Tuesday was going to be our longest driving day of the trip. A 700 km (435 mi) 8 hour drive from Reykjalid (Myvatn) to Melanes in the Westfjords. With a few sightseeing stops along the way, we were figuring on at least 10 or 11 hours on the road. When we planned the trip, we knew this would be a challenging day, but we had a long list of things we wanted to do and see in our 10 days in Iceland, and this was pretty much the only way we could get it all in. So we did it. Of course it did not go as expected.
I'm usually an early riser. Even with the time change, that has held true here in Iceland, I'm usually up at least an hour or two before Madeleine and Colleen. No big deal, I either write or just read a bit. Our van is essentially an apartment on wheels though, so we thought we would use this to our advantage and leave for our drive as soon as I got up. This way we could get some miles behind us before the girls woke up. So with the girls sound asleep, I set off for the Westfjords around 5 am. The sun is up at 4 am, so I didn't miss any scenery, and literally every inch of Iceland is beautiful, so I was having a great time. Hot coffee, the road to myself, beautiful views... couldn't ask for more. I was enjoying it so much, I wasn't paying attention to the time or to my route.
As I mentioned in a previous post, the GPS directions we have been using have taken us on some interesting roads, so much so that we felt we should get a road map to check on the routes the GPS came up with. Of course we never got the map, and of course the GPS sent me up another dodgy white knuckle mountain pass. How the girls slept through that part of the ride, I have no idea, but sleep they did. I didn't want to wake them, so I just kept driving. And driving. And driving. By the time they finally woke up and we stopped to have a bite to eat it was mid morning. We set about figuring out which of the attractions Northern Iceland had to offer that we would visit. That's when we realized just how efficient our plan to leave early had been. We had driven clear across northern Iceland and in order to see any of the sights on our list, we would have to backtrack. We still had a ways to go, so backtracking wasn't really and option. Grr. Stuff like this happens on the road, and you just have to roll with it. Colleen excels at that. Within 10 minutes, she had a plan. We would stop at a little historic church for lunch, then drive to the town of Hvammstangi to get some groceries, stop at a fishing village called Drangsnes for a dip in a hot bath, then on to our final destination at the campsite in Melanes.
The church was pretty, and Hvammstangi was a beautiful and picturesque fishing village, but the highlight was the hot bath at Drangsnes. Drangsnes is another incredibly picturesque fishing village (Iceland has no shortage of those), worth a visit on it's own, but we went for the hot baths. Being so geologically active, Iceland has an abundance of geothermal hot springs. Where they occur, local towns harness the hot springs for power, hot water, and best of all public baths. Drangsnes' baths are special in that they are set into the rocky shores of the bay (as a matter of fact, they are so close to the ocean, there are another set of baths further up the hill for when the waves are too high). We parked on the street next to the baths. There was a small building across the street where you could change and shower (Icelanders are strict about showering before entering baths - there are signs at all baths warning tourists to shower and wash before entering). Walking back across the street was a bit unpleasant because it was a bit cold and windy and we were wet from the shower, but all is forgotten when you get in the bath. After all that driving, a soak in 40 degree water (104 Fahrenheit) not 10 feet from the north Atlantic ocean looking out over mountains, fields a village and a beautiful blue sky. It was an awesome experience.
Thus refreshed, we set out for our final destination. The Westfjords are one of the more remote areas in Iceland, and as such, the roads can be a little rougher than in the rest of the country. It is also a mountainous region with most of the settlements along the coast. The ride was stunning if somewhat bumpy and windy. The GPS got us turned around again (we really need to get that map), but we finally made it to our campsite around 6pm. What a campsite. It may be the most beautiful campsite I've ever stayed at. Imagine a grassy field adjacent to a horse farm that backs up to an enormous white sand beach. Cold winds blowing from towering cliffs pushing low hanging clouds out to the Atlantic over a beach the size of a small town. Absolutely stunning.
Melanes Campsite
Wednesday is all about the puffins. At least it was supposed to be...
