ICELAND: The Golden Circle

(Placeholder for the “Day 6” picture we forgot to do this morning and are too tired to do right now.)

April 17, 2016

We woke up today at 5 AM. Then again at 6 AM. And 7 AM. That’s just what you do when it starts getting light at 4:30.  We were sleeping in a roadside turnout near Borgarnes, so we decided to head back there to Olis for the bathroom and free WiFi to look at weather and plan out where we should drive today. It was snowing when we got up, so we weren’t really enthusiastic about our prospects.

After checking the weather, we decided on heading south somewhat towards Reykjavik, and driving a little section called the “Golden Circle”. It’s really commercialized and touristy (at least more so than other parts of Iceland) because of its proximity to Reykjavik.

First stop was Thingvellir National Park, which is where we’ll be snorkeling in a couple of days. It was snowing on and off when we got there, but that was better than all of the rain we got yesterday! We saw another waterfall and a couple of other historical things, but didn’t stay here long because we’re coming back on Tuesday.

Next stop was called Geysir. It’s a section of geothermal activity where there is one geyser that erupts every five minutes or so. Neither of us had ever seen a geyser in person, so we thought it was pretty cool! We waited around to see the geyser called “Strokkur” erupt three or four times and then headed on to the next thing (another waterfall).

After Geysir, we left to see two more waterfalls, Gullfoss and and Faxifoss. We’ve seen a ton of waterfalls so far, but they’re all really impressive and beautiful in their own way. Anyway, here they are.

We then headed to a place called Reykjadalur, which is right outside of Hveragerdi. It’s a geothermal area that basically has a river of hot water flowing through it. It was amazing. I can’t say the same about the hike to get there. We’ve never experienced wind like that before. We were walking at a 45 degree angle up a mountain for about an hour and a half. I had to repent after that hike. But the Lord is good and He forgave me and gave us a very pleasant afternoon in the warm river. The only unpleasant thing was changing in gale force winds, but we made it!

Michelle and I are going to have an early night tonight because we’re exhausted from the day’s activities. We’re really having a great time, but ready to feel that sweet South Carolina breeze real soon.

Love,

Taylor and Michelle