Iceland is such a dramatic place, from our first sighting as Borealis cruised into the Eastern fishing village of Seydisfjordur, we knew we were in for a treat, as we leaned over the balcony and gazed up at the waterfalls plummiting right into the sea. What would we find beyond the cloud
Despite the low cloud, we were filled with excitment about what we were to see. Donning our icelandic hand knitted sweaters we joined an excusion to visit the Hengifoss Waterfall.
Admittedly we were a bit apprehensive about being herded onto a coach with 60 “more mature travellers” and feared driving for hours, the comical situation of being turfed out for toilet stops, photo opportunities and obligatory purchase of a stuffed toy puffin, so we deliberately chose excusions that included a “good hike”. It was still a long drive, and we did have a pit stop. But the journey itself was worth it, as we climbed to the plateau, looking down at the ship in the distance.
And above the cloud level, we saw the last remnants of the winter snow.
Eventually we reached the start of our hike. And oh boy it was definitely a hike, the coach dropped us off in the valley and it didn’t take long before we were shedding layers as we warmed up.
But plenty of excuses to stop for photos – and catch our breathe, as we still had a long way to reach the summit
But it was worth it.
And we had plenty of time to sit around taking in all the amazing rock formations, the clarity of the air, the peace and gentle chatter of happy people.
Apparently these magnificent powerful waterfalls do freeze in winter, and the hardy souls still climb the path to see them
The Icelandic community take great pride in their landscape, there was no litter from man or beast, and the footpaths were wide and well maintained, so no necessity to take short cuts and cause erosion
Each turn revealed more amazing rock structures formed through a combination of volcanic and glacial movements
The downside of having chosen to do this hiking excusion, meant that we didn’t get the opportunity to walk around the village,
But we had a very very good day,
And still had the energy to dance the night away after a spot of early evening whale watching
Please forgive the number of photos I’m sharing, this is as much my own diary for me to remember a great holiday, I hope you can enjoy them as much as I enjoy recording them, but its without expectation.
