Iceland has never been on our radar, other than the few friends who have visited there said it was beautiful. But never ones to pass up a bargain, we couldn't pass up a deal sent to us by Mary of the Coyle clan- descendents of Iclandic immigrants just a few generations ago. She raved about Iceland, talked about meeting relatives, and described her adventures so well, we thought, "why not, they have a volcano"!!!! As Iceland Air only flies from Seattle and Portland, we chose to visit Seattle pre and post trip as it had been many years since visiting this incredible city. So, off to Iceland we go!!!!
Living in Fresno, heat is pervasive from June thru September. This year, we ar breaking records for numbers of days over 100 degrees. Iceland- high of 55!! Low of 48!! Long sleeve shirts and jackets, no shorts (for us- Icelanders wore the because is it summer😛😋)- it was awesome! So off to the things we did!!! Our trip included a hotel room with breakfast and trips to the volcano and Blue Lagoon volcanic waters. Before we talk about our adventures, you need to know- Iceland is expensive!!! As one friend said, just sign the credit card receipt and move on! It is expensive- but it is so worth it!! The country is also almost cashless!! At a rate of 138 Icelandic Kroner (ISK) to the dollar, figuring out the cost is hard- LOL. It is weird charging a cup of coffee, considering here in the US, you pay extra to charge less than $10. But convenient!!
Climb a Volcano!!
Our trip included a guided hike up to the Fargradalsfjall volcano. Located about an hour from Reykjavik, our guide was Raven who provided tons of information on geology and the history of this volcano and Iceland, in general. The hike from the bus stop was about 1 1/2 hours up 3 hills, with a 1 1/2 hour viewing time and 1 1/2 hour hike back. The hike was described in the brochure as "moderate". Not easy, but we did it!! There was a steady stream of hikers of all ages, including your parents with babies on their backs! The views of the volcano started at the foot of the hiking trail, and just got better the higher we climbed! The perspective of the cone, rivers of lava and magma flowing, and sound of the volcano bubbling and hissing and crackling just got more intense the closer you got! I did upload a video to YouTube and will try to embed it in this post. Check it out- it's really good!
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| At the trail head |
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| the first hill |
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| Always have wine ready to toast your accomplishments!🍷 |
Iceland is volcanic, located on two tectonic plates- the Eurasian and North American plates, causing all the volcanic activity. With volcanic activity comes- geothermal energy. Iceland is one of the greenest countries in the world with one of the lowest energy costs. They harvest all that steam to heat their homes and generate electricity. One of the by-products- huge amounts of hot water! So spas are everywhere!! Natural jacuzzi's! Huge, expansive jacuzzi's! It's awesome! We went to two: the Blue Lagoon (https://www.bluelagoon.com/) and Sky Lagoon (https://www.skylagoon.com/). Fantastic!
The Blue Lagoon, reportedly popular among tourists, is fantastic! The water is a milky blue from all the silicas and sediments. It's amazing! Several acres in size with swim up bars and access to sitting areas, water falls, and massages, we loved it!! And yes, lots of tourists- we met people from all over the US, Spain, Germany, England, Iceland- amazing!! We didn't take our phones into the pool, so all the photos are from around it.
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| Wet Rat look- LOL |
The Sky Lagoon is the newest spa. The water is clear as glass! With a water fall, swim up bar, and infinity pool feel, overlooking the bay, it deserves the rave reviews people gave it when they recommended we visit! Rich brought his phone for photos- much to our dismay, our aging bodies look, well aging.
Distillery Tour
(https://www.flokiwhisky.is/) The Eimwerk Distillery which makes Floki whisky and gin, is amazing!!! We learned about it from a Dutch couple we were talking with on our first day, while having a local beer (delicious! And I'm not a beer drinker. Brio and Gull were our favorite!). The man who gives the presentation on the product, Rock, is a magician, funny, knowledgeable, and a treat to watch and listen to! And nice! We stayed late and talked with him (he ended up giving us a ride to Sky Lagoon!). The distillery tour begins with a gin and tonic. I know, but this is GOOD! Then you taste 3 gins, an aquavit, and 8 different whiskies! Delicious all! The final tastes are a smoked whiskey. So to smoke meat and etc, usually wood is used. So this is Iceland, not trees. Guess what they smoke with??? Sheep dung😂😂😂. Hey- it works! It's delicious. They can't sell on site, so we bought a bottle at duty free.
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| Rich holding the sheep dung, me holding the smoked whiskey. The runes say "all roads lead you home" |
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| The tour included a tour of the distillery plant |
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| Rock giving his presentation. He was amazing!!! And a Magician! |
Reykjavic
The city of Reykjavic is cute as cute can be! There are 360,000 Icelandic people, half live in Reykjavic. Great restaurants, cutest houses, vistas, and stores- it's a real city😂😂😘.
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| The (supposed) point of origin |
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| Main square |
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| Harpa concert hall |
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| Lots of Blair Witch things going on here! |
The main church of Reykjavik- Hallgrimskirkja- with a statue of Leif Erickson in front!
From the top, views of Reykjavik and the cute homes and harbor!
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| Leif Erickson! |
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| Cheers!!! |
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| No visit to Iceland is complete without a hot dog! |
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| LOL!!! |
The Saga Museum provided a diorama formatted history of Iceland. Boring museum, for the most part, in that we wanted more. Like Viking ships, etc. But, they had Viking dress up!!
