East Fjords, Part 1

It’s been a while since I've written anything, but that’s because I haven’t had time to sit down and think for five minutes. Finally, things have settled down (temporarily), so I’m getting caught up! Aside from constant school projects, the two main events in the past two weeks have been my trip to the East Fjords and my brother Sam visiting for Iceland Airwaves.

Last Friday, I headed out east with eight other people from a bunch of countries: Austria, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Denmark, Spain, and another from Canada. We went to Bónus and stocked up on groceries, then drove out to Kirkjubæjarklaustur for the first night. We left around 5, and the sun was already setting, so we didn't get to see too much that day, although we did stop by a big waterfall which was conveniently lit up. We stayed in two cabins in the countryside which were great. I’m so glad I brought Apples to Apples from home – we played it that night, and it’s always a hit whenever it gets played. There was lots of snow outside, and we were able to have a fast-paced snowball fight! It was surprising to me because Reykjavík has barely had any snow, yet the countryside is already covered in a white layer. Most of it melted by morning, though.

Our cabin

In the morning we left Kirkjubæjarklaustur and began the long drive to the east coast. I saw vast parts of Iceland I've never seen before. As I've already said several times, Iceland is breathtakingly beautiful, and the area we passed on Saturday was no exception. Because there were almost no trees, I could see for miles at any given moment, and there was a constant backdrop of snow-capped mountains. At home I have a book about Iceland with a strange title – “When You Travel in Iceland You See a Lot of Water.” After having crossed the country I can understand the title: we were constantly crossing rivers, the ocean was always nearby, and there were waterfalls cascading down the mountains. Plus, it rained on and off while we were driving. It’s a wet place!

The countryside around Kirkjubæjarklaustur

We drove by Eyjafjallajökull, the glacier whose volcano was responsible for the infamous 2010 eruption. We kept driving until we reached Svínafellsjökull, an arm of Vatnajökull, the largest glacier in Iceland and Europe. Here we got out and walked along the edge of the glacier, although we didn't walk on the glacier itself. It’s interesting how different glaciers look up close. Far away, they look like clean white sheets, but up close, their texture and composition are completely different – there’s more dirt and jagged sections. Vatnajökull covers over 8% of Iceland, and we kept seeing it in the background all day. It’s a big glacier!

One item of interest I brought on the trip was…my snuggie! I know how embarrassing it is to own a Snuggie but I enjoy it and it proved to be a big hit with everyone on the trip. Snuggies don’t seem to be as well-known in Europe, but most people wound up wearing the Snuggie at one point or another – in the cabins, while driving, and while standing by the ocean. We even brought the Snuggie when we went to the glacier! I have some ridiculous pictures involving the Snuggie in exotic Icelandic locales.

At the edge of Vatnajökull

The next stop we made was at Jökulsárlón – the Glacier Lagoon. This lagoon is full of icebergs that have broken off of Vatnajökull’s edges and are drifting out to sea. We climbed onto one of the icebergs, which was slippery but memorable. The lagoon was unlike anywhere I’d been before, and it was a stunning sight that I really enjoyed. We drove onward to Höfn and quickly replenished our food stocks before finally reaching the East Fjords. Suddenly the landscape became very dramatic, and we were on a road clinging to the edge of a cliff beside the ocean. We saw a lot of fallen rocks on the road, and I can’t imagine trying to navigate this part of Iceland in the dead of winter. Fortunately for us, it wasn't too snowy when we passed, and the views were fantastic.

Jökulsárlón

The road along one of the fjords.

However, in the late afternoon Iceland turned back into a winter wonderland. We drove into the night and it was dark and cold when we arrived at Eskifjörður. Again, we stayed in two cabins on the fringe of the town. There was a hot tub fashioned out of a boat, along with a sauna. We enjoyed jumping out of the hot tub into the snow, then running into the sauna to warm up once we were covered in snow. It was great!

One of the cottages

The hot tub facing the fjord

I realize this entry is getting very long, so I’ll split the rest of the trip into another post. :P