Day 4: The Wasteland

Vík is in the rainiest area of Iceland (as if we didn't have enough rain already!) so we considered ourselves lucky to keep dry during our morning jogging tour. 

Running in Vík involved the ubiquitous gravel road.  This one ended up leading down to the closed campground and through a driving range by the side of a cliff. 

The hostel had a flock of chickens that ran around freely through the carpark.  These ladies provided eggs for breakfast.

After leaving the hostel we headed northeast along The Ring Road (Vík is the southernmost point).  This area is stunning as it is miles and miles of moss-covered lava rocks formed by the Laki eruption in 1783. 

The region of Laki lava flow.  

This place is kinda weird.

After a pit stop in the village of Kirkjubæjarklaustur (that is probably the longest Icelandic name we came across!) we let ourselves into the nearby field Kirkjugólf, home to many happy sheep. 

In addition to sheep, Kirkjugólf is famous for the Church Floor.  These hexagonal "tiles" are actually the tops of basalt columns, which are quite numerous on the island.  I enjoyed viewing them from this top-down angle.

We continued eastward and watched the landscape continue to change...

This bleak, black 'desert' is Skeiðarársandur, the largest sandur in the world.  In 1362 a volcano beneath the glacier Öræfajökull erupted and the subsequent jökulhlaup (flooding caused by volcanic eruption beneath ice) laid waste to the entire district. This area then became known as Öræfi (Wasteland).  It doesn't take much imagination to see why.

Skeiðarársandur continued for miles.

Eventually glacial rivers (from melted runoff) led to their glacial tongues.  The icecap, Vatnajökull, lies to the north, and is one of the largest icecaps in Europe. 

We made our way to Skaftafell National Park.  We scoped out their sprawling campsite, decided instead to stay at a more peaceful one a few miles down the road, then returned to Skaftafell for some hikes.  We had originally planned to do some longer hikes but those paths were closed due to snow.  It was just as well since the spotty weather made hiking a little stressful.  I was really kicking myself for not being better equipped for rain! 

The premier waterfall in the park, Svartifoss, gets its name Black Falls from the elegant amphitheater of underhanging basalt columns. 

The Sjonarsker viewing area during our hike gave a clear view of rain in the region of our campground...

Another beautiful (though also crude) campground, Svínafell.  The warm water for the showers were not yet turned on but at least the bathroom was heated!

The nice, big kitchen!

We spent the evening chatting with a young couple from the UK.  It is fun to meet interesting people when traveling :o)