Iceland
May 5th
When it comes to the moment of landing on the island of ice and fire, a mixture of feelings; Excitement, nerves and gratitude come to me. All my life I have desired to be here, the sun is shining today to bring me a beautiful welcome.
After landing, Janine (Germany) is waiting for me to pick up our tiny car, will we get there 4 girls and luggage? luckily it is cold because we will be well together ...
We went to look for the next crew member, Elena (Lithuania), who says 'ioh girls, it feels like I know you for years'. This trip is gonna be awesome.
Lera (Russia) will not join us until tomorrow, so we set off for Reykjanes Peninsula to start introducing ourselves to this magnificent nature.
The first stop is the America - Europe Bridge that brings together the two parts of the earth created by the separation of the plates or rift (each year, they are separated by around two centimeters).
The second stop deserves more time to discover the Geo Thermal Hot Spring of Gunnuhver that will give you the first contact with that peculiar smell of rotten eggs. Then, walking, you will reach the coast, where the sea and the wind collide with the lava.
The Blue Lagoon is very famous and we approach it to enjoy its surroundings, from the road you can enjoy the view of a turquoise river through the lava. We decide do not take a bath, because the price is exorbitant and in our trip awaits another 'wild' bath.
The day is falling and we go towards Hveragerði to spend the night in a couchsurfing place.
May 6th
Today Lera joins us! And today is about waterfalls.
After having breakfast and making a food purchase, Urridafoss is the first waterfall we visited that although it does not have a large fall, its flow is massive.
Now we are going to see one of the most famous waterfalls on the island, Seljalandsfoss, which is mesmerizing, not only because of its fall (60m), but because you can walk behind it.
I recommend you to walk to the left of the waterfall and you will find another smaller one that is worth discovering, Gljufrafoss, you will have to get wet to see it!
After visiting these waterfalls, you will be completely wet so do not forget to go get dress properly.
The next waterfall is Kvernufoss, which, if you have the same luck as us, you will enjoy it in solitude, due to it is not so touristy. I highly recommend visiting it because the place where the waterfall is, it is a haven of peace and you can also walk by behind it.
The fourth, and most famous of the waterfalls, is Skógafoss which with its 60 m high and 25 wide will leave you amazed, although I personally have enjoyed Kvernufoos more for the solitude of the place, you must see this one.
We end the day with a walk throughout Reynisfjara Beach the famous volcanic black sand beach and the Reynisdrangur. These monolithic rocks, up to 66 meters high, were originated by the erosion of the strong waves of the sea. Together with the cliff and the black sand they make up a truly unusual landscape that is the protagonist of thousands of photographs.
Although the origin of these formations has a scientific explanation, the Icelandic mythology explains the origin of the Reynisdrangur. If you have the opportunity, ask them to tell you the story of the trolls who turned into stone after seeing the light of day.
May 7th
After a nice breakfast we return to the black beach for this time go uphill to admire the Dyrhólaey arch and the impressive views of the beach on both sides of the arch.
To reach the Dyrhólaey cliff, you will see the 120-meter-long rock with two arches, it is necessary to climb up an unpaved track. Do not miss it!
Today the rain and cold are our mates, but we still have 2h on the road to the waterfall Svartifoss.
On your way to the waterfall, you will see the mountain Lómagnúpur just next to the road, pull over for a minute to admire it, it iss not only incredible for being a massive rock but because according to the angle from which you look it changes and from all of them it is beautiful.
In the heart of the Skaftafell National Park, Svartifoss (or the black waterfall, as it is known) is one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Iceland, not because of its fall but because of the hexagonal columns of black basaltic stone that surround it, they grant an aspect of organ.
Advice! Follow the path after seeing the waterfall to reach a viewpoint and contemplate one of the outlet glaciers of Iceland's largest glacier (more than 8000km2), Vatnajökull.
After a snack to recover strength; although the trekking is quite easy, about 3 hours, the cold increases hunger. We go to the Jökulsárlón lagoon, a glacier lake of blue colors where the icebergs and seals are all over the place.
After enjoying like little girls with this landscape, we put an end to our day in Höfn, in a family hostel with a few bottles of alcohol from the island and breathtaking views of an endless sunset over the mountains and the Vatnajökull glacier.
Fun fact about the sunset: As you probably have heard several times, during winter it is night for almost 24 hours and in summer the opposite. In this season when summer is coming, you'll have 3-ish night hours, so the sunset starts at 10:30 / 11 p.m. but it is a very long sunset (2-ish hours), to dawn at 4ish a.m.