South Coast of Iceland

Breakfast is included at our hotel, and we arrive at 7am when it opens. It’s a buffet with amazing options including some Icelandic specialties. My first plate included potatoes, one sausage and a pastry. All delicious. Then a little bowl of oatmeal with a nut mixture topping and fresh fruit. There were two Icelandic shots as well. One was a red ginger juice, and one was cod liver oil, and they both had little signs about the health benefits of both. I’d like a shot of the red one each day, but that’s probably my last shot of cod liver oil.

We begin walking a couple minutes from our hotel to bus stop 9. Our hotel is on a very narrow road, and the buses cannot drive on it so we needed to walk to a wider road. Several buses lined the street with lots of tourists. We checked each one, but none were for our tour. We are a few minutes early though. At exactly 8am, our bus pulls up and we check-in with the driver. We are going on a small-group tour of Iceland!

Our mini-bus has comfortable seats and Simon is our guide and driver. He’s from Poland and has been living here in Iceland for one year. The first half of the drive is filled with rain, so he apologizes for not talking more while driving, and that safety is more important. I completely agree.

Skógafoss⁩

The first stop is Skógafoss⁩ which is a waterfall. Steep stairs ascend into the sky. This may be a bus tour, but this is a legit hike. My son races my husband to the top and runs up the entire way. I climb slowly with my father-in-law. If you use an inhaler, bring it. It’s a lot of stairs. The views are breathtaking, and my pictures don’t come close to doing it justice. We only have 45-minutes at this stop and it’s only enough time to see the first waterfall. There is a second waterfall further down the trail which I know about from another person who has visited. I’m a little bummed there isn’t time for both, but I wouldn’t have even known there is a second one if I hadn’t done my research.

Solheimajokull Glacier

We’re back on the bus and then drive to the second stop. Solheimajokull Glacier! The bus turns into the parking lot, and a hoard of people are standing in a parking spot all dressed the same. They have jumpsuits, helmets, and things on their feet to grip the ice. They’re about to walk on the glacier! I’m a little jealous and would love to do this. We’re here for the views. This isn’t my first glacier. I’ve been to Alaska and seen them there, but my views were from the ship. It’s much better to walk on land and see them! The time for this stop gives us enough time to walk pretty close to the glacier, but not enough time to come close enough to touch the glacier. It’s a rainy and cloudy day so the brilliant blue of the glacier is subdued. We can see this color in some of the ice floating on the river though.

Lunch in Vik

Our next stop is lunch in Vik. We order and pay for our food at a counter and then are seated. This is a brewery that serves beer and burgers. I opt out of beer and instead go for the hot chocolate. It’s been cold and rainy, and a hot chocolate really hits the spot. I order a burger as well and the food is very good, but messy.

Vik

After lunch, we make a photo stop near a church that sits on a hilltop. The views are gorgeous and we can see the ocean.

Reynisfjara Beach

The reason we booked this particular tour was to see the black sand beach. My son has been looking forward to this after seeing a video on Instagram. We approach the beach and there is a sign with lights and a warning. Green, yellow, and red are the colors. Red means do not go on the beach. Yellow means use caution and green means it’s safe. The light is yellow, but wow yellow means rough! The beach itself is beautiful, and the powerful waves are mesmerizing. The sign doesn’t define caution or how close is too close. From my research, I know this beach has rogue waves and not to get too close. The beach is crowded, and we base our safe distance from the people already there. I’m even further back, but the rest of my family are closer. Within a couple of minutes my family and several others are sprinting away from the beach as a rogue wave climbs towards them. Everyone is far enough away to escape the frigid water that tries to grab them by the ankles. There is a dramatic cliff on one side of the beach and we walk towards it. My son climbs the side of the wall and I’m glad he wants to go here. Sitting up higher against the cliff means we are safe from being pulled in by the waves. Also, it gives us a better view of the thousands of puffins flying high above our heads. My son loves sitting up here and warning others to run away. My father-in-law is walking in front of us and my son screams, “run, Papa, run.” Papa does not run. He passes by us on the rocks as a rogue wave climbs far up the beach. Two grown adults are toppled by the wave and sprawled out on the beach while the wave covers them. Luckily, they are far enough away that the water is not strong enough to pull them to sea. The amount of water to topple an adult is way less than you think as we just witnessed. We also learn that yesterday a dad walked this beach with his two young children. A wave toppled them and one of the kids was taken. Our driver had told us on the drive that the animals don’t typically pose a safety risk, but the landscape does. This beach is a reminder of nature’s wrath. I find out that the wave that toppled the two adults had toppled another adult. My father-in-law was the third. The wave toppled him over and drenched him. Back to the warm van we go.

Seljalandsfoss

We go to another waterfall where you can walk behind it. Our driver warns us that walking behind it means you’ll be soaked. Most of the group walks near the waterfall, but not all the way under. My older son and I are up for it and I have no regrets. The power of the waterfall cannot be viewed from the front. It’s only when you stand behind it and hear its power echo from the rocky cliff that you get a sense of its power. We did get soaked, but it was totally worth it.

Urriðafoss

We make one bonus stop to a third waterfall. Fishermen stand on its edge fishing. This isn’t a tall and dramatic waterfall, but it’s still beautiful. You can see a split in the earth, and it creates a uniquely shaped waterfall.

We are dropped off at the same place we were picked up from and we decide on Icelandic ice cream for dinner. I order chocolate and it was truly divine. This may be the best scoop of ice cream I’ve ever had. It’s smooth and creamy and everything I’d want from an ice cream cone. I think I like it more than Penn State Creamery ice cream which has previously been my gold standard. I need to taste those both side-by-side for the true winner, but I think Iceland may be ahead.