Iceland: Day 7 - Latrabjarg

So I guess we did arrive to Latrabjarg in once piece. We awoke to the most lovely breakfast spread with homemade bread, jams, eggs, hams and cheeses. This definitely livened our spirits.

We made our way to Latrabjarg cliff. Unfortunately for us, NO BIRDS IN SIGHT. This is supposed to be a capitol for bird watching in Iceland, maybe even one of the best in the world. Alas, the weather wasn't on our side. Still it was incredible to see.

From here we made another long drive back to the Golden Circle, which was where we were on Day 2. There was one waterfall we just had to see before we left this beautiful country :)

Gluggafoss

The spirit of Iceland was truly something I hope everyone gets to experience. I loved doing it with my mom ❤

Iceland: Day 6 - journey to the Westfjords

This is the longest driving day we had. Driving to Vesturbyggo which is situated in the Westfjords is not something all tourists will have the desire nor time to do. But we did it!

We took a scenic detour, highways 82 & 76. This was a beautiful drive through mountains (literally) and along the coast. Along thing high way we found a small town of Hofsos. This town had a local swimming pool that we indulged in.

Another Google review SAVE: took us ages to find it but we located and swam in a REAL natural hot pot. 

 Fosslaug

Reykjafoss

This evening we had a lovely dinner from N1 (gas station). It was a long, long, long (did I say long?) journey to the Westfjords this evening. It was oh so dark, raining, roaming sheep on the (gravel!) road, and once we got closer we were in the clouds. Yep, thanks again, mom for DRIVING!

Iceland: Day 5 - Husavik & Whale Watching

Waking up in Husavik - time to whale watch!

It was a beautiful day with lovely sea conditions. But apparently the whales didn't think there was anything nice to eat near our boat. Sigh.

Another day, another waterfall!

 Godafoss

This was a very lax day as we got into Akureyri very early. It was fun to explore the city there and go to the local grocery store: BONUS. And of course we had to have a regional hot dog.

We made our way up the coast to a beer bath. Another one of our favorite 'off the beaten path' finds (thanks, Max!). Twenty-five minutes in young hops, yeast, essential oils and a draft beer allll to ourselves. 

Long journey tomorrow. 

Iceland: Day 4 - Selfoss + many more hot pots

Today's end point of interest is Husavik, which is where we will be whale watching!

There are more waterfalls in Iceland (I feel sure) than anywhere else in the world (not a fact - just my opinion)! The reason there are so many streams of water has much to do with the amount of snow than melts and the runoff it produces. Some waterfalls we could see from the road, driving Route 1. Others had a small parking lot. And still others were so magnificent hundreds of tourists would travel to see. Here is a small one we found via Google, since our breakfast spot didn't open until 9am

Another Google find was a small bookstore that had be converted into a coffee shop. It was one of our favorite little local spots that we found.

Bokakaffi Hlodum

Next we saw one of the more extravagant waterfalls that Iceland has to offer: Selfoss and Dettifoss. They definitely were a sight to see.

Due to all the volcanic activity, there are so many hot pots, geysirs, boiling mud pots, and steam vents. In this area called Hverir we saw it all! It sits at the base of the volcano Namafjall.

Another 'hot pot' featured in Game of Thrones.

A nearby crater: Hverjfall. 1 kilometer wide!!!

A lastly another geothermal pool: Natural Baths of Myvatn.

Iceland: Day 3 - Egillstadir

Our journey to: Egillstadir

Yes, we pronounced it wrong the entire trip. No, I cannot tell you how to properly pronounce it.

We hit a Black Sand Beach in Vik in the morning -- the first I've ever seen! Iceland is really is the land of 'Fire & Ice' because of the large glaciers that surrounds a very volcanically active center. The black sand was created by lava that immediately cool and has been worn down by the ocean. Very beautiful.

We had a quick stop at a canyon. Something to note which we observed a lot on our trip (unfortunately) was the lack of respect for nature from tourists. Apparently this canyon we visited had to be shut down from tourism due to the disrespect from travelers wandering away from the path. Luckily when we came it was opened back up! But it's always a good reminder that respecting a country's beauty is SO important if it's to be sustained.

Next came one of mom's Bucket List items: hiking a glacier

It was definitely a highlight for our trip. Our guide, Aaron, was the cutest thing and was so personable, informative and kind.

After a long journey with our cramp-ons and ice picks we were thankful to just take a quick drive to Glacier Lagoon. Since it was summer when we visited, the glaciers weren't at their peak size, but it was still wondrous to see.

One more waterfall to finish off the day.

We ate langoustines in Hofn -- a fishing town that's famous for them. Drank a local beer and then turned in for the night.

Iceland: Day 2 - Reykjavik to Vik

So the details of our trip: Our goal of completing Ring Road. Interstate 1 in Iceland goes around the entire country. Mom got a rental car and we booked Airbnb's a few months in advance in carefully calculated cities/stops around the country (big thanks to Max for helping with this!).

Today our end goal is Vik.

Our first stop was a 'must-do' for me: The Blue Lagoon. My face says it all.

Everything I imagined it would be. A spa-like experience. We had 8am reservations and there was hardly any one there. Complimentary towels, a drink voucher and a silica face mask. Wonderful.

Leaving Blue Lagoon we struggled, attempted and failed in finding this waterfall and hike called Bruarfoss. More on this later. We ended up going to lunch a green house//restaurant called Fridheimar. This was one of mom's picks and it was SO much fun. It's a tomato green house that produces nearly 18% of the nations tomatoes! They had a tomato soup buffet and everything on the menu had a lovely tomato touch. 

After our tummies were full of tomato soup and tomato apple pie (!!!) we were determined to find Bruarfoss. It turns out, Google reviews would become a close companion of ours. A few reviews later, we found the entrance to the hike (which we may or may not have passed 4 times on the road) and hiked 2.5 hours round trip to three different water falls. It was stunning and the pictures of course don't do it justice.

Next we drove to a Geysir.

And lastly we hit one more fall before night(fall), Gullfoss.

 There is a really cool history behind Gullfoss. Most of Iceland is run on geothermal energy. I learned so much about green/clean energy and how Iceland has really pioneered the way for utilizing their resources to generate energy.

My favorite Airbnb was this evening. The KP index for seeing the Northern Lights was at a 5, so a 50/50 chance. We set our alarms for midnight and awoke to the aurora borealis dancing across the sky. It was definitely a memory I will never forget.