Adventures with Julia

Near the end of the red trail in the highlands, we came upon this crystal clear, icy blue pond.

Butter cups in a highland wetland.

July 19, 2017

Am still playing catch up from July 17 and 18.  Found a couple more from our hike in the highlands that I want to share.  Near the end of our hike we came upon this glacier pond with turquoise ice and crystal clear, sweet water.

At the bottom of the hike I saw a patch of spring flowers I could not resist.

Now for yesterday, July 18,

We had enjoyed three mostly clear, even sunny days until we woke up to rain on the 18th.  We were grateful for the good weather during the days we had so much hiking and felt ok as we knew we would be under cover most of the time.

Seljalandsfoss. The popular falls that people can walk behind.

First stop was a popular waterfall, called Seljalandsfoss (60 meter drop), as it is possible to walk behind it and catch the view from there.  Many, like a 100 or more, people were lined up in a driving rain to do just that.  We watched awhile from the car and gave the walk a pass.   Lovely falls, even from a distance.

Next stop was the brand new (opened 2 weeks) Lava Center.  It is state of the art with wonderfully interactive displays in different darkened rooms.  In one room we could feel the intensity f specific large quakes that have taken place in Iceland.  In another the walls were backlit with the different major eruptions in Icelandic history.  Step on a spot in the room and one of them lights up with details about the event.  Point at a dot on the wall and more information lights up.  Very educational and fun too.

Lave Center display. Stand on a spot and point to a dot for more information.

People enjoying the interactive display, which is on three walls in the darkened room.

There was so much to learn and the learning was so much fun that we stayed for 2 hours.   Let it rain.

Then there was an older exhibit down the road called Eyjafjallajokull erupts.  It is about a big eruption in 2010 that caused a huge amount of damage, especially to the people who lived in the farms nearby.  One of the families set up a visitor center to help recover their costs.   We were shown a well done documentary about the event and the effects it had on their family and farm.  Afterward, we passed by their farm and took a photo.   You can see the farm layout even through the bad weather.  We saw farms like this one all through the South Coast.  They placed the buildings up against the mountain, well back from the ocean.   Several generations all live on the farm, which explains the multiple buildings.

The Porvaldseyri family farm near their visitor center.

As we continued east we came upon Skogarfoss waterfall.  It is one of the largest in the country at 25 meters wide with a 60 meter drop.  We did not have to get out of the car to see this one either.  How nice!!  It was still very blustery and hard to see through the windshield.

Skogarfoss waterfall. One of the largest in Iceland.

We pulled off to the side of the road and made lunch from fixings we are carrying.  Too miserable to get out of the car.  Still, we saw several more waterfalls.  They are everywhere along the edge of the mountain as we pass along the south side of the range.

By  2:30 we arrived at a nature reserve called Dyrholaey.  It is up on a bluff overlooking the coast.  Unfortunately, the view was pea soup when we got there, so no coast.   Back on the highway, we passed through the little town of Viking and were shortly at our lodging, the Hotel Katla.

A pretty waterfall dressed with flowers.

Another waterfall. This one blowing in the wind.

We rested for a few hours and drove back into Vik for dinner at the Berg Restaurant.  This time the food was reasonable, not great.  Guess it can’t be great all the time.

It is time to stop, even though I have not reported about today yet.  Maybe I will continue to be a day behind.  Need to get to bed.  Mark is snoring away.