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A day of surprises......every corner told a different story!

So were up at 0700 but unfortunately not through choice. It seems that everyone else in the hotel was also up early off on some trip or what ever but when they were leaving their rooms it seemed that it was a necessity to slam their room doors and we were awoken to a chorus of them!

Well it got us out of bed and up to breakfast so should not complain too much. It was an in and out of breakfast this morning as we both knew that it was going to be a very long day indeed behind the wheel (turned out to be the best part of 11hours).

So not choosing the sat nav option bit us both on the rear a

little as once again our map reading skills left us for the first twenty minites as we tried to get out of Reykjavik. Normal order was resumed when we realised that we were travelling north instead of south so a quick U-Turn on we were on our way to Jokulsalon and the glacier lagoon.

As we joined motorway 1 the scenery was like none we had ever seen before. Imagine a deep black matt carpet covered in see through velvet and your on the right track. The ground was the deepest solid black volcanic grit the colour of freshly laid tarmac, almost looking wet to the touch. This was then covered in the shimmering moss in all the shades of green and yellow and it stretched for as far as the eye could see. It was a real treat for the senses all glossy and surreal....stunning!

As we drove ( and drove and drove....it took four and a half hours each way) the landscape kept rewarding our efforts by constantly changing from the high gloss of the moss covered lava fields to the neon green lawned marsh areas with glistening black pebbled streams running through them. Wild horses pranced up and down and raced each other with the thickest flowing manes I have ever seen on a horse. It must have been the season for births as the fields were full of foals adding even more to the romance and sheer beauty of the sights that kept on giving.

The lanscape changed again and again with every twist and turn of the road. We passed totally flat pasture land full of cattle, grazing fields for sheep and their new lambs.Wind blown grasses that had turned bronze and withered merged straight into lush pampas grasses within 5 meteres of each other, honestly it's so hard to describe.

Framing all of these ever changing landscapes were backdrops of snow capped volcanoes, evergreen moss covered hills and rock formations punching from the ground and then there were the waterfalls........

Now I have always thought of a water fall as something special, mother nature at its best. All that beauty and power in something that refreshes the land. I think it was all those Tarzan episodes I watched as a boy but waterfalls have always been a bit hollywood to me, full of magic and Iceland has loads of them.

The first water fall that we saw made us gasp, a drop of over 65 meteres straight into a small rocky pool and then the water just disagreed under the meadow that we stood on. There were steps to go behind and a path way right around the back of the falls, just stunning. I have to admit that we did not go right along the path as we were getting soaked and with a full day ahead of us still it seemed more grown up and sensible to stay dry and this point and carry on driving the other three hours!

Well after out first waterfall experience they just kept on coming and coming and coming, I have never seen so many many and all of the stunning. Low ones, high ones, gigantic wide ones, you name it we saw every variety that you can think of.

After three hours or so we were thirsty and in need of a break so we stopped off at a roadhouse (garage come restaurant come corner shop etc) and had a drink. Trev sampled one of Iceland's so called delicacies a hotdog and was not that impressed, I'm glad I went for the tomato soup!

It was now onwards and upward as we carried on our journey west to the glacier lake, with no more stops!

When we finally made it to our destination we knew immediately that out journey had been worth it.BREATHTAKING!

The glacier lake is formed by pure melting snow and ice and for that reason is the purest blue lake you will ever see. As Iceland heats up into the summer the ice and snow thaw forming the lake leaving behind the most solid segments giving the floating icebergs that float around in this vast space. The crystal clear blue lake is surrounded by snow covered mountains creating a back drop to die for, honestly we had both never seen anything like it before and we will not forget it in a rush, amazing !

We sat in the small cafe and had coffee and cake just looking out into this natural marvel, We do not have the words to really describe its beauty so please look at the pictures, they are stunning.

After a great walk around the lake it was back in the car to face the long journey back knowing that we had just seen something that we would not forget for the rest of our lives. The journey back seemed to take forever again. Island drivers really do stick to the speed limit and when that limit is only 80 km per hour on average its very very slow.

We made one significant stop on the way back to the city at a coastal town called Vik. Just off its coastline stood rock formations out in the sea that look like the world famous twelve apostles. The beach itself was matt black sand just like those of Lanzarote or Napier beach in New Zealand.

Finally back in Reykjavik we headed out for a quick bite to eat as it was now nearly nine at night (even though its still not even the slightest bit dark yet and you could swear it was really only the middle of the afternoon). Fish and Chips it was down by the old harbour area and to be honest it was not bad but not great either so we have now promised ourselves a decent meal here before we leave.

Its been a great day and great to be out of the city and actually see some of the Iceland that we had been expecting. More of the same tomorrow me thinks but not at such a breakneck pace.

Night night all. xxx

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