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Thursday 10th April: Morriston – Iceland. ‘Bridge between the continents’, Gunnuhver, Brimketill, Grindavik (Reykjanes Peninsula)
An early 5.00am start, followed by a very smooth journey through to Gatwick. Arrived in plenty time before boarding the flight at 12.20.
On arriving in Iceland, we met our tour guide, Paul, who greeted us at the airport. We drove across the lava fields of the south-west to the Reykjanes Peninsula, the south western tip of Iceland. We first stopped at the ‘bridge between the continents’ and crossed the fissure that has opened as the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates have split apart.
The next stop was Gunnuhver. Here we watched steam seep from vents and fissures due to sea water infiltrating through the hot rocks of Iceland’s crust.
From here we went on to Brimketill, an extraordinary geological feature on the coast near Staðarberg. Here the lava rock of the coastline has been rounded into what looks like a big man-made bath tub due to the constant beating of the Atlantic waves. A raised metal walkway led us to a coastal viewing platform where enormous waves crashed beneath us and covered us in spray.
Finally we drove through the ‘ghost’ town of Grindavik which has been evacuated due to recent eruptions. Some buildings in the town were cracked from earthquake tremors and other buildings and nearby roads had been engulfed by recent lava flows, that were still streaming in places.
We reached Hotel Cabin in Reykjavik at 7.30am and quickly checked in before heading for food at a local pizzeria.
Friday 11th April: Pingvelliir National Park, The Secret Lagoon, Gullfoss, Geysir, Efstidalur Dairy Farm (Golden Circle Tour)
Pancakes and maple syrup for breakfast before setting out for our first stop; Pingvellier National Park. Here we first walked through a deep gorge to Oaxararfoss waterfall, with snow and hailstones falling. We went on to a number of viewing platforms with impressive panoramas over the rift valley that runs south-west to north-East through Iceland. We then walked about a mile through the Rift Valley alongside the edge of the North American Plate which towered to our right hand side. Looking east we could see braided streams running into Lake Thingvellirvatn and volcanoes framing the horizon. En route Paul stopped us at Logberg ‘the law rock’. Here Iceland’s Viking leaders formed the world’s first democratic parliament and would meet annually to recite existing laws and resolve judicial matters. We also passed Drekkingarhylur (Drowning Pool) a place where, between 1602 and 1750, at least 18 women were executed for suspected witchcraft.
Next we visited the Secret Lagoon and spent an hour in the geothermally heated waters. Parts of it were near boiling while an ice pool also provided much entertainment with pupils testing how long they could suffer the cold water for. By now the weather had brightened with clear skies for an hour or so.
Around 2.00pm we reached Gulfoss and ate our packed lunches, then viewed the huge two-tiered waterfalls from the different vantage points as the water plunged down into a rocky sided narrow gorge beneath us. A strong wind, hailstones and snow picked up as we walked up the staircase to the higher viewing platforms. In the past British industrialists planned to divert the river for energy production but were unsuccessful after a protest by a local farmer’s daughter, Sigridur Tomasdottir, who walked to Reykjavík bare foot to draw attention to the issue.
A few miles further we stopped at Geysir, another geothermal area with bubbling springs and geysers. We walked a short distance, past a number of steaming fumaroles that bubbled away with a smell of rotten eggs. We then reached Strokkur, the most impressive geyser in the area which constantly bubbles away then blasts water 20m in the air every 8 minutes or so. We saw a series of four or five steam eruptions, each more impressive than the last. Pupils then had time to buy souvenirs and extra food in the shopping area nearby.
Our final stop was Efstidalur dairy farm, which has diversified its milk production to include an ice cream parlour. The parlour has creatively been built into the cow barn with large windows and lighting so that customers can enjoy their ice cream whilst watching the cows. Pupils really enjoyed the many flavours on offer.
We arrived at Hjardarbol Guesthouse at 6.30pm with an hour and a half of free time before meatballs for tea.
Saturday 12th April: Seljalandsfoss, Gjulfrabui, Solheimajokull glacier hike, Dyrholaey, Skogafoss
We were up early for breakfast at 7.15am before heading to our first excursion of the day, the LAVA earthquake and volcano centre, which provides a rooftop viewing platform with panoramic information boards, highlighting the many volcanoes and volcanic features in the region. Inside pupils were able to explore various interactive screens and displays on the tectonic characteristics of Iceland as well as watch footage of past eruptions.
Our next stop was Seljalandsfoss, a 60 metre waterfall caused by glacial meltwater plunging over a high cliff. We all got soaked from the spray while walking the trail that leads behind the waterfall and took some great photographs. We then walked a few hundred metres to Gljufrabui; the ‘canyon dweller’ waterfall. Hidden behind a tight rock face, the group had to take turns to carefully plot their route over the stepping stones, to squeeze into the tight gorge that hides this waterfall. Needless to say a few ended up with wet feet. Finishing the waterfall walk, we refuelled on sandwiches and cookies ready for the exertions of the glacier hike to follow.
We arrived at Solheimajokull glacier for 1.00pm and met our guides who kitted us out with harnesses, helmets, crampons and ice axes. We walked the initial mile along an undulating, icy path alongside the glacial lake. Our adventure guides pointed out that the glacier has retreated by around 50 meters per year since the mid 1990s owing to climate change, leaving the large lagoon alongside us. As we reached the snout of the glacier we attached our crampons and started the steep ascent up and over the brittle glacial surface ice. We were warned to remain in single file as the warming early summer temperatures had led to deep crevasses and moulins developing as surface meltwater eroded down through ice. We passed deep chasms and walked through a more recent crevasse before reaching the plateau on top of the glacier after an hour and a half of hiking. On reaching the plateau pupils were allowed switch their ice axes to ‘attack mode’ and spent the next 10 minutes chipping, hacking and chiseling away at the ice. Who knew digging a hole would provide such entertainment! On the return leg we were taken towards the edge of the ablation (melt) zone, where huge blocks of ice shear away from the glacier, to see an ice cave. We hiked back down to the coach for a well deserved rest. We’d been incredibly lucky with bright weather all morning which only began to turn miserable in the last 15 minutes returning from the ice.
Next stop was Dyrholaey, a 120m high coastal promotory with views over the volcanic black sand beaches of Iceland’s south coast and a textbook example of sea caves, arches, stacks and stumps. The waves crashing against the coastline here have travelled right across the Atlantic and hit the coast which such force the cliffs seem to vibrate and large columns of spray are funneled up through a nearby blowhole. The now very wet and windy weather meant we weren’t out of the bus for long.
Our final stop was Skogafoss; a 60m waterfall pouring over a fossilised sea cliff. Tectonic activity has uplifted the surrounding landscape draining the sea and leaving the cliffs standing inland, a few miles from the present day coastline. Fossilised sea stacks could also be seen in the farmland we passed. At Skogafoss we climbed a long, steep staircase to a viewing platform which looked down over the falls and out towards the coast. Some of the pupils were shattered from the glacier walk so had to be bribed with cookies but everyone made it to the top which everyone agreed was well worth the climb. We then climbed down and at the bottom we walked close to the spray zone created as water pours down into the plunge pool beneath the falls.
We had our evening meal of lasagne at 7.15pm and a few pupils enjoyed a relax in the hot tubs at dusk, before heading to bed.
Sunday 13th April: Selfoss, Kerid crater, Hveragerdi, Lava Tunnel, Reykjavik
Everyone appreciated the opportunity to lie in this morning after yesterday’s activities. We left Hjardarbol Guesthouse at 9.00am with all luggage packed for our return to Reykjavik in the evening. The morning consisted of a visit to Selfoss swimming pool, where pupils sampled the various hot and cold tubs and enjoyed some swimming.
Next we visited Kerid, a volcanic caldera with vivid crimson soil slopes leading down to a deep blue crater lake. We walked a full lap around the ridge of the caldera and then down some mud steps to the lake. Kerid was once a cone-shaped volcano which completely depleted it magma chamber in an eruption, resulting in the volcanic slopes falling in on themselves to leave the current formation.
We stopped for lunch in Hveragerdi, a town located in a geothermal area. The town is full of greenhouses which harness the geothermal heat, in order to grow many fruits and vegetables that otherwise wouldn’t grow in Iceland’s climate. Driving a short distance to the outskirts of the town, we stopped at the foot of the Reykjadalur Valley and hiked a short distance to see the hot springs, the hissing geothermal vents and bubbling mud pools up close. The soils and rocks near each vent have been coloured shades of ochre, yellow, purple, red and more as minerals deposits have built up. The Varma river cuts down through the valley and is naturally warm due to the geothermal activity.
Our final stop of the day was ‘The Lava Tunnel’. We were kitted out with helmets and crampons and led 400m through the tunnel created by the lava flows of an eruption that occurred 5,200 years ago. The roof was rich with shades of red and small columns of ice had grown wherever snowmelt could enter through a crack in the roof. When we reached the deepest point the guide asked everyone to switch their head torches off and we were plunged into pitch darkness for a few minutes; so dark that we couldn’t even see our hands when held up in front of our faces. NASA have recently used the lava tunnel for research and plan to test their Mars Rover there in the coming months.
From here we travelled back to Reykjavik, checked back into Hotel Cabin, then headed to ‘The Hamburger Factory’ restaurant for our evening meal.
Monday 14th April: Reykjavik-Morriston
We had pancakes for breakfast in the Hotel Cabin and then left our luggage in storage to allow for a few hours exploring and shopping for souvenirs in the capital city. A few pupils visited The Cat Café. We walked the mile back from Central Reykjavik into gale force headwinds, funneled between the tall city blocks. At 12.30pm our coach transfer collected us ready for our return flight and journey home.
We’ve had a brilliant few days. The pupils attending the trip have had a great attitude; polite, positive and great company to one another and to ourselves. All made the most of each activity and experience and will have some special memories to take home with them.