The final posting - Reykjavik

Our adventure started and ended in the capical of Iceland, Reykjavik. When we arrived 3 weeks ago, we immediately left the city and started on our clockwise tour of the island. Now we return to the city to explore it. This also marks the end of our trip. Hope you enjoyed it! signed with love, Nicolas and Cathy -- "newly engaged" (in case you missed the posting).

The Blue Lagoon

The famous geothermal pool, with its silica mud and algae. It was really worth the wait!

The Great Geysir

Geysir (sometimes known as The Great Geysir), in the Haukadalur valley, Iceland, is the oldest known geyser. The English word geyser to describe a spouting hot spring derives from Geysir (which itself is derived from the Icelandic verb gjósa meaning to erupt.

Geysir has been dormant for a few decades and it only erupts when there is volcanic activity in the area, especially earthquakes. However, 400m from Geysir stands Strokkur, another geysir. Strokkur erupts every 2-3 minutes. Wow !

I played some camera tricks. If you have a fast speed internet connection, look at the pictures with Cathy (light blue coat). I took a series of photos of her playing a clock ;) The shots are about 1/5 seconds appart. Go to the album by clicking on the photo and move from photo to photo.

Flowing geothermal hot pot

This evening we arrived in a geothermal area. We parked the car, packed our gear, and headed up the rocky mountains. After a hike of about 90 minutes, we reached the warm flowing springs. The temperature was 50C in some places, and cooled downstream as several cold sources of water mixed into the stream. We waded in at about 39C. We setup camp by the stream and spent the night.

Raufarholshellir cave

The Raufarholshellir cave is only 45 minutes from the capital -- but it remains nearly unexplored. I had difficulty finding it with my GPS, but it was literally just off a paved road. It is incredible how a 1.3km cave is unfenced and open to anyone and everyone.
We went about 400m into the cave before turning back. That may not sound like much, but after advancing 10 meters into the cave, there is a complete absence of light!
Let me just say that one does not feel very comfortable when there are collapsed boulders all around and water is dripping from the ceiling. Our two flashlights were just enough to help us dodge various collapsed boulders.

Folk Musuem in Skogar

The most beautiful and complete folk museum in Iceland can be found in the Village of Skogar in the south. Here are a few pictures of items that I found interesting.

The black beach in Vik

The village of Vík is the southernmost village in Iceland. A remarkable nearby feature is the beautiful black beach with the Reynisdrangar, black basalt columns sculpted by the sea. A folk tale says that they are former trolls which were caught outside at dawn. The sea around them is rather wild and stormy, so travelers will not be surprised to discover a monument to the memory of drowned seamen on the beach. In 1991, the American journal Islands Magazine counted this beach as one of the ten most beautiful beaches on Earth.