Big events!

Today was pretty special. We woke up at 930 after sleeping the whole night in a dry tent in Hverageroi. We drank some coffee, ate some bologna and cheese sammies, and talked to the couple from New Mexico about the hike nearby to Landmannalaugar. We decided to head East on the Southern coast.

The sun shinning as we headed S on Rt 1. We got some groceries in Selfoss and i got warm socks. We decided to pass the Puffin island for now since the sun was out and we wanted to take advantage and we can hit it up on the way back. We stopped at Seljalandsfoss to see a magnificent waterfall. There was a path behind the waterfall with beautiful views. Andy had flip flops on since his shoes were still wet and muddy. We thought it was warm until we got to the waterfall and felt the wind and the spray. Andy wanted some meat soup or the famous Icelandic hotdog but we pushed on. 

The next stop was Skogarfoss. Another amazing waterfall but this one had stair to the top of the mountain next to it. The crowd was minimal and the sun was out. There's a day hike from the top of the mountain we considered doing the next day. When we climbed back down the sun was in full swing and created rainbows at the 

We kept on crusing and saw a smaller but more beautiful waterfall with only one couple there. It was outside Vik at a place called Uxaflurlikaer. It was a a perfect place for lunch. I made some salmon and caviar sammies and Andy tools pics. Finally the couple left and we had the place to ourselves. It's hard to describe how beautiful it was. The water fell down several green crevasses and the wind blew the grass.  It was like something out of a movie. Then...

We pressed on and drove through the wastelands, stopping to take pics along the way. There were areas with fields of moss covering rocks which turned into mounds of volcanic rocks with small flowers. We were hoping for a thermal bath (hot pot as they call it) but the one on the farm was closed. There are small farms scattered over the wasteland, with dramatic mountains and deltas from waterfalls running into the ocean. 

Once we saw the glaciers we had to stop in Skaftafell and then in Svinafell, part of the Vatnajokull glacier, which covers most of the SE part of Iceland. Their size is astounding- they pick up boulders as they tear down the sides of mountains. You can see the crystal blue underneath the black sand. We continued on to the glacier lagoon of Jokulsarlon. At the bottom of the Breidamerkurjokull glacier is a clear water lagoon full of smaller glaciers. The sun shimmered off them as some of them floated out to sea. A sea lion played as tourists took pics. There were glaciers along the side of the river in the black sand. The contrast in colors was amazing. We had come this far so we decided to make the push for Hofn, the only town on this side of Iceland. Along the way we scoped out a perfect camping spot next to the river on the other side of a mound so cars passing by wouldn't see us. 

The drive to Hofn was deceiving since we had to go up and over the delta plain into the harbor. We ate dinner at quaint restaurant. The town is a fishing town known for its lobster so we ordered cured mutton over arugula and pine nuts and the lobster tail with salad with black magic sauce which was simply spices in the lobster. It was delish as we washed the meal down with wine. 

It was getting dark so we quickly headed back to our camp which was 56.5 km from the town. It was a clear night so we were hoping for some magic in the sky. We found it with no problems and pitched the tent. We fought off the sheep as they baa'ed constantly. Andy said they need more predators so they would know when to shut up. True dat. 

As soon as we sat down with our vodka and cran cocktails, Andy pointed to the edge of the clouds that were slightly lighter than the rest. I think that's the Aurora Borrealis he said. No it's not I replied, it's just the sun setting and hitting the clouds. All of a sudden, a light in the sky started dancing. He was right! Thats why the stars weren't very bright. I jumped for the camera in excitement although I didn't want to look away as the light moved from left to right above the mountains. It was initially a faint white, but then it got stronger where we could see the green. Andy got some amazing pictures. The first wave lasted 15 min and we thought it was over. We sat on the grass since it was a beautiful night and then the sky started dancing again, this time to the West. This time the show lasted for 45 min and eventually charged the whole sky. It looked like someone was shinning a spotlight over the sky, flicking it on and off. A truely remarkable ending to a memorable day. I'm feeling quite lucky to experience everything we have over the last three days, and it's just the start of our travels.