Welcome to our second day in Iceland where we explore the Golden Circle. If you haven’t checked out yesterday’s blog, you can find it here!
May 15, 2017 –
We were expecting to be super jet lagged and wake up at a strange hour; however, we got up at a regular hour and had the full day to explore. We had about a three hour drive from Reykjavík to ÖXARÁRFOSS. There were basically NO cars on the road and there were so few turn offs. It was so crazy! Make sure you have a full tank of gas before heading out for the day. We stopped at the upper parking lot, which allowed us to walk through those cool rocks. There is a small gate, but as you can see it was unlocked and more of a visual deterrent. (Tour buses seemed to be dropping people off at a lower parking lot, where you could take steps up to the waterfall.)
From there we had about a twenty minute drive to ÞINGVELLIR. The historic site in where parliament was once held starting in the 10th Century. The area sits in the valley of two separating tectonic plates. This was a really cool area to get out and walk around for a few minutes. It was especially fun to see the little houses and church. It’s crazy to think about how people would have lived here hundreds of years ago! We ended up getting food here from their little souvenir shop because we wanted to make sure we could pack everything we wanted to see in.
The hour drive from ÞINGVELLIR to GULLFOSS was gorgeous! I may have dozed off against my will at a few points (I WAS SLEEPY!) We saw so many lambs and Icelandic horses, and there were so many really great spots to pull over and take a picture. When we arrived we ended up taking a quick nap in the car.
GULLFOSS was AMAZING! I would consider going back in the winter just to see it when its frozen. It is basically two giant waterfalls. If you are going in the warmer months, be sure to walk down to the viewing area. It was unbelievable how much power you could feel coming off of it when we were so close.
After about another twenty minute drive, we went to explore GEYSIR, which is home of the amazing STROKKUR geyser. Although the area smelled like rotten eggs from the geo-thermal water, it was amusing to watch the tourists sit and wait for the geyser to erupt. Make sure you don’t stand down wind though because you’ll be sprayed and smell like the water for the rest of your trip! haha We also had a run in with a troll!! (Be sure to check that out in the vid! ha)
We tried to make it to BRUARFOSS, but we were afraid we wouldn’t make it…given our tiny car and hungry bellies. So instead, we continued onto KERIÐ the giant volcanic crater! I would recommend getting here in the morning for the best lighting, but the drone footage Brothaa captured was FANTASTIC! It really shows off Iceland’s crazy landscape.
And just like that, our 12 hours on the road was finished! We managed to tackle the entire Golden Circle in a day!! That midnight sun really lets you pack it all in! hahaha
To join in on the adventure with us, check out my vlog from today:
CC Overseas 