Final Summer Adventure: Iceland 2019

Instagram definitely has a way of enticing the hungriest of the wanderers to explore the various bucket list places. Iceland has been one of those for me since I watched an enticing video from a friend and was immediately set on going there. When, how, and what we would do was all under speculation, but once I set it on my vision/prayer board and started planning, the dream became a reality and here we are, in 2019, recapping a family adventure that was well worth the expense.

A few notes about our trip before I take you on a picturesque journey of some of our favorite stops. If you’re planning your own Icelandic adventure, do note that gas is not cheap. It is the one thing that put us over budget, and something we didn’t plan enough for. So while cheap flights look appealing, do your research! Food is also equally expensive, however, we did budget for that! We even had a bag left over at the end of our trip, which we happily donated to the Kuku Campers reuse shelf.

 Being physically fit and in shape is a must: we averaged about 10 miles of walking/hiking a day and the hikes weren’t always “easy.” Sure, you could park at a main hub attraction, see what you want, and drive on, but exploring on the various trails surrounding the main attraction was, by far, the best part of our adventure. And some of those “main attractions” were not so close to the road or parking areas, so keep that in mind.

The other main thing we would recommend is avoid “renting” items from the campervan places and bring your own camping gear. Most can be easily stowed, so we had no issue. We ordered travel size pillows and Kelty Bestie blankets for our bedding. The Kuku Campers van had a heating unit, so we were toasty and comfortable at night.  For Christmas my mom bought us some very awesome microfiber sports towels, that worked like a charm. You will definitely need something of that sort for visits to the pools and showering along the Ring Road. There are NO campfires allowed in Iceland, and for good reason.

Finally, LAYERS. The average temperature we discovered was close to the mid-50s. Depending on your location on the island, the weather changed and shifted pretty dramatically. We went from winds, sunshine, overcast, to cold, mid 40s, and rain. Layering up was essential. Being from the PACNW, we were pretty used to the weather, but the wind was something else. Unless you’ve lived in Wyoming and get the I-80 corridor references, you might be surprised at how powerful the wind can truly be!

Camping Iceland

We rented a camper van through Kuku Campers. We got a nice sized VW van, that was spacious and comfy: a great home away from home for our adventure. Brad felt “right at home” as it was pretty similar to the ambulances he works on anyhow. In fact, before we took off, he easily chatted with one of the mechanics about our charging port that wasn’t really working well. The back table and seating area turned into an oversized bed and there was a bed above for the kids. Note, though, the kids only slept on the top one night because they thought it was “too cold.” Lucky us and the fact that we had plenty of room to spare so we all sandwiched together on the bottom bunk. That little van was used for our cooking of all our meals, pit stops for lunch and snacks, and our cool water container was refilled at almost every town along the route. 

Our beast for the excursion

Enjoying Papa time 

Nightly rituals of movie watching

Daily rituals of driving

Morning coffee views

Playing games

The master chef

The "kitchen"

Panoramic views. 

Cheers!

We entertained ourselves well into the evenings by playing card games or watching downloaded movies on our devices, a nightly ritual to unwind. Thank you, Kuku for an awesome experience and such great staff! Next time we visit, we intend to rent a car that can take some of those F Roads and explore the highlands. 😊

The Golden Circle

We decided to rent from Kuku Campers and if you have the time, check out their fun marketing. Cracked me up and they were one of the cheaper van rental places I found when researching rentals. They picked us up from our hotel, we grabbed the essentials for our trip, and we were off.  

Golden Circle is a short drive outside of Reyjavik and takes you to the following main stops along the way: Pingvellir National Park, Geysir, and Gullfoss.

Þingvellir  is notorious for where the tectonic plates are shifting apart and separating Europe from North America.  Walking the various trails and being right there where history is literally happening, was pretty special, to say the least.

Board walking

1st waterfall

Europe vs. North America 

Tectonic Plates

Pingvellir National Park Views

Þingvallavatn Lake

Geysir was a small geothermal area that has Geysir, which spouts off and is similar to Old Faithful, just not in magnitude or dramatic height. Iceland doesn’t have boardwalks or protected walkways for these areas, so people can walk right up to the bubbling pots and pools, and be within feet of them. I am sure conservationists will eventually advocate for changes to this in the future, at least to protect the ground and protect tourists who are mindless.

Geysir

Valley below Geysir

Geysir from above

Our last stop for the day was Gullfoss, a powerful double waterfall that fed into a large glacial river. It was beautiful and awesome. It was the second waterfall of our visit. We got glimpses of small rainbows scattering around the falls mist.

Rainbow at Gullfoss

Icelander taking her horses for feeding time. 

We stayed along the Golden Circle at our first campground experience. It was definitely different. Most camping spots in Iceland have an “open camp” concept. Some had reception offices where you checked in, playgrounds,  showers, WiFi, and a launderette. Others were just a pull in and park and then, around 9pm, someone would come in a collect your money for the night stay. If we were to do this again, we would suggest getting a Camping Pass to save money. We averaged about $30/night (kids under 12 were free) so it was not terribly priced. The first camp site we enjoyed a couple of beers on a patio from the lounge and watched the kids play on the playground with some locals.

Enjoying an Icelandic ale on the patio while the kids play

Playground down below

No, those were not all my empty drinks. :)

South Coast

We began our journey on the Ring Road by doing the South Coast first, working our way counter-clockwise. The landscape changes pretty dramatically in Iceland, from solidified lava rocks covered in a fragile moss overlay, rocky lava type terrain, glacier rivers, large green mountains and cliffs, black sand beaches, and waterfalls…so.many.waterfalls. It was pretty amazing and so diverse. We definitely didn’t get bored!

Eyjafjallajökull Volcano

Glaciers and Mountain Ranges

Seljalandsfoss

Our first stop was at the Seljalandsfoss, a waterfall that cascades down a cliffside and one you could walk behind. This was especially cool for the kids. According to our Rick Steve’s guidebook, he suggests that photography wise, to visit in the afternoon when the sunlight is hitting the falls. We were there first thing in the AM. I think, either way, you could get dreamy photos. It was pretty awesome. Maddy loved being able to go behind it and get wet.

Behind the falls

Skogafoss

Our next major stop was at Skogafoss, another towering waterfall that you could walk right up to at the base. There is a trail head that goes up to a popular backpacking trail to some of the highlands, that was above the falls. We walked the 500+ steps and then on the trail a ways before turning around. It was gorgeous views of the valleys below and the starting point of Skogafoss. Maddy liked watching the sheep on the hillside and how dare devilish they were by jumping onto an island in the middle of the stream to drink water.

Origins of Skogafoss

Skogafoss from above

Sólheimajökull Glacier

Iceland is home to many glaciers, including Europe’s largest. One place we stopped out was Sólheimajökull Glacier, which is set between two volcanoes:  Katla and Eyjafjallajökull. It’s relatively easy to access and view, and many day excursions go to this glacier such as visiting the ice caves and hiking on the glaciers. This was the first glacier we viewed up close and personal, but did not see or hear it calve while we were there. Jax enjoyed jumping from rock to rock on the pathway leading up to the glacier. The terrain around this glacier area was desolate and rocky, even dirty. Not most eye appealing, but still awesome.

REYNISFJARA

 As we continued on, we enjoyed stopping at the infamous black sand beach of Reynisfjara. The basalt columns and high sea caves made a fun afternoon for the kids to climb and play on. It was also really cool to watch puffins, who migrate there to have their young in the summer, inhabit the cliff walls and fly out to sea continuously to get food for their young. The beach is always a hit for us.

Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon

This beautifully carved canyon was harboring lots of gorgeous greens and golden hues as the afternoon light was hitting the area just right. The wind was a bit tumultuous, but the views made up for the disruption.

We ended up camping our second night close to this area, Tjaldsvæðið Kleifar which was a lovely spot. There was a small waterfall that was within view and we enjoyed walking to it, without being overwhelmed with too many tourists. It was a great place to unwind after dinner, letting the kids throw rocks into the deep pool at the waterfall base.

SOUTHEAST COAST

The next day we continued our journey along the Ring Road and stopped for a good two hour hike at Skaftafell National Park, home to Europe’s largest ice cap: Vatnajökull. We hiked to Svartifoss, where Jax was the true rock star, hiking (or running) most of the steep grade up to the falls and back down. He was awarded an ice cream at the end, as was Maddy, as Brad and I enjoyed some hot coffee. 

Remnants of a bridge that once was but was washed away after glacial flooding from erupting Vatnajökull, in 1996. 

Maddy's mad skills.

My muse taking in the views. 

Svartifoss

We headed next to Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon where we ended up parking before the main parking area to have lunch and then took a marked trail that led straight to the lagoon. That was smart on our part because we were pretty much isolated and alone along the lagoon. This stop had the kids attention once they saw and witnessed the large chunks of iceberg from the calving glaciers floating in the lagoon. They were eager to touch and see the bergs up close, which they did. We even saw a few seals playing nearby. The best part was hearing the thunderous roar of the glaciers calving in the distance and Jax asking consistently, “What’s that noise, mom?”

Holding his mini glacier. 

Impressive!

Just beyond this stop, we went to a secluded side of the suspension bridge to Diamond Beach, a black sand beach where the lagoon meets the Atlantic Ocean. Here you can see the icebergs making landfall or drifting far out into the Atlantic. The ones that end up on the beach look like tiny diamonds, as they shimmer in the light. This was a hit with the kids, too, as they enjoyed running away from the waves, digging and playing in the sand, and watching the waves crash around several pieces of ice.

They say diamonds are a girl's best friend. 

We stayed in Höfn. It was the first place we went swimming at the public thermal pools and enjoyed lounging in the warm waters. Very family friendly! The views from our campsite couldn’t be beat and it was one of our favorite spots.

East Fjords

The next days were spent in the East Fjords, which was a long day of driving up the coast. We enjoyed turnouts that overlooked the Atlantic Ocean and Norwegian Sea. The views were amazing with breathtaking valleys, cascading waterfalls, high cliffs, and sheep abound. We saw signs for reindeer, but never actually saw them, figuring they are much like elk and up in the high country during the summer months. We stopped for lunch and shopping for Maddy, where she found a couple of key chains and a sheep and Jaxson got a Viking man he named “Superman.”

Another small coastal town that took some time to get to going over a gorgeous mountain pass was Seyðisfjörður. This quaint little town sparks a lovely “rainbow road” in support of the LGBTQ community that ends facing a little blue church. While the road is definitely a cool highlight, the classic European feel of brightly colored houses was really what we liked most about this little community. We noted the pass is often closed in October-April, but there is a ferry to Denmark from here.

Little prayer tree in the Little Blue Church: Love yous.

We stayed in Egilsstaðir and our children are weirdos----they have been seeing hay bales wrapped in different color plastic wraps and were dying to “punch those!” Luckily, by our campsite, there were several there and so, what do you let a 3 and 8 year old do but punch those!

We enjoyed an early morning hike to Hengifoss, where we beat 4 tour bus loads of people to have the waterfall pretty much to ourselves. Brad and Maddy ventured to go a little closer, so Jax and I played with rocks and created cool piles, waiting for their return. Brad ended up jamming his finger pretty bad and we were thankful he didn’t break it.

Some Icelandic wildlife we encountered on our hike

Official gate opener

As we continued our journey onward, the landscape changed again and we decided to take the second road entrance to Detifoss and Selfoss, which was both a blessing and a curse. Blessing because the views of Selfoss were incredible from that side, but curse because the road was pot hole central. Detifoss is the most powerful waterfall in Europe and it was the falls that made me most nervous. No railings or walkways inhabit anyone from getting up close and personal to the cascading falls and honestly, it was  more than nerve wrecking. It was down right frightening. I kept thinking, one slip and someone was over those falls and gone. The rush of that river was no joke and Maddy’s face when she realized the power of the falls was priceless.

Her face when looking at the power of the falls and river below

Muddy puddles, as Jax would say. 

These two goofs.

Northern Iceland

We stayed in Mytvan, which was also Maddy’s birthday. It was our first encounter with rain, but it didn’t deter us from exploring the hot bed for geothermal activity. Some of the highlights hre was the Dimmuborgir Lava Fields, which reminded me of walking through the Garden of the Gods, Hverfell Crater, and Hverir, the geothermal pools, steaming pots, and bubbling mud pots that you could walk right up to. This area is infamous from Game of Thrones, specifically the Grjótagjá Lava Cave. It was a bit sketchy to check out for the kids.

Jax was obsessed with checking maps at every place we went to. 

Proud of climbing up there all by himself. 

Steep trail to top of crater

Other worldly once on top

Crevice

View of Myvtan Valley

Myvtan Lake

Reindeer antlers

Steaming thermal pools

We climbed that crater!

We drove onward to Husavik, where we had a celebratory lunch for Maddy’s birthday, enjoyed ice cream from a local café, and visited the Whale Museum. Husavik is one of the top whale watching destinations in Europe with several different species seen on their daily tours. The museum was a delight for this whale lover’s soul, and seeing the large skeletal remains of a Blue Whale was pretty intense. We both thought Husavik was a neat little coastal community.

Blue whale skeleton

Learning about whales

Rainbow on our way to Husavik

Other whale carcasses

We stayed outside Akureyi where Maddy got her final request of going swimming. Then we played a card game with her and embarrassed her by singing and dancing in the van. All in all, it was a great way to turn 8.

West Iceland

The next day we journeyed along the Tröllaskegi Peninsula, before staying in Arkanes. The drive was secluded and beautiful, towering fjords and sea cliff waterfalls. We visited Glaumber Museum, a settlement museum that resembled the old ways of farm living in sod covered homes. We stopped at a yummy bakery and also stopped to check out the infamous Icelandic horse.

Had to back track to see Gogafoss. She was a beauty, though!

Along the Troll Peninsula

You could go inside the farmhouse, which was really cool. Seeing the rooms and elongated halls made these small places look even bigger once inside.  

Coffee and Pastry 

Enjoying his milk after finishing off his doughnut

Our campground host. 

Midnight sun, sun set.

Reykavik

With our final destination as Reykavik, we enjoyed the afternoon at the National Heritage Museum and then took the kids to the zoo. The zoo was adjacent to the park, which was extremely fun, family friendly, and inviting. There was so much to do that it made for a jammed packed and fun filled afternoon. We ventured to downtown for some final shopping before heading back to our hotel to prepare for our long journey home the next day.

At the Viking Museum in Klavik

Our only view of reindeer

Snoozing seal

Perfect size stone chair

Cool Viking ship. Jax: "I like this place, mom."

Although we didn’t see everything, like the Northern Lights, we felt the trip was worth while and amazing. Iceland is a beautiful country and it was a place I felt extremely safe and welcome in. 

 Until the next adventure…