America Travel Information

For our second day the plan was to take a tour of the main attractions on the south coast of Iceland. This area is not so touristy as the Golden Circle, but remains part of the highway number one, which is shaped like a ring and runs throughout the island, which is also a place easily accessible to tourists. There are also the southern coast variety of tours of the day, although less than in the case of the Golden Circle

Our first stop was the waterfall Seljandsfoss. From a distance it seemed only a small waterfall with thin and less abundant waterfalls. However, once we get closer, we saw that was really beautiful. A path can pass through the sides and behind Seljandsfoss, turning the whole and can appreciate it from all angles. Small flowers of different species, yellow and purple decorated the waterfall area, producing a strong contrast with the green vegetation.

The sun began to shine once we move away from the falls along the path marked for this purpose. The trail culminated near a cave where there was water to a height of two feet. But our friends A and Onni were prepared. In the car, had brought several pairs of wading boots. Such boots are similar to rain boots, thick and waterproof. Turn, are very high, ranging from feet to almost English, protecting the whole legs.

Once we change our shoes these boots, we walked with them on the water, entering in that cave. Inside we find a second waterfall, too large. The flow of water entered through a large hole in the top of the cave. The name of this second cascade was Gljufrabui, which means “he who lives in the canyon.” As can be seen in Iceland the names of the attractions are very descriptive of what we are witnessing!

Gljufrabui water came from the same place of Seljandsfoss. Meltwater was a distant glacier on the hill. It was fresh water, clean and fresh, so we take to fill our water bottles in Seljandsfoss. The taste of water was delicious.

After this stop, we continued our way in a southeasterly direction. Soon we stopped at our second stop, a semi-natural pool called Seljaballalaug. To get there, we had to park the car and walk towards the mountains. We were in the area where the farms and farms that were more severely ill when Eyjafjallajökull erupted in May 2010. It was amazing to see how these people still live there, quietly enjoying their lives despite the looming proximity of many active volcanoes.

The pool water was comfortably warm, and hot in some parts. It is water that is heated in the interior of the volcanic mountain, then down and filtered through the rocks, leading to the pool. It was a semi-rectangular pool, which had the mountain as one of its walls, and three walls and the bottom, made of concrete. A few steps had been built three modest costumes (concrete benches, grab bars for hanging clothes, and a hole in the wall which probably originally planned to place a window. We use one of these dressing rooms to change and wear our suits bathroom. then quickly jumped into the warm water of the swimming pool was a fairly cloudy, cold day, so it was not ideal to be outside in a bathing suit!

The pool was filled with ash during the recent volcanic eruption. Had subsequently been cleaned, but still had a gritty sensation in the feet when walking on it, probably because it had been some ash on the inside, against the background. The color of the water was green. According to our friend A, give this coloration the small plants that inhabit the pool.

After a relaxing bath, ran haciael clothes, dry them quickly our bodies with towels and returned to shelter with our clothes. Then we walked back to the car. Go from car parking space to the pool we mean a walk of 10 to 15 minutes, but the way back we found it much shorter and faster, as always.

The third stop was at a new falls. In this case it was Skógafoss, a waterfall near perfect. Unlike the falls we had seen before, had a harmonious Skógafoss symmetrically and a steady and abundant water supply. The waterfall had a total of about 40 meters. There were three different levels at which they could access to see the falls: the lower zone, the middle and upper. Ladders metal structure facilitated the ascent and descent between different viewpoints, we visited all without much inconvenience.

The area around this waterfall is the starting point for a walking or hiking more typical of Iceland. From there it travels up the river, enjoying the different variety of falls and cascades that they produce. The end of the tour takes place on a glacier, which is also where the river that feeds Skógafoss. That area of ​​the glacier known as Fimmvorduhals which means “the way with five signposts.” Fueen Fimmvorduhals the site of the original volcanic eruption in 2010. This eruption was followed by the better-known neighbor Eyjafjallajökull, who fired more ash than lava.

Once back in the car began to rain. This was how quickly we go through the valley Myrtalur or “the valley of the swamp.” We were supposed to stop there, go to the coast and enjoy a few sights, but, as its name implies – this valley is the most humid and rainy throughout Iceland. It was raining heavily when we crossed, so it made no sense to stop there.

Once on the other side of the valley, soon arrived at the town of Vik. This is the southernmost city in the whole mainland of Iceland. The word “Vik” means bay and is where the word “Viking” originated in the first place.

Vik, we stopped at a local coffee shop around 18:00. Here we take a sort of late lunch. My choice was a home-like juicy hamburger barbecue, accompanied by fries and cocktail sauce. In Iceland, all the cafes and restaurants offer free water to accompany your meal, either in glasses or pitcher, depending on the establishment.

After lunch, we stopped at the small supermarket to buy some groceries Vik and visit the black sand beach. The view from there was beautiful and the feeling of standing on thick black sand rather unusual. The water was cold but not too cold. Even so, as it was a cold day, just touch quickly with his hand, encouraging me not to get wet. After two days of failed attempts, was in the black sand beach where we could finally take a picture of all the girls in the group jumping in the air at the same time. In the distance I could see also a group of cliffs, which are known as Reynistrangar.

Once we left Vik, we continue our way to our next destination. The road crossed many bridges, some of which can be dangerous when glaciers melt and cause flooding. Part of the sand in the area had been covered with grass as part of a government project to control flooding from snowmelt.

We drove about an hour. At one point we left the paved road a main route, turn left and enter into a more irregular. This path would take us to a new region for us: the almost uninhabited central highlands of Iceland, where we would spend the night in a mountain refuge. But this is a brand new story, I’ll describe in a future post.