Posts Tagged ‘Snæfellsnes Peninsula’
Snæfellsnes Peninsula
It’s impossible to pick, but this 9th day of our Iceland adventure rivals the best of the others for me because of the depth and breadth of rock formations we saw in rapid succession. Right out of the hotel car park, we decided to check out an enticing picnic spot by a modest waterfall with basalt columns.
We were the first and only ones there! Our first site without other tourists left and right. But this wasn’t even on our agenda. We were headed to see the Rauðfeldsgjá Gorge.
A long hike to the entrance while coping with a very stiff wind.
Well worth the effort as the gorge was really cool. It required rock hopping across the flowing water to get in. I took a video of the spot just inside the entrance.
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From there, we made our way to the Arnastappi Cliff and Hellnar viewpoints. Incredible sightseeing in every way.
The mythical half-giant, Bárður Snæfellsás!
My favorite, by far was the bending rock formations in this nook. You could see how the lava flowed. The 90° turn is striking.
We also climbed innumerable steps to the top of the Saxoll Crater.
Up here, we encountered probably the strongest steady wind of our time in Iceland. Luckily, it wasn’t that extreme on the side with the stairway. When I stepped up to the highest plateau, I could almost rest my full weight into the push of the wind.
Somewhere in this day, we snuck in a picnic lunch in the car and a visit to the Maritime Museum in Hellissandur.
Moving on, we enjoyed a great view of Kirkjufell Mountain and the waterfalls nearby.
Famed, I’m told, for its appearance in Game of Thrones, but also because it is one of Icelands’ most photographed and iconic mountains.
Finally, of all the nights with Aurora sightings, this night happened to be the most dramatic of all of them.
It was a wonderful punctuation at the end of our fabulous time on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula.
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Adventure Continues
As I shuffled toward the farm guesthouse kitchen on the morning of our 8th day, I found Mike finishing up a watercolor painting as Barb was setting out fixings for our breakfast.
We soon set off from our fantastic farm visit toward the Hraunfosser and Barnafosser waterfalls. I thought I had seen pretty much everything there is to see about waterfalls, but the spectacle of the “lava falls” wowed us beyond expectations.
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Once again, photos in no way do justice to the stupendous wonder of nature in the way the water gushed from the side of the wall of the river gorge for a surprising distance up and down the river from where we stood to view it. I think we all found ourselves involuntarily uttering random exclamations of wonder over what we were witnessing.
Just a short distance upstream, the spectacle changed dramatically into a raging turmoil of rushing water around impressive rock formations.
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At the same time, I still found myself equally amazed by the ripples of hardened lava that vividly reflected the volcanic activity shaping all this some thousand years before.
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Like I felt so many other times on this trip, we could have spent much of the day exploring the scenery right here, but this was just an “appetizer-adventure” for this day. We had an appointment at Krauma Hot Spring & Spa.
Ours was one of the first sessions of the day, so the spa wasn’t crowded yet. This plush facility offered pools of several different temperatures, including an ice-cold pool that I dipped into twice (because I could then immediately move to the 102°F infinity pool). As the pictures above show, we were graced with another blue-sky Icelandic day that made a blissful soak at this classy spa all the more sublime.
Just down the hill from the spa, we found a food trailer run by an Icelander offering tomato soup and fish & chips. I regret not learning his name or getting his picture because he was wonderfully gregarious and informative, sharing personal information and waxing eloquently about the reason he believes there are so many horses in this island country (hopeful breeding to win their national competition).
After lunch, we continued our exploration of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula with a visit to the basalt rock columns of the Gerduberg cliffs. Just another Icelandic visual extravaganza.
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I felt a need to stretch my calves, but Cyndie took a picture because it looked like I was trying to push this rock uphill.
Next stop, Yrti Tunga Beach, a hidden gem on the peninsula with golden sands and playful seals. I found two smooth stones here that traveled home with me as souvenirs for my kids.
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In the distance, a great view of the most prominent landmark on the peninsula, the glacier-capped Snæfellsjökull stratovolcano. Just plain remarkable scenery everywhere we look.
Finally, we set out to find our beds for the night. It happened to be our most expensive hotel of the trip, Hotel Budir, a real charm.
It was a great old hotel, although the bathroom in our room had been squeezed into such a small space that we could barely fit into it around the door, resulting in much laughter each time we tried.
Continuing a trend, we were given another showing of awesome Aurora at nightfall to cap off another brilliant day in Iceland.
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Relative Something 