Iceland 2025

 A long day of driving today, about six hours in total with a few stops for diesel (over $300 to fill the tank from about a 1/4 full !!!), toilet stops, lunch stops, Icelandic handcraft shops , and stops for photos on some of the rare pull-out spots. Not a bad spot for lunch We boiled the kettle in the van and made soup and coffee. Hand made beer mitten. Everyone should have one! It was a really pretty drive, past farms and valleys, and them eventually we hit the sea.  We are now in the West Fjords, sparsely populated, with limited usable land, and little fishing villages dotted around. We hit the west coast After about 6 hours, we make it to Dynjandi, and it did not disappoint. Dynjandi waterfall, amazing Looking back toward the car park We spent a few hours here taking photographs, it's a really big area with Dynjandi at the top of the photo above, and several other smaller falls as well. The river flows into a beautiful fjord  Once we we're done, we headed to camp for ...

We started the day with a walk up the Hverfjall crater, just a short drive from our campsite in Myvatn.  There wasn't much wind to speak of at the start of the walk, but by the time we'd climb just over a hundred metres to the rim of the crater, the wind was howling and it was difficult to stand up. The view inside was disappointing, just grey rocks and sand.  For some reason I thought there would be more colour.  We decided against walking around the rim, and headed back down to the van. Hverfjall crater The path up the crater rim The view from the top Inside the crater Next stop was Dimmuborgir lava field. The helpful info boards tell it much better than I can.  We spent maybe an hour wandering around the lava field, with a brief stop at the gift shop afterwards. As you can see, a pretty decent day with blue.sky, sunshine and little wind to speak of, and we hit a max of 20 degrees today. We decided on a 45 minute detour to visit Aldeyjarfoss, a waterfall we had mis...

Another 8am departure for Studlagil Canyon.  This is only about an hours drive from Egilsstadir, though we were delayed a few times by sheep on the road. We shall not be moved We parked and walked the few km in to the better viewing side of Studlagil Canyon.  We'd been here before in 2023 and it was very snowy, so it was quite different to see it in summer. It's a stunning place, and I feel very glad to have had the opportunity to see it not once, but twice! Pix to tell the story. We spent about 3-4 hours there, wandering the length of the canyon, taking photos, flew my drone a couple of times (there were a few buzzing up and down at various times) and then wandered back the 3km or so to the parking area. We made soup for lunch which we ate in the sun, making use of our outdoor chairs. After lunch we hit the road again and headed for Myvatn and have camped here for the night. Epic landscapes en-route to Myvatn A young couple in a Dacia Duster came and put out their table and c...

We left about 8am to head out to Borgarfjordur eystri, which is a popular puffin viewing spot.  They come here to nest between mid April and early August.  Up to 7,700 pairs are known to meet here.  They partner for life, each year they return to the same burrow they used last year and wait for their mate. The female lays one egg a year, once the chick is raised, the pair will part ways and live separately on the ocean, until the breeding season starts again. Maybe that's how they manage the "mate for life" bit 🤔  They live on average 25 years, max known lifespan is 38.  All this info from the helpful display boards around the site. Hafnarholmi harbour with the puffin area the green grassy bit on the left One of the puffin viewing platforms in the centre of the photo We had high hope of seeing masses of puffins, but perhaps some have left already.  They were catching fish and bringing it back to the burrows, but they are FAST and erratic in their flying, s...

 It was windy and wet overnight, but I slept like a log after my burger and chips.  We woke to blue almost cloudless sky, sunshine and little wind to speak of.  Hurray! Today we are heading to the north east of Iceland in search of puffins, with the plan to stop at Diamond Beach and then Vestrahorn for photos.  We've both been to both places more than once, and average conditions have left us wanting for more.  Diamond Beach is so named became there are chunks of ice breaking off the Jokulsarlon glacier and washing down the river to the beach. Today it was super bright and sunny, with a few bus loads of tourists snapping pics and posing on chair shaped chunks of ice.  Diamond Beach We spent maybe an hour here trying and failing to get good shots in the harsh light. It was lovely and warm and I enjoyed not having to lug 20kgs on my back. I shall sit on an iceberg and take a selfie We continued on our way to Hofn to fill up with diesel and hit the local Netto...

I was up at about 5.30 this morning, allowing plenty of time to organise myself in time for departure.  Freeze dried cooked breakfast and Supreme coffee drip bags to start the day. The Brits were up early, queuing for the shower and complaining about queue etiquette. We left on time pretty much, everything super wet as it had rained quite a bit during the night. I had been toasty and dry inside my tent, but I'm sure I have added a kilo of rain water and half a kilo of fine volcanic sand to my carrying weight.  The grit just gets everywhere. I treated my feet to dry sox, and removed the orthotic insole to leave more space in my boots for my swollen feet, and it was much more comfortable. The day started with a few steep descents and accents. I couldn't decide which was worse, slugging uphill with my heels rubbing, or downhill with my manky toe jamming against my boot. Woe is me!  It was really pretty and only raining a bit.   The landscape changed as we got close...