After breakfast we headed out to the car but got sidetracked petting the farmer’s dog, Koppir, and talking to the farmer about Icelandic politics. He had very strong opinions about the collapse of Iceland’s banks, Iceland’s recent application to join the European Union, and the future of the world economy. It was interesting to get his perspective on recent events, but it was clear that he would be happy to talk for hours and hours. At about the 20 minute mark we were able to get a word in, and Simone quickly thanked him for the chat and shook his hand, and then we made a beeline for the car.
The lovely Koppir:
We had a really short day so we took our time driving south west along the coast. Our first stop was Vik, where we visited the Reynisdrangar black sand beach. At the west end of the beach are “sea stacks” which look like rock fingers reaching out of the sea. Simone ventured down to the beach for photos but Mom and I stayed up on the path to avoid getting our shoes full of black sand.
The sea stacks:
The black sand beach:
Our second stop was the Skogafoss waterfall. You can walk right up to the waterfall and stand in the large vapor cloud created when the water hits the river bed below. You can also climb up to the top of the waterfall. Simone hared off up to the top of the waterfall right away. Mom and I stayed below, but after a few pictures I decided to give it a try.
Skogafoss waterfall:
The stairs up to the top of the waterfall were a bit rickety and fairly narrow, just wide enough for two people to pass each other. To make things more interesting, there was only one handrail and it was blowing a gale. At one point I stepped away from the handrail to let someone pass. Just then there was a huge gust of wind. I nearly fell off the stairs and tumbled to my death. Half-way up, the clouds decided to release all of the moisture they’d been holding and I was quickly soaked to the skin. By the time I’d made it up to the top of the stairs my camera lens had fogged up and I couldn’t take any photos. Oh, well. I chalked the climb up as good exercise and headed back down the stairs.
Mom and Simone were waiting for me in the car. They clapped and gave me the thumbs up. They also gave me two towels. By that time it was noon and we were hungry, so we stopped for lunch in the restaurant/café next to the Skogar information center. After lunch we drove to the nearby folk museum, but balked at the $10 entrance fee and decided to give it a miss.
We arrived at the Farm Guesthouse Smaratun shortly after 3pm. We checked in and got settled into our room, then drove back to Hvollsvollur to check out the Saga Museum. It was an impressive museum that was largely dedicated to Njal’s Saga, the favorite Icelandic saga. It was quite interesting. In the museum shop I asked the woman at the reception if there were any other shops or things to see in town and she mentioned a handicrafts shop and a wool shop. Unfortunately the handicrafts shop was closed and the wool shop was underwhelming.
We stopped for coffee at a funky pottery studio/café before heading back to the guesthouse. I opened a bottle of sauvignon blanc that I’d purchased earlier and Simone and I enjoyed a couple of glasses of wine. Around 7pm we walked down to the restaurant for dinner. The dinner special was a salmon appetizer, a lamb and roast potato entree, and a fruit dessert for $42. We weren’t planning to have the dinner special, but a few minutes after we sat down the salmon arrived. It was too late to say no to the meal, so we went with it – and it’s a good thing we did! Yum! The salmon was amazing, the lamb was exquisite, and the fruit was delicious. It was by far the best meal we’ve had in Iceland. After dinner we spent some time checking email, repacking, and drying clothes before heading to bed.
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