We slept in on our final day in Iceland, slowly packed up our gear, said goodbye to our tranquil cabin, and headed back to Reykjavik. The best way to spend the last day on vacation is by relaxing in soothing waters. We booked a reservation at the Blue Lagoon and enjoyed the tranquility of this unique geothermal seawater. It truly was an otherworldly experience and is one of the 25 wonders of the world. After spending a few hours there soaking our tired bodies, trying on face masks, drinking our free sodas and slushies, we showered and headed for the airport. Thank you, Iceland, for such a magnificent vacation!

Since we had another red eye type of flight Madeline fell asleep for the last half of the flight and was dead asleep when we arrived in Denver. Mike had to carry her all the way through customs. It's a good thing she is a little thing!

​Off to get COVID tests! Since America doesn’t believe in science all the time, all travelers (vaccinated or not) have to have a negative COVID test to go back. We had made reservations ahead of time and so we drove back to Reykjavik to get tested. The testing center was very well organized. We got our barcodes scanned and they took out little family into a room and stuffed swabs in our nose. 30 minutes later we got an email with a certificate saying that we were COVID free. How tidy! Fortunately, we were all COVID negative.  
 
Since we were back in the Capital, we headed downtown to do some shopping and eat some fish and chips. Of course, we also had to get cinnamon rolls again from Brod and Company. We shopped a little, then took a bread break, then shopped some more. Madeline found the world’s longest hop-scotch board and a track to race down. After we were done shopping, we went to the fish and chips place we went to last time, but it was out of business, so we headed a little further down the street and got fish and chips. Madeline ate her fish with lemon. Mike got traditional Icelandic fish stew (plokkfiskur) with a piece of Rye bread. It was tasty too.  

After lunch, we tried out the museum, but that was a bit of a bust, so we headed over to Fly over Iceland which was a fun little Disney style attraction where you get to fly over the gorgeous vistas of Iceland in a big theater. It was a fun way to end our time in Reykjavik. We headed back to our cabin and got in the hot tub and sat and watched the waves, the birds, and the weather. It was a divine way to end the day.  

​More hiking! Today, we set-off from our quiet cabin to Skogafoss, which is one of the more impressive waterfalls in Iceland. The cool thing about it, is that the impressiveness of the giant waterfall at the base is just the beginning. After admiring its grandeur, we headed up the steep steps to the top and then off on the trail along the Skogar river. The actual trail goes all the way up to the Fimmvorduhals pass and is about 25 km long. We did about 4 miles up the trail and it blew our minds away. There are 27 major waterfalls along this trail, and they are all unique and breathtaking. Every turn and every time we crested the knoll of a hill, the views were awe inspiring. It’s like Iceland took every cool waterfall and canyon and put them on one trail for our convenience. Madeline crushed the hike. She is such an incredible little four-year-old. She never complains. She is ever so polite. She is creative and finds ways to entertain herself and those around her. It was a hoot hiking with her. We had lunch up on the trail, and then headed back down.  
 
Once back to the car, we decided to head a little further down the road to a famous canyon, Fjaðrárgljúfu.  The drive itself was miserably boring as the topography was very bland. Once we got there, it was like a who’s who of lazy, horrible tourists swarming for a photo. It was also 20 degrees warmer here and super sunny. The canyon was very meh in comparison to what we had just done. The problem is that Justin Bieber shot a music video here and people just flocked to it and then destroyed the area, so the government closed it for a while and then created a tourist path that doesn’t really allow you to enjoy the canyon. It would have been better if you could have walked along the canyon floor, but alas, Bieber has ruined yet something else for everyone.
 
After that, we drove back to Vik and had dinner at a really good burger place called Smidjan Brugghus. The burgers were tasty, and they had Nutella covered French fries with powdered sugar on them. Not sure if that would be good, we can attest to its divinity.  
 
Since Vik sits next to the black beach, we headed down there for a quick visit to the sea. It was windy and foreboding at Reynisfjara Beach, but the basalt cliffs were pretty cool. Iceland is very grandiose when the skies are overcast and the wind blowing. It makes you want to go back to your cabin on the lake, snuggle up with a blanket and watch the wind blow across he lake. So that’s what we did.

​Back in the car! We packed up our stuff, cleaned up our little apartment and headed down the hill back into town. We stopped by a bakery and they had truly wonderful stuff. It was hard to chose! We got sandwiches for lunch, doughnuts for the girls, and a bear claw about the size of an Icelandic Horse. The funniest thing was the girl at the counter looked like a model, but she was a SOUR apple. She was clearly not going to win any service awards. I have to say, that everywhere we have gone on this trip, the vast majority of people we have interacted with at stores have been teenagers. Sometimes, really young teenagers. The gas stations, gift ships, bakeries, ice-cream shops, grocery stores, coffee shops all seem to be run by teenagers with no apparent adults. I’m beginning to wonder if there was some kind of coup d’états during COVID wherein all the adults were banished to Grimsey island. Anyway, after the bakery we went to the grocery store, got gas, then headed out on the ring road. 

The initial part of the drive was gorgeous and the mountains stunning. For some reason, the weather in the North of Iceland is warmer than the South. We drove for a couple of hours and then stopped for lunch in Blonduos. Mike cleaned the car windshield with the free hose/brooms that they have at all the gas stations and then we stopped at a park to play and eat. Every park here seems to have a big trampoline pad and there are lots of slides and ziplines. Madeline had a blast while we ate brie and grapes and our sandwiches from the bakery.  
 
Following lunch, we headed up the coast on a gravel road to Hvitserkur and saw the dragon drinking from the ocean. It was really pretty cool and it was fun to walk on the black sand in the ocean. The cliff trail going down to the ocean was silly steep and slippery and Mike fell while holding Madeline. He fell straight on his back and Madeline popped right out of his arms, like a fumbled football. Fortunately, instead of falling off a cliff, she landed in a cozy bed of moss and shrubs. Abby was the only other one to take off her shoes and walk out into the ocean, so she earned bonus awesome points.
 
Following the drinking dragon, we headed back down the road. This part of the drive was pretty boring and having driven it once is likely enough. The ring road is narrow, there are lots of slow camper vans and the drive gets rather tedious. We would recommend flying to the North and renting a car there for any future adventures. Gas isn’t cheap in Iceland and there isn’t too much to see on the way back down other than some cool waterfalls. 
 
About 6:00pm we rolled up to the cabin on the lake by Thingvellir. It was stunning. The sun was in the west, the lake was glistening, and we were no longer driving. Madeline enjoyed naming all the gnome statues and Abby found a secret path from the back deck to a hidden dock on the lake. Mike made tacos and everyone just relaxed and enjoyed the endless sunset.

​A little sleeping in doesn’t hurt when you’re on vacation, so we didn’t get started today until about 9:00am, which was nice since we had been getting up early the other days.  We headed out of town and started up the hill and had to stop to see the beautiful view of Akureyi. It really is a picturesque town nestled at the foot of the mountains with the water in the foreground. What a beautiful place!
 
We then headed out on the Diamond circle, or so they call it. We first went through a 7km tunnel, which was pretty cool, and then we drove up through Husavik, the whale watching capital of the North, and were awed by the views of the mountains and the Fjords. We headed North out of Husavik along the ring road and Mike discovered how to use the cruise control, which made the whole trip of 317 km much easier. It was fun to see the countryside and the vistas did not disappoint. We stopped at the overlook at Oxarfjordur and it was probably one of our favorite spots of the day. The cliffs were fantastic, and the puffins and fulmars nestling on the cliff edges, then catching updrafts and soaring around were awesome.  There is just something wonderful about staring out at the sea.  
 
From the Ocean, we headed deeper into Vatnajokull National Park and found our way to Asbyrgi canyon.  The canyon was either formed by glacial flooding, or when Odin’s horse, Sleipnir accidentally touched the earth here with a misplaced hoof so the legend is told. Either way, it’s a very different landscape here. The hike in the forest was dense with birch trees, artic thyme (small purple flowers), and ferns. There were also a lot of different birds and ducks than we had previously seen. Madeline enjoyed howling in the canyon and hearing the echo. It was definitely different than the endless cascade of waterfalls.
 
From there, it was on to Dettifoss, which stands in sheer magnitude as one of the great waterfalls around. The landscape is drastically different than the pastoral landscapes that abound. It was like being on the surface of the moon. Madeline pretended the sand was lava and hopped from rock to rock. The waterfall itself is voluminous and impressive. It was interesting to see the green cliffs on the Western shore from the spray. Everywhere else was desolate. There is another waterfall just upstream (Selfoss), which on its own would be a destination waterfall, but is dwarfed by the turbulent and noisy Detifoss less than 800 meters away.  
 
Saturated by waterfall viewing, we headed to something a little different, the boiling mudpots outside of Lake Myvatn. This had to be the best stop of the whole trip. It smelled like someone had taken a bunch of used diapers, set them on fire, then dumped raw sewage on it. It was horrifying and awful wrapped in a cloak of misery. The smell stayed with us for the next few hours. Why anyone would want to endure more than 30 seconds of this place, is a question I would like answered. Thank you Hverir!
 
After the mud pots, it was on to the lake where we walked around some cool green mounds and admired the vista. Lake Myvatn seems like a cool lake, but the gnats and flies there were relentless which must make for long and annoying days by the shore. Madeline fell and scuffed up her hands while running down a hill. The natural remedy, of course, was ice-cream, which was rather delicious and mostly devoid of flies.  
 
With our trip around the circle almost complete, we headed to our last stop, the magnanimous Godafoss.  Rumored to be the waterfall where the king threw in his pagan idols and adopted Christianity, the falls themselves are certainly a great setting for any kind of lore. The river, the falls, the grassy banks are spectacular.  We enjoyed the various views and the sheer power of this beautiful area.  
 
From the falls, we headed back to Akureyri for some fish and chips, only to find that the fish and chips store had closed. So we headed back to our apartment for some oven pizzas, French fries, and more ice-cream.  It was a delicious end to an adventurous day.

Happy Birthday Mike! Let’s get up and go look for whales! So, we drove up the coast to Dalvik and got on a boat with one other family and sailed out into the Fjord and the North Atlantic. There were lots of puffins to see, dolphins, and one lonely Minke whale. They say they call them stinky Minky because sometimes they have a bit of an odor, and I guess that is true because there was a bit of a stink to the Minke. Unfortunately, we saw no humpback whales on this trip, but maybe in the next 45 years or so. The crazy thing was all the waterfalls coming off the cliffs into the sea. Iceland is really the land of waterfalls. It’s stunning that everywhere you turn, there is another river, another waterfall, and another little stream. It’s amazing.
 
After whale watching, we went to a little park in the forest south of town, had cheese, grapes, and crackers and watched Madeline go down a slide about 200 times. She is an endless ball of energy and adventure.  
 
We then headed down to the Christmas store and bought a little ornament and then headed up to the Polar Hestar riding stables. The drive was gorgeous and it seemed like an endless parade of farms and fields at the base of the mountains. This country is truly gorgeous in the summer.
 
Once at the stables, Madeline played with the lambs and dogs while we waited for our horses to get ready. We then headed off down the road on our horses. Even little Madeline was riding along on her own horse right next to one of the guides. The Icelandic horses have a gear that other horses don’t have called the tolt. It was pretty fun to experience that and then ride up into the mountains. It was stunning country with a river coming through a canyon, mountain on every side with a Fjord at their base to the east. The mountain pastures were full of sheep and brand-new lambs (some just 1 week old!). It was an amazing ride with cool guides from Germany and Iceland. They were great with Madeline, and everyone had a good time. At the end, we had hot chocolate, cakes, and cookies. The only bad part was the price, which totally escaped Mike’s conversion capabilities. Sometimes, when travelling overseas, you don’t realize the price until it’s too late. This was one of those cases. A steep lesson for a seasoned traveler, but one that will not be forgotten. After that, we had dinner at the apartment, showers, and an early night. Off to more adventures tomorrow! 

The Icelandic people really love their licorice

Happy Independence Day America! We celebrated by eating a mondo breakfast at the hotel. It was Euro-fantastic. Once we were gorged, we packed up our gear into the cube and headed out to the Northern Island! 
 
On our way, we stopped at Glymur waterfall (the 2nd highest waterfall in Iceland) for a leisurely walk up a death-defying mountain with two perilous river crossings and death at every turn! It was totally up our alley. The first little bit was pretty easy, but then we had to go through a cave, and down the slope to the river where there was a really sketchy log river crossing. Of course, the water was super high, so there was some bonus traversing to be done. Abby screamed the most, and Madeline held on for dear life. Fortunately, no one fell in. 
 
After the river crossing, we headed up, up and up the steep slopes toward the waterfall. Madeline was a trooper and held onto the ropes on the steep parts, and our hands during the other really steep parts. It was kind of like Angels’ landing in Zion’s National Park except wet and slippery and a lot more Russian tourists.
 
The hike up was staggering and the beauty immersive. The waterfall did not disappoint, and the canyon was breathtaking. It’s hard to capture places like this with photos or videos because the feeling of the damp air on your face, the wind in your hair, and the exhilaration of standing on the edge of a cliff combine into a truly intense experience.  
 
Once we gained the top of the falls, we crossed the river in our water shoes (yippee for planning!).  The water was cold, and we saw another person slip and lose their backpack down the river and over the falls. I imagine that canyon is a veritable treasure trove of stuff that people lose in the river. We hiked back down the other side and made it back to our car with only some dirty butts and sore feet. Our little 4-year-old Madeline hiked the entire 4.7 miles with 1250 ft of climbing all by herself, with the exception of being carried through the river crossings and a few dangerous rocky scrambles. Once back in our Peugeot box, we made PB&J sandwiches and headed north.  
 
The drive north to Akureyri was very pastoral and the ring road is a marvel of narrowness. Driving that in bad weather is not to be underestimated, but we had good weather and made it to our rental apartment without too much drama. Then Mike headed out to get groceries and hot dogs for dinner (so that we could be at least a little American on the 4th). The amazing thing is that since the sun stays up until about 12:45am, you really can get a heck of a lot done in the evening.  

Madeline was NOT a fan of all the gnats

Flying out of Denver is never that much fun. It’s a long way to the airport, and the traffic from the I-25 gap project doesn’t make it any easier to get there. But after sitting in traffic in Larkspur, we finally made it to the airport. However, we didn’t anticipate that everyone from Colorado was going to be travelling this 4th of July. The parking lot we usually use was full, so we had to make a mad dash for another place, but it was terrible, so we finally just had to suck it up and park at the airport. Of course, parking was just the start of the lines. The line for Iceland Air was long as well. Fortunately, we waited behind some Denverites who were headed to Iceland as well, so it was entertaining listening to them. Security wasn’t too bad, and we made it to our gate just in time to start boarding. It must be said, that Icelandair is great overall for a discount airline. The flight was easy and pretty comfy overall.
 
Somewhere, over the Atlantic we popped forward a day and landed in Iceland at 6:20am. Everyone got a little sleep, but none more than Madeline who got to lay down and sleep for most of the flight. The airport in Keflavik is kitschy, but the boarder control line was ridiculous. Somehow, we made it through it relatively quickly. We had our passports, COVID-19 cards, and documents ready to go. Once through customs, we fiddle faddled until Sara asked someone where our car rental company pick-up was located. We got in a van and headed to the Dollar car rental place and picked up our box (as Emma liked to call it). Considering the absolute lemon we rented last time we were in Iceland, this was a veritable Porsche. Fortunately, all our suitcases and Madeline’s car seat fit inside without any problems.
 
With everyone and everything loaded, we headed to the Hilton in Reykjavik where we dropped off our suitcases since our room wouldn’t be ready for another 8 hours. After dropping off our gear, we headed to the downtown area for a bite of breakfast. We thought about going to a swanky place, but the line was silly, so we headed to our old staple Braud and Co. With croissants and cinnamon rolls in hand we saw Leif Erickson’s statue by the church and then headed off to the zoo.
 
It turns out the zoo was more of a who’s who of Iceland petting zoo with a fair number of carnival rides. It was a lot of fun for totally jet lagged travelers. There were seals, chickens, ducks, goats, sheep, reindeer, artic foxes, and pigs. That’s it. It was basically a collection of farm animals and seals. Seems about right. The rides were fun and there was a great playground for Madeline. Abby and Emma did some thrill rides while Madeline and Mike did the most Euro-cringey carrousel ever imagined. It was great. For some reason, Madeline had more energy than is reasonable and basically dragged us around. Emma demonstrated that she can’t do a hamster wheel and we caught it on video, ouch!
 
After the zoo/amusement park, we headed to the botanical gardens and walked around for 5 minutes but realized that our delirium was worse than we realized so we headed back to the car. From there, we went to the mall, because if you haven’t been to a mall in Iceland, then you haven’t lived. We got some lunch there and realized that malls in Iceland are about as awesome as malls in America.  
 
After slumming it at the mall, we decided that driving wasn’t safe, so we headed back to the hotel and fell asleep in the lobby until our room was ready. After that, we crashed hard in our rooms for three hours, then got up and headed out again. We got dinner at this cool hamburger joint. The guy behind the counter advised us to try the special Icelandic sauce for our fries. So, we took our meal to the park by the lake downtown and ate our hamburgers under a tarp of gnats. It turns out that the special Icelandic sauce is fry sauce. So, I guess someone from Utah taught the people in Iceland about French fries. It was delicious.  
 
After dinner, we went down to the lighthouse and walked on the ocean and let Madeline throw rocks back into the sea. At about 10:30pm, we headed back to the hotel, with the sun still shining brightly and fell asleep.

We laughed so hard when we saw this shirt. It was a little how we were feeling after being so sleep deprived from missing an entire nights sleep. And we were delirious so there's that.

After an exciting 5 days of adventuring from Reykjavik to the Golden Circle and across the southern island of Iceland, we were all ready to head home.  There is nothing worse than having to rush to the airport so we were delighted when Mike told us that he booked us an afternoon flight back home.  We slept in, cleaned up the cabin, packed up the van, and said goodbye to our cute little cabin and treacherous snowy road we parked on the last few days.  Before heading to the airport we made one last stop to the Blue Lagoon for some much needed relaxation time.  The Blue Lagoon is a geothermal spa located near Grindavik on the Reykjanes Peninsula pretty close to the airport.  We got on our swimming suits, rinsed our bodies and put on the required conditioner in our hair, and headed to the warm water blue lagoon.  The story of how they discovered this silica based water is quite fascinating and dates back to 1976 when they were drilling down into the lava fields to find hot water to pump into their mills to produce electricity when they discovered this light blue like water.  After realizing that the white in the water was coating their machines and ruining them, they quickly deposited the water in a nearby lava field.  At the time no one dared touch the water except for one man who had bad psoriasis and noticed a change in his skin after working with the water and steam at the plant. After asking many times he was finally given permission to bathe in the waters and it was then that he discovered that they were truly healing waters.  Many people on the island starting bathing in its waters. Still, it wasn't all that safe with the rough lava floors and nothing to control the heat.  So in 1992 the Blue Lagoon company was formed.  People from all over the world come here to soak in the healing waters.  One of the fun parts about being here was that you were able to get a silica or algae mask for free.  Mike and some of the kids enjoyed that.  There was also an in-water bar where each of us got a free drink. The kids loved walking around the warm waters sipping on their fruit smoothies.  There were definitely warmer parts of the lagoon than others.  We explored as much of the lagoon as we could and even Madeline, who up to this point wouldn't get in a hot tub, enjoyed the warm soothing waters.  After spending a good 2 hours in the water just relaxing, we got cleaned up and headed to the airport all rested up.  I wish every end of a vacation could end with a trip to the Blue Lagoon.

There were just a few more things that we wanted to see before our trip was over.  Iceland is known not only for its amazing glaciers but also for its amazing waterfalls.  There were so many cool waterfalls to choose from but since this trip was all about exploring the southern island, we choose two that were the most conveniently located from the main highway...Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss.  The weather was kind of yucky today with overcast skies and intermittent rain but we didn't care because the days we really needed sun we had it. So we set off on another somewhat long drive but not as long as the day before.  It was about 1.5 hours to Seljalandsfoss Waterfall. This is a unique waterfall where you can take a path to walk behind the waterfall.  When we got there it had temporarily stopped raining which was good.  The closer we got to the waterfall the more we were grateful that we had on our rain-gear because the mist from the waterfall was pretty strong.  We braved the platform in front of the waterfall to get a family photo before stepping over the TRAIL CLOSED sign like all the other tourists to walk behind the waterfall.  It was SO WET.  At first I had my big camera out, constantly wiping the lens until I gave up, put it away, and just enjoyed the experience because let's face it...when do you ever get to walk behind a waterfall in Iceland??? I probably spent more time behind the waterfall than everyone else.  Madeline wasn't a huge fan of all the water mist in her face so she and Mike went ahead.  Peter and Emma stayed behind with me to grab some photos with the GoPro...what an ingenious camera that one is.  

After this interesting experience I'm not sure the kids were really up for more waterfalls as we were all a bit cold but we got back in the car to warm up and eat snacks on our way to Skogafoss Waterfall. Skogafoss Waterfall is one of the largest and most elegant waterfalls in Iceland. Luckily, it is also one of the waterfalls that can be accessed even in the wintertime. This waterfall is situated along the Skoga River at the cliffs of the former coastline. It was fun to walk along the snowy, and sometimes slippery, path along the river to get to the base of the waterfall.  The kids had just as much fun skipping rocks in the river as they did enjoying the beauty of the waterfall.  We could've spent more time there as well but the weather was kind of rainy and cold so we only stayed for about an hour.  The trail you can take to get a view from the top was closed and dangerous this time of year so we stayed at the base of the waterfall to enjoy its beauty.  ​

Today started out with lots of excitement for our adventure across the southern part of Iceland all the way over to Jokulsarlon Lagoon and the Ice Caves, bordering Vatnajokull National Park.  However, after only 20 minutes on our journey we realized that the heater wasn't working.  After all the mess of getting a working van the day before it turned out that this van also had similar problems.  We stopped at the nearest gas station to fill the radiator fluid compartment with a little bit of water.  Hoping that would be a temporary solution we continued on our journey since we had a reservation for the Ice Caves at 1:00pm.  However, that did not solve the problem, so we stopped again at another gas station and got radiator fluid this time.  Well, that seemed to do it.  It seemed that the radiator compartment had a small crack and was leaking fluid.  As long as we continued to top it off we would be ok.  So that is what we did the remainder of the day.  The rest of the drive, with heat, was a pretty great drive.  Most everything was still covered in snow.  Both the mountains on one side and the land heading out to sea on the other side were just breathtaking. We really lucked out with the weather again today as it was sunny and not too windy.  

We made it to the lagoon an hour before our tour so we ate lunch and then headed down to the water's edge to see the spectacular icebergs that had broken off from the nearby Breidamerkurjokull Glacier (part of the larger Vatnajokull Glacier) floating in the lagoon.  It was quite a site to behold and nothing like any of us had ever seen.  The Jokulsarlon Lagoon flows through a short waterway into the Atlantic Ocean, leaving chunks of ice on a black sand beach.  We stayed in the lagoon area and had fun exploring.  As we walked closer to the Glacier we saw a wedding couple getting photographed.  Brrrr but also so very cool.  Time flew by so fast that hour and before we knew it the big kids and I were grabbing our crampons and heading into the giant glacier truck to head onto the glacier for our ice caving tour.  It was really sweet of Mike to stay behind with Madeline during our tour.  

It was about a 30 minute drive through extremely off road terrain before making it onto the glacier.  It felt like we were driving on Mars.  Our tour guide and driver was hilarious and reminded us of the guy from the boat in the movie "Secret Life of Walter Mitty."  His demeanor was super chill but he also took the time to tell us cool facts about what we were seeing along the way.  Once on the glacier we made our first stop at an above ground ice cave.  We all got out, climbed up a small hill with the help of ropes, and explored in and around the sheets of ice left over from an above ground crevasse. The kids LOVED this part of the tour.  We could have played there for hours.  I gave Andrew the GoPro and let him go off and explore at the top to get a great video of the panoramic view we saw.  Then it was back in the truck for one more stop before the caves.  Since there wasn't too much wind on the glacier today we got to do a small glacier hike down to another open crevasse.  The walk along the various glacier sections was SO COOL.  It reminded me of hiking Mt. Rainier.  We had to be careful to follow our tour guide exactly so we wouldn't fall through any weak sections of the glacier.  It wasn't surprising to me that my kids were the first ones right behind the guide.  I love that my kids are so adventurous.  It is the one thing that gives life so much flavor.  I hope they never lose their love for adventure.  After walking for about 15-20 minutes on the glacier we came to a roped section and had to take turns heading downhill to the bottom where we were able to walk right up to an above ground open crevasse.  The crevasse was roped off inside so you could only go in so far to see the amazing blue colors reflecting off the sheets of ice.  It was spectacular.  We didn't spend too long here, only long enough for everyone to have a turn peeking into the crevasse before heading back to the truck.  Our last stop was at the actual ice cave open to the public through this tour.  It was a wet trek through the cave and it was fairly dark so we took advantage of the lights on our helmets.  There were only a few sections where you could see the spectacular blue sheets of ice by looking up.  The amazing blue color can only be seen when the layer between the ice and the sky isn't so thick.  I had researched how to take pictures of the ice but it was way more difficult than I had expected.  Trying to set up a tripod in a river of flowing water and trying to take a photo when everyone didn't have their lights on was almost impossible.  I took only a few photos down a small cavern before heading back to the group.  The main area of the cave was much better for photo taking.  All the pictures I had seen online had clearly been on photography only tours on the eastern side of the Island in caves that were much larger than this one.  Someday I will go on one of those tours.  Still, we were in awe of the sheets of ice that permeated most of the cave.  It's a good thing it was a pretty short cave because after walking in the frozen water, even with our good waterproof boots, we were all getting a bit cold.  We climbed out of the cave and were back in the truck heading back to the lagoon.  By the time we got back we were starving and were super happy that Mike had fish and chips waiting for us to eat. You would have thought we hadn't eaten in days the way we stuffed our faces.  ​

We were up by 7:00am to get ready for our first day in the Golden Circle.  Mike went out and tested the car, which started with a little love and prayer. We left it running while everyone ate breakfast, got ready, and headed out for the Silfra fissure. The sky was clear when we left, but in typical Iceland fashion, it started to snow like crazy as we got near Thingvellir National Park. As we got closer to the park, we could see the giant lake and it was really pretty. We got to the parking lot and walked over to the snorkeling adventure where Mike and the boys got suited up for an exciting swim down the Silfra fissure.  In the 45 minutes it took to get everyone in their group all ready to go it was blizzard, sunny and nice, and back to snow and blizzard by the time the girls and I headed back to the car to wait for the boys to finish up with their excursion.  After getting the girls warmed up in the car, I headed back over to the snorkeling area to see if I could see the boys floating between the tectonic plates. They weren't at the beginning so I walked along the beautiful trail down to the end and waited where I eventually saw them finish their incredible journey along the Silfra fissure.  I was surprised when I didn't see Peter come out of the water.  The poor kid had gotten sick at the beginning and ended up not being able to go.  We think his suit had gotten too tight around his neck.  Oh well.  There was definitely more to see in Iceland so all was not lost.  

After gathering everyone back at the van, we decided to head up the snowy trail to go on the Almannagja Ravine Walk.  After scrambling up the somewhat slippery trail we finally made it to the walk that led us up in between the North American and European plates.  We walked around up on top, looked at the beautiful view of Thingvellir National Park, took a picture next to the Iceland flag, and headed back down the trail. When we got back to our car, the rental car company was already there with someone to swap our van for another one. Hopefully this van wouldn't give us too many problems. We hopped into the new van, which was essentially the same van, and headed to see the Oxararfoss Waterfall. This was one of the coolest waterfalls we have ever seen.  It was such a fascinating waterfall with tons of rock boulders at the bottom.  The kids had fun enjoying its beauty and playing in the little nook they found near the waterfall. Mike had written Iceland in the snow and we took pictures of the kids next to it.  As we were leaving we noticed that all the other tourists did the same.  It was kind of funny what we started.  
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Due to the high winds, the whale watching tour was cancelled, so we had the morning to relax. We got up around 8:30am….having slept about 10 hours, and meandered downstairs to the hotel restaurant where we had a big buffet breakfast.  It reminded us of the buffet we had at the Hilton in London…so delicious….so expensive, but in the end free thanks to the beauty of the Gold Membership. After stuffing ourselves with good food, we loaded up the van and headed to Costco to get food for our trip. After ogling at all the stuff, we grabbed essentials like bread, milk, and of course 50 American Pancakes.  We then headed next door to the Bonus store and grabbed the rest of the stuff we needed. The Bonus store was quite something with its pink pig mascot, yellow bags, and big refrigerator section with European meats and cheeses.  
 
After getting our food, we got gas (which is cheaper at Costco) and then headed out in the wilderness of Iceland. And when I say wilderness, I mean the great frozen tundra. The wind and snow was ridiculous and visibility was minimal at best. Mike followed the Volkswagen in front of him and tried to keep in between the yellow signs on the side of the road.  It was the most insane driving ever.  Then suddenly, the sky would clear up and it would be sunny, and then back into the blizzard.