued our trip passed the famous Seljalandsfoss waterfall. Because it is right at the Ringroad nr. 1 it is an obvious attraction for many tourists, especially if the weather is nice, like it still was at that moment. There were indeed quite a few buses, camper vans, cars and people, but it is also very spacious. We did not feel like walking as part of a crowd. The fall is beautiful. It is the second highest in Iceland, and when the sun is out there are always rainbows. We were lucky to even see a double rainbow in the mist of the falling water.

Iceland, mountains and glaciers ahead on Ring Road 1 between Seljalandfoss and Smyrlabjorg

Iceland, Vatnajökull is Europe's largest glacier

Iceland, lavafields along Ring Road 1 at the south coast

Iceland, lavafields along Ring Road 1 at the south coast

Iceland, very old lavafield with plenty of vegetation and even small trees. Very uneven terrain

Iceland, lavafields with growing vegetation along Ring Road 1 at the south coast

Iceland, lavafields along Ring Road 1 at the south coast

Driving further east, the landscape gets very grim. There are lava fields and boulder fields, sometimes as far as the eye can see. How long ago the volcano eruptions took place differs from location to location. You can tell the difference by whether there is any growth of moss, lichen, or even little shrubs and heather. In some places it is all black and dark grey, like the eruption happened days ago. But you have to count that more in geological "days". Eruptions happened ten thousands of years ago, thousands of years ago, or a few hundred years ago. However, of course there also have been very recent eruptions like Eyjafjallajökull near Hvolsvöllur in 2010. The famous eruption that almost downed a couple of passenger jets flying through the unexpectedly dense ash clouds, and disrupted air traffic between Europe and North America for a long period of time.

Iceland, lavafields along Ring Road 1 at the south coast

Iceland, Lavafields along Ring Road 1 between Seljalandfoss and Smyrlabjorg

Iceland, Lavafields along Ring Road 1 between Seljalandfoss and Smyrlabjorg

Much of the landscape was dark grey and black. And the grim effect was even stronger by the dark, threatening black clouds that started to accumulate later in the afternoon. Like an upcoming overarching black sky full of thunderstorm, but then without lightning. Then we saw the double glacier tongues from the Hvannadalshnúkur in front of us, which end close to the road. We could see they were glacier, but they looked dirty grey. Even the few shrubs and the grass didn't seem to have color anymore, with all the dark grey rock, and the pitch black skies above and around us.

Iceland, lavafields along Ring Road 1 at the south coast

Iceland, Lavafields along Ring Road 1 between Seljalandfoss and Smyrlabjorg

We stopped at a little parking to quickly take some photos. My girlfriend was looking for the word that would sort of describe the feeling.
"It is very intimidating", I said. Yes, that was exactly what it was. We looked at each other and both felt the same, although logically speaking there was no real danger: we'd better get the hell out of here.

Iceland, the intimidating scenery under the dark clouds

Iceland, the intimidating scenery under the dark clouds

Iceland, Lavafields along Ring Road 1 between Seljalandfoss and Smyrlabjorg

When we drove further it started to rain. In some way that took away the blackness of the surroundings a little bit. We had to drive more careful, the headlights reflected, the wipers made a somewhat trusted sound. It was still far. By 6 o'clock we reached the hotel, Smyrlabjörg, an isolated large building somewhat off the Ring Road. Dark mountain slopes, with some narrow waterfalls behind the hotel, and the sea in front, across the road.

In the meantime it was pouring with rain. We quickly dumped our bags in the room, and went to the restaurant. It was warm inside, cosy lights were on, there were more people, there was talking, there was hot food and wine and beer, and a fire place was burning. We felt intensely comfortable again, finally.