Iceland: Land of fire and ice

July 2017

illustrated by Shu Li & Seer

Þingvellir, Geysir, Kerið, Gullfoss

Iceland is a heaven for photographers, travellers and nature-lovers. It is still geologically active, which is the reason why it has such beautiful and varied landscape.

Driving in Iceland was a marvellous experience. The roads are separated into normal and F roads with the latter being dirt roads which are only open during the summer months. 4x4s are legally required on F roads. We planned our road trip to include these F roads. After collecting our little Suzuki Jimny, our first stop was Thingvellir National Park. There is a section where you will walk in and along the fissure between two tectonic plates (also a scene in Games of Thrones!). This historical area was where the oldest parliament meeting was ever documented.

Geysir is naturally the next stop due to its proximity. The sulphur gives the ground unique colours and each geyser has its own characteristics. For example the Little Geysir was gently bubbling away while the Strokkur erupts every 6-10 minutes.

We also stopped and walked around Kerið, which is a volcano crater filled with water. It has the most amazing colourful volcano rocks.

Gullfoss was a magnificent tiered voluminous waterfall located within the Golden Circle, a popular tourists' route in south of Iceland.

Stöng, Gjáin, Háifoss

Stöng, Gjáin and Haifoss were an amazing trio. Gjáin was instantly recognisable as one of the filming location of Games of Thrones where Arya Stark was practicing with her Needle when the Hound lost her early in the morning. It was such a serene location and we struggled to capture the magical beauty of this place.

Háifoss was tall and majestic. It is the third tallest waterfall in Iceland. It is next to Granni which was beautiful on its own. Standing by the cliffs with the strong wind blowing, sounds of gushing waters and the jaw-dropping panorama view of both waterfalls is one of the most beautiful sight in Iceland.

Landmannalaugar

Landmannalaugar was a location we looked forward to visit. The drive along F208 was an exciting one. We have to avoid multiple large puddles on the way to and wade through rivers on the way out! We captured in on videos. Landmannalaugar is renowned for its colourful landscape formed by various floral proliferation. Unfortunately the weather was not on our side on this day. Rain and wind were strong but we managed to enjoy it as it was. We could only imagine how beautiful if would be if the visibility were better. We walked up the hills and valleys, through streams and bypassing geothermal areas with hot steam exiting and passed areas with ice and black volcanic sand. The landscape in Landmannalaugar was every changing every few meters. Very pleasing on the eyes indeed.

Gljúfrafoss, Seljalandsfoss, Reynisfjara, Fjaðrárgljúfur, Jökulsárlón

Although Seljalandsfoss was the main tourists spot, Gljúfrafoss was our favourite. Just a 5-minutes walk from Seljalandfoss, we were greeted by a tiny crack between the cliffs, just wide enough for one person. We walked through this canyon on a few stepping stones along a fast flowing river into a cave and our jaws immediately dropped as we met Gljúfrafoss where its water dropped from high above.

Reynisfjara is a black sand beach, formed by black basalt rock around the area. This is a heaven for puffins and gulls. We spent quality time observing the Atlantic Puffins, locally known as Lundis. We then visited Fjaðrárgljúfur, which is a 100m deep, 2km long canyon believed to be 2 million years old. Add a little imagination, and you can see T-rex running about and Pterosaurs flying through the valley.

Our last stop for the day was Jökulsárlón. It is a lagoon with blue water and icebergs, formed by glacier as part of Vatnajökull Glacier. It was calm there. Each iceberg was unique and beautiful. Some were white, blue and even black as a result of volcanic ash. There were numerous ice blocks washed up on the shore of black sand were you could touch, hold or eat if you dare! It was such an amazing sight and experience. It was another bird heaven there. They were happily fishing during their dinner time.

Uniqueness of icebergs.

svinafellsjökull glacier, svartifoss, skÓgafoss

This was was a very special day for us. We experienced glacier walking and ice climbing. It was short but very fun indeed. We learned to trust the strength of ice screws, crampons, ice picks and a few ropes! The weather cleared up later for a majestic view of the Svinafellsjökull glacier. This is actually the location of many great movies such as Batman Begins and Interstellar. According to our guide, this is one of Christopher Nolan's favourite locations.

Finally the weather cleared the day we visited Svartifoss. The hike was one and half hour, relatively long considering most waterfalls we visited in Iceland has a carpark! Haha. Nonetheless, the configuration of the waterfall was unique with its basalt rock pillars.

Reykjavik

Reykjavik is known to the world's smallest city. We visited the site where Eurasia and North America tectonic plates are slowly drifting apart. One of the best park in the capital was Blue Lagoon. We've learnt from previous travels that we should have a relaxing last day and oh my, it was.