Day 1 - Reykjavik and Golden Circle - 15 August 2011

On Sunday 14 August 2011, I boarded an Iceland Express 757 to fly to Reykjavik. Iceland Express flew into Winnipeg every Sunday over the summer, flying direct to Iceland. So nice to go somewhere without having to go through Toronto. The flight was a typical low cost carrier flight, seat pitch was pretty tight, but the flight was only 5.5 hours. There were 201 people on the 218 seat aircraft, so I hope IE finds it worthwhile to come back next year.

The flight arrived in Keflavik just after 7 am. The first look at Iceland was quite dramatic, volcanic islands off the coast, and then lava field plains south of the airport, all barren. Customs was no problem, typical European entry. I took a shuttle to Reykjavik, about a 40 minute drive away from the airport. Keflavik is the former US Navy patrol airport, where P-3s were based.

My plan for Reykjavik was to spend the morning touring the city, take the Golden Circle tour in the afternoon, and then catch an Air Iceland flight to Iceland’s second largest town, Akureyri, on the north coast. The most obvious landmark in Reykjavik is a spectacular church in the middle of downtown, called Hallsgrimkirkja. That’s where I wanted to go first.

Fortunately, the bus terminal turned out to be within sight of the church, so I started walking. It was only a few minutes, and awe inspiring when I turned the corner and got a clear view from a few blocks away. In front of the church is a statue of Leif Ericsson, on a large pedestal. The sun wasn’t in a good position, so I couldn’t get a decent photo, but it’s an impressive statue. From the statue, I picked a random street that I could see running down to the sea, and starting walking along it. I started to feel like I was definitely in Europe, with the different style of houses, and foreign language signs. I came to the shore, thinking that I might do my traditional thing of tasting the ocean - dumb tradition, but I always do it. The shore was too rocky to get to the water, but I did come across an iconic sculpture of a Viking ship. I’d seen it in my guide book, and thought it would be cool to see, but figured I wouldn’t have time to track it down - and there it was.

I went back to the church, went inside and wandered around a bit. It’s rather plain on the inside, lacking much in the way of colourful decoration, but it’s presumably a metaphor for the harsh climate. It’s quite new, having been completed only in 1986. The main decoration is the large pipe organ, and an enormous Jesus statue by the doors. The statue must be at least twelve feet tall, entirely white. You can also go to the top of the tower, so I did. It provides stunning views of Reykjavik, well worth going to the top (600 kronars, if I recall, about $6).

The morning went by very quickly, and it was now time to go to the bus station to go on the afternoon tour. I went to the wrong station, however, and had a few stressful moments wondering if I would get left behind. The guys at the wrong station helped me out, however, and gave me a ride to the right place, where I arrived with lots of time to spare - but only because the bus left later than they said it would.

The Golden Circle is the “must do” trip for everyone who comes to Iceland - that and the Blue Lagoon. The Golden Circle afternoon tour, a truncated version of the normal tour, goes to some of the most worthwhile sites - Thingvellir, Gullfoss, and Geysir. The bus departed shortly after 1 pm, drove through Reykjavik, and then headed west. The terrain is fantastic, everywhere you look there’s something unusual to see. Our first stop was at a lake just outside Þingvellir National Park (the first letter of Þingvellir is pronounced th, like a theta, and called “thorn”). The lake, and Þingvellir (64.26093, -21.12332), sits atop the Mid Atlantic Ridge, where the American and Eurasian continental plates are pulling apart. We had twenty minutes to have a quick look around Þingvellir, and I really could have used more. Besides the geologically interesting terrain, it’s also the site of the world’s first parliament. Icelandic chieftains met there starting in 930 AD to resolve disputes and to listen to the laws being read out.

From Þingvellir we went to Gullfoss (64.32781, -20.12300), a dramatic waterfall on the Hvítá river. The river drains the run off from the Langjökull glacier, which was visible in the distance. Gullfoss, “Gold Falls”, is a two tiered waterfall that drops into a steep gorge. It’s a spectacular site to start an Icelandic tour.

After Gullfoss, our next stop was the Haukadalur geyser field. Geyser is eponymous (a word I don’t get to use often enough), named after Geysir. Geysir no longer erupts, the underground channels having become blocked, but there is one very active geyser at the site, as well as several other geothermal pools. We dismounted the bus and followed the trail through the site. Geysir was first, but only a trickle. Nearby were a pair of pools, one cool and one hot (and steaming). The cool water pool was a beautiful shade of pale blue. The water in the hot pool was crystal clear, and you could see the channels under the water. Strokkur geyser is the main attraction, erupting every few minutes to fifty feet or more. I watched it erupt three times, very impressive sight. When the geyser erupts, it takes a few minutes to refill and build pressure for the next eruption. The water gurgles and surges, and after a bit of observation, it became possible to predict the next eruption to within a few seconds. On the way out, you walk past a large number of vents, all steaming away. Little Geysir is a water filled vent, and the water bubbles away at a fast boil.

The bus arrived back at the terminal at 7 pm-ish, and I had a little problem. I needed to be at the domestic airport to check in for a flight by 7:15. Our tour guide was supposed to inform the driver (a Pole, oddly enough), but didn’t. The driver was nice enough to drive me to the airport, and I got checked in without a problem, although not without more stress than I really needed.

I boarded an Air Iceland (not much variation in airline names here) Fokker 50 (updated Fokker F.27, something like a Dash-8) to fly to Iceland’s second largest town, Akureyri, where I planned to spend two days. The flight was uneventful and only about forty minutes. The descent, though, was through cloud amidst high terrain. Just as well I couldn’t see it all. I got checked into the hotel, found a bite to eat, and got sorted out for day two.


A few photos are here: http://bit.ly/wgOpGj