We woke up under rain and force wind gale… We moved on after breakfast heading East and we stopped around noon at the Vatnajökull National Park Info Centre – the day had turned a bit better, so we decided to have a spot of lunch and then we did a walk to the glacier tongue (about 3 km) – well, at least, we went as close as we could get.
The day had even turned sunny, so we could see the immense glacier and the icebergs in the river. At the info centre we saw a short film detailing the events of the 1996 eruption and the flooding that ensued, and so we could take in the imposing size of this mountain of ice – litterally: its thickness goes from 300 to 500 metres!
Soon after leaving the centre we stopped in a few consequent places to take in the Jökulsarlon Lagoon with its floating icebergs and outstanding beauty. Shame the weather had turned cloudy again, so we couldn’t see the glacier reaching the lagoon on the far side.
The tide was rolling in from the raging sea and it was quite something seeing these blocks of ice rolling to the sea, only to be pushed back and never managing to leave the lagoon. We also spotted a couple of seals in the water.
Through barren, ashy countryside, we finally reached Hövn for the night, at about 9:00pm. Obviously, after a brief glimpse of the sun, the weather was back to its usual rainy self. We filled the petrol tank, cooked some cous-cous for dinner, coffee and bed. It’s been quite a tiring day as we drove constantly with the wind trying to blow us off the road, so it was a constant effort…
The scenery we came across today was really grand! We could really feel the power of the elements. A good day, in spite of the rain.
TRAVELLED TO: Kirkjubaejarklaust – Jökussarton – Skatafell – Höfn
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