As per usual, an email a few months ago offering unbelievably inexpensive flights to Iceland got my wheels turning, and I decided to book a little birthday getaway. Most people aren't really excited about going to the Arctic in January, but I'm not most people :)
Part of the deal was that the plane departed from Chicago, so I had to book an additional flight from Phoenix to Chicago. I made the mistake of buying Basic Economy tickets, meaning that we had to fit 5 days worth of bulky winter clothes into a briefcase. This also meant that we couldn't take our beloved backpacks, and instead had to take small duffel bags. The cabin I booked had a washing machine, which was a lifesaver, but no blow dryer:(
Our layover was originally about 1 hour, but due to various delays, we got in with about 20 minutes to spare and sprinted across the airport, on and off the train to the International terminal and through security with our bags, shoes, and belts in hand...not ideal. Luckily, the flight out was delayed about 20 minutes, so we made it with just a couple of minutes to spare. Once it was all said and done, I ended up with a migraine and was trying to keep my lunch down for the 5 1/2 hour flight to Iceland. I wasn't able to sleep, but it totally worked out because I spotted the Northern Lights out of my window, and I'm so happy that I did because we didn't see them any other time. I did my best with my phone and was able to capture them a bit, but it doesn't do them justice. They're pretty magical.
Somehow, we managed to find the guy with our rental car in the terminal and were whisked away on a shuttle to the shop. We learned very quickly that Icelanders don't mess around when it comes to icy roads...several inches of solid ice didn't deter him from driving about 65 mph around roundabouts. We held on for dear life and were in our rental car within minutes.
I booked a cabin on Airbnb just outside of Selfoss...the only town with trees that we noticed in our time there. You could tell that they were trying to revive the forests there, with perfect rows of teenage trees in patches rolling through the hills. We noticed right away that finding our way around the country wouldn't be easy as the address I was provided couldn't be pulled up on our GPS. It had various letters that aren't a part of our English alphabet, so we just felt our way along using the little dot until we got to where we needed to be. I emailed our host begging him to let us check in early so I could sleep off my migraine and get some rest before daylight. While waiting for a response, we folded down the back seat of our SUV and cuddled up for a nap on the side of the road, and within about 30 minutes, he gave us the green light to make ourselves at home.
The cabin was at the end of a long, illuminated wooded walkway and was pretty much the coziest little thing ever. By the time we got all unloaded and settled in the sun was getting ready to make an appearance.
We slept for a couple of hours and woke up refreshed and ready to start our vacation! We started off driving to Gulfoss...a massive waterfall. You could hear it rumbling from about 3 miles away. It was really windy and cold and wet down by the overlook, but it was amazing.
Then we made a stop at Geysir. We walked around through it's thermal pools and watched it go off about 4 times within about 45 minutes. It would erupt without any warning whatsoever, which was kind of fun. At one point, it went off so abruptly that I screamed and dropped my phone...and broke the screen protector. It was funny though.
From there, we got a piece of carrot cake and made a stop to meet a little herd tiny Icelandic Horses. Let me tell you: they are so stinking cute. They remind me of like a cow mixed with a goat...they are pretty funny. Usually horses are majestic, stately, elegant creatures, but these little guys are stubby, quirky little things. They pay you no attention, just huddle around their hay until they see you go over to a little shed labeled "Horse Candy"...then they perk up their ears and make their way over to you. They'll let you pet them and they'll eat the food out of your palm, but they don't like their fluffy little ears touched and they'll let you know. After quite a while, when we were pulling away, we looked over at them and they'd make these hilarious faces at us...I'm not sure why, but it was too cute. We made a few stops there over the course of the trip :)
We made our way back towards Selfoss and opted for a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken to take back to our cabin, where we soaked in the hot tub and fixed up the loft into basically an adult fort - complete with piles and piles of pillows and blankets and down comforters where we watched Netflix and slept like rocks.
Friday, we stopped for espresso and yogurt on the way back to Gulfoss, where we were meeting the guide for our snowmobiling excursion. We walked back up to the waterfall, taking advantage of the less windy conditions, and then wandered around the gift shop, and admired the massive trucks pulling in to pick up tourists.
Ours was a Mercedes Sprinter Van on steroids and our driver, Skuli, used it to it's fullest potential. Like a wintry scene from a Mad Max movie, we started off on a single lane road through no-man's land in a caravan of monster trucks and vans with wind blowing snow across the road into massive drifts that we'd hit going about 40 mph. Skuli would giggle a little and check us out in the rear-view mirror and then we'd hit another. After about 45 minutes, we pulled over to let air out of the tires, and I knew at that point, that things were about to get much more exciting. I couldn't even see the road ahead and the snow was getting deeper and deeper. We'd all slow to a stop and give each other space to gain momentum up the steeper hills and then watch as one, by one, we'd plow through the barren wilderness. We were 3rd in line being led by one of the huge black military vehicles when suddenly, we noticed him fishtailing ahead of us all and come to a stop. The adrenaline junky that Skuli was, he shifted down and made his own trail through the 4' deep snow on the side of the road, right around the other vehicles and plowed on. Everybody cheered as we continued back onto the road and on to our destination.
We eventually came to a building in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by snowmobiles, and unloaded. They had orange overalls for us that we just put on over our many layers, balaclavas, helmets and goggles, and were unrecognizable by the end of it. We went out and waited for our guide and played in the snow before setting off on our adventure. Due to the whiteout conditions, we had to take it pretty slow and safe and keep relatively close to each other so one of us didn't get lost. We made our way out to a glacier and what must have been a beautiful view on a clear day, played around a bit, and then switched drivers for the ride back.
Saturday, we decided to drive east down the coast towards Vik and the famous Black Sand Beach. If I was to go back to Iceland, this is where I'd choose to spend most of my time. The farther east we traveled, the more beautiful and interesting the scenery became. There were the most adorable little homesteads spotted through the valleys, all with matching little barns and silos and little horses grazing in their pastures. There were waterfalls everywhere and caves in the sides of the cliffs and so much to look at...I couldn't get enough. Huge lava rock spires would jut out from the earth and little hobbit houses were built right into the sides of them. Apparently, I loved it so much that I didn't even really think to stop and take pictures...strange.
Seljalandsfoss was our first stop...by accident. We weren't really sure where anything was or how to get there, we were just exploring and saw it off to our left. Remarkably, there just weren't very many people around...I'm not sure if it's because it's off season or we just picked the perfect time to go, but it sure is nice being a tourist without having to wrestle hundreds of other people all of the time. The trails that you can take behind the waterfall were closed because of icy conditions, but it was beautiful anyway.
We continued on to Skogafoss, were I took a nasty fall that I'm still recovering from, lol. The mist coated the ground in the slipperiest ice ever and I scooted along slowly without any incident. On the way back, I found a chain suspended about 2' off the ground and thought it would be a great idea to grab onto it to support myself as I shuffled back towards the car. Well, my feet slipped right out from beneath me and I grabbed the rope in a panic, occupying my hands while my face slammed into the ice. I felt like such an idiot and had to lay there for a second to make sure I was still alive. I split my chin open and had blood in my mouth, but didn't lose any teeth and my jaw is improving slowly but surely...Could have been worse, that's for sure. It's just embarrassing.
From there, we found the black sand beach and it did not disappoint...I could have spent all day there.
We couldn't though, because we had reservations at the Blue Lagoon at 5:00...2 hours away. Our GPS led us down the craziest road in freezing rain. It really was otherworldly...just lava and moss right up to the crashing waves of the ocean, and not another soul or structure in sight. We drove it for a hundred kilometers, listening to Of Monsters and Men and gazing silently out the windows. I can't imagine how anybody managed to navigate it thousands of years ago...it was so rugged. The sun was going down and it was really beautiful and eventually let to the famous hot springs. A winding, lit path led us to the Lagoon and from there, it was like another world.
Again, we managed to have lucked out in the busy-ness department because it didn't seem nearly as packed as I'd read it could be. We got our wristbands, showered and met at the entrance to the pools, got our mud masks, drinks, and relaxed under the night sky. Having not eaten all day, I opted for a green smoothie with mango and ginger (it tasted like sushi if I'm being honest) and Brian got a beer. We sat in the wet sauna and just soaked our old weary bones. It was a really cool place, and I'm glad we went...there have been worse birthdays, I'm sure :)
Sunday, we had a snorkeling excursion booked and drove to Silfra - the separation of the tectonic plates that separate the Eurasian and North American continents, fed by 30 year old glacier water. We got all suited up and stood in the snow for about an hour before finally making our way to the crevasse. Needless to say, my hands have never been so cold and for such a long period of time. They felt like they'd been hit with a hammer and once we were out and dressed, they swelled up and were sore all day. The rest of my body was relatively comfy though.
Our Greek Guide, Apollo led us through the site, and about an hour later, we were back at the meeting spot drinking hot cocoa. We took advantage of the hour long car ride to Reykjavik to get all warmed back up and then hit up the more touristy areas of the city: Sun Voyager sculpture and Hallgrimskirkja
I'd love to go back in the summer and explore more to the eastern side of Iceland for sure, do some more hiking, and take more time. There is so much to see and do there and we just got a taste of what it has to offer. Until next time, Iceland!