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Ashfield U3A Iceland Holiday 2012           |
ICELAND DIARY 2012 – ‘A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE’By Caroline RhoadesPhotographic contributions: Ron Britton / Caroline Rhoades / Colin KibblerMore photographs will be added as and when received - keep watching these pages! DAY 1 – Wednesday, 7th November The holiday began with a very comfortable flight from Manchester to Keflavik airport. Flying with Icelandic Airways was reminiscent of the way it used to be - plenty of leg room, complimentary drinks and snacks, smart, elegant and courteous stewards - a fabulous start. Our pre-booked coach was waiting and transferred us very efficiently to our hotel – ‘The Best Western’ - in the centre of Reykjavik. Many of the party spent the first evening in Harry's Bar, where we had the most amazing fish and chips. Later, some of us relaxed on the balcony with large gin and tonics, (purely to keep out the cold), admiring the lights of the city and anticipating the coming days. The hotel was very comfortable with helpful staff and acceptable continental breakfasts. Photographs: General [1] DAY 2 – Thursday, 8th November In the morning, we all did ‘our own thing’ and our little gaggle walked towards the harbour and the magnificent new cathedral. The weather had turned very sharply and the temperature was soon below freezing. In the afternoon, our private coach and guide, Sigurbergur Árnason (Siggy), arrived to transport us to The Blue Lagoon. The milky-blue, geothermal waters set around the coastal mountains are spooky, unique and otherworldly - very Tolkienesque. After changing into swimwear, we left the showers, shivering and shuffling the few yards in the Arctic wind along the outside decking, and plunged [? Ed.] into the hot, steamy waters. Mmmmm – heaven! It is a particularly strange and unique sensation to have your head freezing off while the rest of you soaks ‘almost to boiling point’. We spent an amazing 3 hours in the Lagoon. Distance covered: 59 miles. Photographs: Blue Lagoon [13] / Harry's Bar [5] / Reykjavik [22] DAY 3 – Friday, 9th November Our private coach and guide arrived early for The Golden Circle tour, covering the central part of Iceland. Leaving Reykjavik before dawn, we sped towards the vast blackness of the interior. Gradually, the sky began to change and we were treated to spectacular flashes of orange, crimson, purple and gold as the sun began to rise. This was to be a day of snow-covered mountains, volcanoes, the spectacular Gullfoss (Golden Waterfall) at 105 metres, hot springs and the Strokkur Geysir which regularly erupts to a height of 30 metres and lies in the Haukadalur valley at the base of Laugarfjall hill. At Þingvellir (pronounced ‘Thingvellir’) National Park - an ancient assembly site - our guide took us on an amazing walk through the gorge where the American and Eurasian tectonic plates are pulling apart. Distance covered: 154 miles. Photographs: AlÞingi [11] / Strokkur Geysir [10] / Gullfoss [10] / Skálholt Church [11] DAY 4 – Saturday, 10th November Today, the South Shore tour provided a totally different landscape. Fertile plains, snow-capped mountains and the highlight of my day - walking inside Mýrdalsjökull, the melting glacier with its fantastic contorted shapes and wonderful shades of blues and aquamarines. The glacier opened up into honeycombed structures as it melted above and around us. Bravely (or foolishly) some of us entered the glacier and marvelled at its labyrinthine interior. What a photo opportunity! Back on the road, we travelled onwards, spending time on the blackened, volcanic shore which overlooked the Westman Islands, and exploring the caves and extraordinary natural basalt structures. Other marvels of the day included the monumental Skögafoss waterfall, and the elegant Seljalandsfoss - a thundering curtain of water that plummets into a shallow pool. This was followed by a visit to the Skögar folk museum with its collection of traditional turf houses and Icelandic history, not forgetting the eccentric curator and founder who played ‘God Save the Queen’ on an ancient organ to greet us as we entered, before showing us the art of hand-spinning! Lunch stop was at the coastal town of Vik, before travelling back in the afternoon. On the return journey, we stopped at a charming country restaurant, where many of us delighted in the special ‘Catch of the Day’ dish, consisting of lobster, cod and haddock, probably the best fish dish we had ever tasted. Then it was on to the outskirts of Reykjavik where we selected a dark venue from which we could watch for the Northern Lights. We had been told that this was probably the best night to catch sight of them, being dark, cold and cloudless. Late into the evening, we were rewarded with a fine show of shooting stars and a display of the Northern Lights. Distance covered: 258 miles [including the Northern Lights]. Photographs: Eyjafjallajökull [8] / Mýrdalsjökull [16] / Reynisfjara [18] / Skögar [13] / South Shore Restaurant [3] / Vik [5] / Skögafoss & Seljalandsfoss Waterfalls [10] DAY 5 – Sunday, 11th November With an early start, we set off pre-dawn for the Northern Snæfellsnes peninsular. Today, we had a heavy duty bus with tank-like wheels, due to the extremes of the previous day and snowfalls up north, and to prevent the coach from being blown off the road in the high winds. As the sun began to rise, we were once again fortunate to have clear blue skies, but freezing conditions. With frozen seas, lakes and waterfalls on a stark and beautiful landscape, we passed volcanoes, glaciers, mountains and a road hewn through lava fields a hundred metres thick. Snæfellsjökull, a 700,000 year old cone-shaped stratovolcano with a glacier covering its summit, sits at the region’s tip and is the focus for much folklore and legend involving trolls and other mystical beings. During the journey, Siggy kept us entertained with many Icelandic sagas. Through mountain passes, into bright-blue Mediterranean-like skies, small isolated farms, miles away from their nearest neighbours, huddled into the mountainside. 4-wheeled drive trucks are vital out here. The farmers have small community houses which are focal points for coming together to celebrate local customs and decision making. Our first stop was Budir church, a tiny isolated and primitive wooden building on the coast, with only a small graveyard and mountains for company - a very moving, breathtakingly beautiful and special place. Leaving the main road, we bumped along a rickety coastal path to Arnarstapi, and Hellnar, our lunch stop, at probably the smallest café ever. The coach parked precariously at the cliff edge - I wouldn't have wanted to be sitting on the back seat when we moved off! At the café, we found that the owner makes everything herself. Where does she get the provisions from? It’s at the back of beyond, in the middle of nowhere, and almost 90 miles from Reykjavik! Some hardy folk ate their sandwiches outside near the beach. (Well it’s only 6 degrees below freezing!) Inside the cafe, the softies were having their fish soup and homemade bread. Still on the coastal run, our intrepid guide asked if we were up for a walk. A unanimous assent echoed through the bus, followed by moments of chaos and hilarity as we struggled into woolly hats, fleeces, gloves and whatever we could lay our hands on to keep out the freezing wind. Scrambling down the icy gorge, through the snow-covered lava field to Dritvik Beach, we enjoyed a spectacular landscape of mountains and fantastically hideous, sculptured lava creations left by the volcano. Some very energetic people were spotted hurling snowballs at their unsuspecting companions on the beach! Fragments of the ‘Epine’, a Grimsby trawler which went down in 1948, are still to be found on the beach. Further along, we passed through Reykholt - a place of historical significance for Icelanders as the home of Snorri Sturluson, a medieval literary giant - before returning to Reykjavik after an adventure-packed, last day. Distance covered: 274 miles. Photographs: Arnarstapi & Hellnar [31] / Budir Church [26] / Dritvik Beach [23] / Gerouberg Basalt Columns [10] DAY 6 – Monday, 12th November Monday morning arrived only too soon with a hurried early breakfast at 3.45am and an airport transfer. In the only rain we had experienced since our arrival in Iceland, we boarded the ‘plane for our journey home. Goodbye Iceland! Goodbye Siggy! Thank you for a bevvy of wonderful memories and a fabulous experience. A very warm thank you to my fellow travelling companions from Hucknall, Ravenshead & Ashfield U3As for your brilliant company - you made my holiday. Watch this space for Greenland 2014! General Photographs: Mountains & Skies [30] |