Iceland - Saturdays are Fjorda Boys
Hallo (translation: hello in icelandic) Hope everyone is doing well on this lovely Sunday morning. I am here to tell the tale of my wonderful 5 days in Iceland. This trip was among the top highlights of my whole Gap year excursion so get ready.
When I visited Tim in California in January he told me that him and my travelling mate Jacob were planning a trip to Iceland. Of course I jumped at the opportunity and joined in. WOW air has pretty cheap tickets to Iceland, which is why within the last like 4-5 years tourism has been booming in Iceland. People have realized, holy WOW, Iceland is insanely gorgeous. They certainly were not wrong. Jacob and I met back up in the Frankfurt airport after my long train filled night. The shock was real when we landed in Reykjavik to discover how expensive everything is. We spent that night hunting for the cheapest fish and chips which came down to a reasonable 15 dollars on the pier. To be fair they were amazing and the truck was run by the nicest Serbian guy who was giving me all the tips for my upcoming travels there. Our first night there and we were lucky enough to try the local delicacy of fermented shark thanks to our Minnesotan friend at our hostel. Anthony Bourdain proclaimed it as the worst tasting thing he has ever eaten and I can verify that it definitely is up there for me.
The next day we were greeted by the sight of Tim. Yay! He had picked up our lovely home/van equipped with a bed and all the basic cooking stuff (we named the van Deb <3). The adventure had begun. Tim was the dad of the trip with maps printed out and little tid bits on all sights to see. We each established our roles. Tim was head driver with all of us rotating and Jacob and I were on AUX duties (Jacob definitely took lead on this though, how can I compete with someone who has a playlist for every type of weather). The first day was action packed. We did not let a second waste. We went to see the moss covered fields and the famous national park Dingvellir. We would each take turns saying, "Pull over! Look at this!" and then get out and just bask in the vastness of Iceland. Tim would tell me about every second to take a picture of the road. You just could not believe how big and beautiful it was. That afternoon we headed to the basalt cliffs after some rather poor navigational mistakes were made. It was a giant moss covered field next to these massive cliffs that looked out over the ocean. We were the only ones there. All of us slayed the game in photoshoots. We finished the evening off with a stop at Kirkjufell, a nice mountain, and parked by a cliff to whip up some "Backpacker stew" (this dish was featured just about every night on the menu). Fortunately (and unfortunately) all of us dabble in the art of cooking so we made our bean, potato, and tomato stew (shoutout to Jacob for travelling with spices). We all have different styles as we came to learn. A Russian, a Chinese Mexican, and an American with a love for spice, definitely an interesting mixing pot. Pun intended. First day was amazing. We couldn't have asked for better.
The next couple of days we would explore the Southern part of the Ring road. Our routine would follow something like this: wake up at 8ish, drive for an hour or so, stop at the gas station for wifi, get kicked out of the gas station for eating our cereal/sandwiches in the shop, move on to a nice geographical wonder, walk around, keep driving to next geographical wonder, stop for a dorito thousand island dressing (I have no words other than that boys get hungry and we are poor students/backpackers with a creative and open mindset), admire more beautiful mountains and or beaches, make backpacker stew, find a campsite to park in for the night, see the sunset at 12, and pass out in the back of the van.
The second day was one of my absolute favorite days! We went to see some geysers and oodles of waterfalls: Gullfoss, Sejlandfoss, and Skogafoss. They were just booming massive waterfalls. The whole day though, you could see waterfalls coming off the mountains on the side of the road. It reminded me of Milford Sounds in a way. We also saw a sign for "glacier this way" and thought why not, we are in the land of ice. It was amazing to just be able to walk up to a glacier. Frozen ice stays winning. That evening we went to the black sand beach. This was amazing for two reasons. First, the sun was setting and the beach was pretty much empty making it perfect for a stroll and photoshoot. Second and most important reason why it was amazing was that we saw a puffin!! Puffin season was just beginning in Iceland so we were on the hunt. They are magical. I think we all were in love.
Day 3 in the van and at this point none of us had showered. We were fueled by peanut butter, paprika chips, and giant caramel cinnamon rolls from Kronan. We decided to do a solid hike that went up in the mountains. We climbed to a waterfall and yet again not a single person was there. As we descended back down the valley the fog was starting to set in and a white fox was running down the trail. We were insanely lucky. Everyday was amazing. There was never a dull moment.
Day 4 we stopped at a glacier lagoon which is a giant lake with chunks of glacier floating around. We also made the trek out to the airplane wreck in the middle of the moss fields. The true gem of this day was going to the "hidden" waterfall. It was a massive gorgeous waterfall you could walk behind and hardly anyone was there, hence the hiddeness.
Day 5. Our last full day as a squad. We decided to catch the early ferry to Vestmannaeyjar, an island of the south coast which is home to the largest puffin colony. Sadly no puffins, but it was beautiful nonetheless and Tim treated us to a proper meal (that we could only afford to split amongst the three of us but it was so good). We were running on fumes by the time we got back to Reykjavik, literally and figuratively. We were desperate for a shower and a good nights sleep (as comfy as the van was it was quite snuggly and sleeping bags were not part of our budget so it was raincoat blankets). At this point the last thing on our Iceland bucket list was seeing the Northern lights. With it constantly raining in Iceland and the season coming to a close it was kind of tricky to spot them. We staked out a nice spot at the end of this peninsula in Reykjavik, next to the lighthouse, for one last final attempt. A nice bowl of backpacker stew and a gorgeous sunset was a lovely way to end an amazing trip. The sun never fully set so we decided to sleep around 12:30 before having to wake up at 3am for our flights. Tim and I woke up to Jacob yelling at us to get out of the car and there they were. Streaks of red and green across the sky. The northern lights look like a bunch of fairies are buzzing around the sky. Wow. There was even a meteor shower that night to add on to the excitement. I think we all cried.
I know this is a bold statement, but I think Iceland might be the most beautiful country I've ever been to. Obviously places like New Zealand and Nepal are stunning and I am a firm believer that you really cant compare countries. They're apple and oranges. The thing that takes Iceland to the next level for me is the lack of development and people. You can go see waterfalls and mountains without a busload of Chinese tourists and people that sell cheesy keychains. In a day and age where you cant really escape people and cities, it is a gift to be in nature without society butting in. I wouldn't say Im a hardcore introvert, but I definitely have times when I need to escape.
Iceland you blew my mind. I hope that you remain an unspoiled gem.
When I visited Tim in California in January he told me that him and my travelling mate Jacob were planning a trip to Iceland. Of course I jumped at the opportunity and joined in. WOW air has pretty cheap tickets to Iceland, which is why within the last like 4-5 years tourism has been booming in Iceland. People have realized, holy WOW, Iceland is insanely gorgeous. They certainly were not wrong. Jacob and I met back up in the Frankfurt airport after my long train filled night. The shock was real when we landed in Reykjavik to discover how expensive everything is. We spent that night hunting for the cheapest fish and chips which came down to a reasonable 15 dollars on the pier. To be fair they were amazing and the truck was run by the nicest Serbian guy who was giving me all the tips for my upcoming travels there. Our first night there and we were lucky enough to try the local delicacy of fermented shark thanks to our Minnesotan friend at our hostel. Anthony Bourdain proclaimed it as the worst tasting thing he has ever eaten and I can verify that it definitely is up there for me.
The next day we were greeted by the sight of Tim. Yay! He had picked up our lovely home/van equipped with a bed and all the basic cooking stuff (we named the van Deb <3). The adventure had begun. Tim was the dad of the trip with maps printed out and little tid bits on all sights to see. We each established our roles. Tim was head driver with all of us rotating and Jacob and I were on AUX duties (Jacob definitely took lead on this though, how can I compete with someone who has a playlist for every type of weather). The first day was action packed. We did not let a second waste. We went to see the moss covered fields and the famous national park Dingvellir. We would each take turns saying, "Pull over! Look at this!" and then get out and just bask in the vastness of Iceland. Tim would tell me about every second to take a picture of the road. You just could not believe how big and beautiful it was. That afternoon we headed to the basalt cliffs after some rather poor navigational mistakes were made. It was a giant moss covered field next to these massive cliffs that looked out over the ocean. We were the only ones there. All of us slayed the game in photoshoots. We finished the evening off with a stop at Kirkjufell, a nice mountain, and parked by a cliff to whip up some "Backpacker stew" (this dish was featured just about every night on the menu). Fortunately (and unfortunately) all of us dabble in the art of cooking so we made our bean, potato, and tomato stew (shoutout to Jacob for travelling with spices). We all have different styles as we came to learn. A Russian, a Chinese Mexican, and an American with a love for spice, definitely an interesting mixing pot. Pun intended. First day was amazing. We couldn't have asked for better.
The next couple of days we would explore the Southern part of the Ring road. Our routine would follow something like this: wake up at 8ish, drive for an hour or so, stop at the gas station for wifi, get kicked out of the gas station for eating our cereal/sandwiches in the shop, move on to a nice geographical wonder, walk around, keep driving to next geographical wonder, stop for a dorito thousand island dressing (I have no words other than that boys get hungry and we are poor students/backpackers with a creative and open mindset), admire more beautiful mountains and or beaches, make backpacker stew, find a campsite to park in for the night, see the sunset at 12, and pass out in the back of the van.
The second day was one of my absolute favorite days! We went to see some geysers and oodles of waterfalls: Gullfoss, Sejlandfoss, and Skogafoss. They were just booming massive waterfalls. The whole day though, you could see waterfalls coming off the mountains on the side of the road. It reminded me of Milford Sounds in a way. We also saw a sign for "glacier this way" and thought why not, we are in the land of ice. It was amazing to just be able to walk up to a glacier. Frozen ice stays winning. That evening we went to the black sand beach. This was amazing for two reasons. First, the sun was setting and the beach was pretty much empty making it perfect for a stroll and photoshoot. Second and most important reason why it was amazing was that we saw a puffin!! Puffin season was just beginning in Iceland so we were on the hunt. They are magical. I think we all were in love.
Day 3 in the van and at this point none of us had showered. We were fueled by peanut butter, paprika chips, and giant caramel cinnamon rolls from Kronan. We decided to do a solid hike that went up in the mountains. We climbed to a waterfall and yet again not a single person was there. As we descended back down the valley the fog was starting to set in and a white fox was running down the trail. We were insanely lucky. Everyday was amazing. There was never a dull moment.
Day 4 we stopped at a glacier lagoon which is a giant lake with chunks of glacier floating around. We also made the trek out to the airplane wreck in the middle of the moss fields. The true gem of this day was going to the "hidden" waterfall. It was a massive gorgeous waterfall you could walk behind and hardly anyone was there, hence the hiddeness.
Day 5. Our last full day as a squad. We decided to catch the early ferry to Vestmannaeyjar, an island of the south coast which is home to the largest puffin colony. Sadly no puffins, but it was beautiful nonetheless and Tim treated us to a proper meal (that we could only afford to split amongst the three of us but it was so good). We were running on fumes by the time we got back to Reykjavik, literally and figuratively. We were desperate for a shower and a good nights sleep (as comfy as the van was it was quite snuggly and sleeping bags were not part of our budget so it was raincoat blankets). At this point the last thing on our Iceland bucket list was seeing the Northern lights. With it constantly raining in Iceland and the season coming to a close it was kind of tricky to spot them. We staked out a nice spot at the end of this peninsula in Reykjavik, next to the lighthouse, for one last final attempt. A nice bowl of backpacker stew and a gorgeous sunset was a lovely way to end an amazing trip. The sun never fully set so we decided to sleep around 12:30 before having to wake up at 3am for our flights. Tim and I woke up to Jacob yelling at us to get out of the car and there they were. Streaks of red and green across the sky. The northern lights look like a bunch of fairies are buzzing around the sky. Wow. There was even a meteor shower that night to add on to the excitement. I think we all cried.
I know this is a bold statement, but I think Iceland might be the most beautiful country I've ever been to. Obviously places like New Zealand and Nepal are stunning and I am a firm believer that you really cant compare countries. They're apple and oranges. The thing that takes Iceland to the next level for me is the lack of development and people. You can go see waterfalls and mountains without a busload of Chinese tourists and people that sell cheesy keychains. In a day and age where you cant really escape people and cities, it is a gift to be in nature without society butting in. I wouldn't say Im a hardcore introvert, but I definitely have times when I need to escape.
Iceland you blew my mind. I hope that you remain an unspoiled gem.
I love that you “dabble in the art of cooking”, also that the “frozen ice stays winning” in Iceland. Nice save on the northern lights before leaving.
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