This Foss is the boss

This was the day that we we began chasing waterfalls in earnest.  Sure, there were some water falling off of a steep space at Gulfoss yesterday, but today was one for the books.  We went deliberately to a waterfall, only to find several small waterfalls near it, then we passed one or two on the way to the other waterfall on our agenda.  Heck, we sort of stopped for a moment to see one that was situated in some dude’s back yard.  Our guide today asked if we knew how many waterfalls are in Iceland.  I answered, “I don’t know, most of them?”  I think my answer was closest to the truth.  

The day began with the group assembling outside of the hotel and hopping into the van.  It’s a 12 or 15 passenger van, so rows of seats feature two chairs paired on the left and one row of singletons on the right.  It’s quite a comfortable ride.  And in another country, I am happy to let a native do the driving.  I have no interest in trying to understand local laws and customs in a new place.  Too much stress.  I mean, when a tourist steps out in front of traffic, do you instantly stop because that is the way, or do you get all mad and honk because they’re irresponsible?  Not my problem.  I asked our guide if he, as a native Icelander, ever got super frustrated with a million tourists from different parts of the world driving according to the rules they learned in their home countries, and he was too polite to answer.  So yeah, I expect he hates that crap.  

Cas and I settled in and we all made our way to the Lava Centre.  There, we learned about all of the active volcanoes in Iceland.  We learned about each of their most recent eruptions and what tectonic shifting was causing all the hubbub.  It was really a very cool museum.  Next, we went to two different waterfalls with names that you may see in a travel guide, though there are dozens of foss-es between all of the big-ticket foss-es.  Our first stop was Seljalandsfoss.  That was especially cool because you can walk along a trail that takes you behind the waterfall.  It’s a little slippery and precarious at times, but you end up walking 360° around the thing.  It becomes something you see from every angle.  Very cool.  That was super neat.  And today, our expectations of Icelandic weather were finally met.  We were told by our guide that today is Icelandic National Day, or their Independence Day, and he was fully expecting that the weather be more typically Icelandic.  Today did the trick, apparently.  He kind of laughed at us yesterday for our desire to wear sunscreen.  He didn’t think that behavior was appropriately Icelandic, somehow, but I assured him that, as a very fair skinned person in Texas, I have to wear sunscreen to look out the window, so this is just an abundance of caution.  Today, there were no such concerns.  Today, we walked around in cloudsville to the waterfall, then hopped back in the mega-van to another cloudy falls moment.  Cloudy falls #2: Skógafoss.  

Skógafoss is kind of cool because you can walk right up to the front of the thing.  The water pounds into a lake below, but is is super shallow and there is a rocky path leading up to it where you can walk nearby.  So we did.  We were all up in front of that waterfall.  It was a day that made us both happy we had packed rain pants and rain jackets.  I marveled at the efficiency of these garments.  Good job, rain clothes.  Really.  

After that, there was a visit to the Skógar Museum, which was interesting all on its own.  It had indoor exhibits as well as outdoor ones, and the outdoor ones featured homes and other buildings in the traditional Icelandic style.  Very interesting.  

After that, we hopped into the van and headed for what we thought was a trip to a black sand beach.  That didn’t work out like you may have hoped.  As we were driving to the black sand beach at Reynisfjara, the winds arrived.  They notched up near gusts of 78 miles per hour, meaning that our priority became to get to the hotel, not to stop on the way.  Our guide says that winds like that will happen often and when they do, the pass gets closed off for safety.  No traffic in or out.  I get it, too.  We had a storm in Dallas where there were 90-mile-per-hour straight line winds.  That sucker knocked over trees, threw down power lines and sent the whole city into a multiple-day panic.  I didn’t want to play van versus nature.  I’ll trust a guy who lives here and has had to make that call before.  

So to keep us on schedule, he carefully navigated the road and got us to where we are sleeping tonight.  We did stop at a scenic outlook for a moment to look down on where the black sand beach was, but it was not a long stop, and honestly, I am happy for that.  You seen one black sand beach, you’ve seen them all. And safe passage is pretty cool, right?  

So, we are at the hotel.  We stopped in the hotel bar for happy hour.  That means wine is a few go-zillion Króna less than regular price.  It’s the Icelandic version of a good deal.  But we are in for the night, now.  Teeth brushed and pajamas on.  

Tomorrow is a day when we have an amphibian boat tour of a lagoon at the southern edge of the Vatnajökull glacier.  After that, apparently, we have some homemade ice cream.  Hey, I’m here for it.  Sounds pretty great to me.  See you on the other side of the glacial lagoon!  Until then, don’t go chasin’ waterfalls.  Just hang out in Iceland for a moment, and several dozen of them will just appear.  

And here you go: tinyurl.com/DunlapIceland