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On Monday, our final tour began with an early pick up at our hotel. It would be a long day, driving to Vík and back, and the day's itinerary included two waterfalls, a glacier, and a beach. The first part of the tour retraced the end of our tour the day before, as we backtracked past the power plant and the town of Hveragerði. The first stop for the day was the impressive waterfall, Skógafoss. Visible from the highway, once the bus was parked and we were able to get out, we discovered that we could walk right to the water's edge at the base of the waterfall (as long as you didn't mind getting a bit wet...we decided that the temperature was a bit cool to risk getting too wet). The angle of the sun produced very low rainbows in the waterfall's mist. It was really strange to be looking at the ground to see rainbows!
Just a few miles further down the highway, after crossing a one-lane bridge, our bus turned off onto a side road that wound its way to the parking area for Sólheimajökull. Thirty years ago, this parking area was right at the face of the glacier, and no further effort was required to view the glacier. However, the glacier has since retreated up the valley and now it requires a fifteen minute walk over some slightly challenging terrain to get a glimpse of the base of the glacier. There is also a lake in front of the glacier that wasn't there just seven years ago. Sólheimajökull is an outlet glacier for the much larger Mýrdalsjökull ice cap, which covers an active volcano. A major eruption here would create significant flooding for this section of the southern coast, and the town of Vìk maintains and active evacuation plan against this eventuality.
After stopping for lunch in Vìk, our bus turned around to begin our return journey. The first stop after lunch was a visit to the black sand beach at Reynisfjara. Here the coastal erosion of the volcanic rocks had carved shallow caves and arches in the cliffs, leaving a wide expanse of black sand beach. However, the same forces that created this spectacular vista sometimes makes this a dangerous place to visit. While the surf was light while we were here, we were repeatedly reminded not to turn our backs to the water, as big waves can crash onto the beach with very little warning. Apparently two tourists have died here in the last seven months because they did not heed these warnings.
The final stop on our tour was just a few miles from our first. Seljalandsfoss is also visible from the highway, falling from the same coastal cliff as Skógafoss. However, this waterfall looks very different, with its narrower stream. Seljalandsfoss also has carved a small cave behind it, so that we could walk all the way around behind it. This time, in spite of the cool temperatures, we risked getting a bit damp so that we could enjoy the views from behind the waterfall.
From here it was back to the city and our hotel. Iceland had treated us to some spectacular scenery, but we know that we've barely scratched the surface here. We may just have to return to see more.
Just a few miles further down the highway, after crossing a one-lane bridge, our bus turned off onto a side road that wound its way to the parking area for Sólheimajökull. Thirty years ago, this parking area was right at the face of the glacier, and no further effort was required to view the glacier. However, the glacier has since retreated up the valley and now it requires a fifteen minute walk over some slightly challenging terrain to get a glimpse of the base of the glacier. There is also a lake in front of the glacier that wasn't there just seven years ago. Sólheimajökull is an outlet glacier for the much larger Mýrdalsjökull ice cap, which covers an active volcano. A major eruption here would create significant flooding for this section of the southern coast, and the town of Vìk maintains and active evacuation plan against this eventuality.
After stopping for lunch in Vìk, our bus turned around to begin our return journey. The first stop after lunch was a visit to the black sand beach at Reynisfjara. Here the coastal erosion of the volcanic rocks had carved shallow caves and arches in the cliffs, leaving a wide expanse of black sand beach. However, the same forces that created this spectacular vista sometimes makes this a dangerous place to visit. While the surf was light while we were here, we were repeatedly reminded not to turn our backs to the water, as big waves can crash onto the beach with very little warning. Apparently two tourists have died here in the last seven months because they did not heed these warnings.
The final stop on our tour was just a few miles from our first. Seljalandsfoss is also visible from the highway, falling from the same coastal cliff as Skógafoss. However, this waterfall looks very different, with its narrower stream. Seljalandsfoss also has carved a small cave behind it, so that we could walk all the way around behind it. This time, in spite of the cool temperatures, we risked getting a bit damp so that we could enjoy the views from behind the waterfall.
From here it was back to the city and our hotel. Iceland had treated us to some spectacular scenery, but we know that we've barely scratched the surface here. We may just have to return to see more.
