On one lazy July day, quite spontaneously we decided with Cezary to go to the western peninsula of Iceland know as Snæfellsnes. This peninsula is also called "a miniature of Iceland", as there are virtually all the natural phenomena characteristic of the island - volcanoes, glaciers, waterfalls and majestic mountains. Of course, there must have been no shortage of sheep, horses and climatic seaside towns!
As both of us were free from work that day, we got up quite late. We didn't eat breakfast to immediately saturate ourselves with lunch coupon for two people, which I received. From time to time the restaurants give such coupons to receptionists so that they can later (honestly or not) recommend those restaurants to visitors to Iceland. It tasted delicious, so I can sincerely recommend to you the Foodcellar (Matarkjallarinn) restaurant, which is located in the very centre of Reykjavík. The dishes and their sizes "devastated" us so well that we didn't have the strength to leave the restaurant. Fish soup with dill oil, roast duck and for dessert chocolate bar with ice cream and raspberries. For the dessert I was so overeaten that in fact it took away from me the pleasure of eating a little bit - a matter of not "warming up" my stomach with breakfast I suppose...
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Glymur
Struggling with the poor sleepiness, we set off quite late, about 2 PM. Unfortunately, I didn't take my camera with me this time because it was in repair - so the photos in this entry are shot by our phones... Going in the direction of Snæfellsnes we decided to take a longer road along the fjord, which is several dozen kilometers north of the capital (the alternative is a tunnel, which bypasses the whole fjord). At the very tip of the cove a trail begins, leading to the second highest waterfall in Iceland - two hundred meters high Glymur. The trail is not long, and it begins with a huge field of purple lupine (which, by the way, is said to have been brought here from Alaska).
The most difficult part was the crossing of a quick-stream (and damn cold) river. The fixed rope made it much easier to cross, and because of the fact that we REALLY went there chillin' out, we were actually wearing sweatpants! So all we had to pull them up to go to the other side without any problems :D
What we liked about this route was that its destination hides in the depths of the canyon. Only at the end of the path you can admire the waterfall in all its glory. The height really makes its mark, and the canyon itself only intensifies the impression of the size of Glymur.
At the top of the mountain we crossed the river again, circling around the Glymur. The current at the top is much milder, but the water is equally icy. From the top there stretches a truly postcard-like view of the whole fjord.
Snæfellsnes
Snæfellsnes is a peninsula in western Iceland, not far from the capital. Initially, we planned to drive enter from the south, but we made a mistake on the road and eventually drove to the north instead.
It turned out to be worth it, because we came across a quite unexpected event. We stopped at the crater, which was right next to the road. We were puzzled by the number of parked cars in this place and people climbing wooden stairs to the top of the crater. When we listened closely, we heard that the vast majority of them were Icelanders. And this nationality is not often seen by tourist attractions.
Icelanders started to settle down on the stairs, in a word - they took positions. It became clear that something unusual was happening here, and these people came here for a REASON. Then a dozen and a half men in Icelandic sheep wool sweaters went out in the middle of the crater and.... started to sing traditional Icelandic folk songs! A smile immediately appeared on our faces and we listened attentively to this completely unexpected concert.
It was a performance by a university choir from the nearby Bifröst University, which celebrated its centenary that day! This coincidence provided us with a decent injection of serotonin and the right dose of energy for the rest of the trip. I managed to find a short video from this exceptional performance:
Continuing the ride we reached the coast. The weather that day was very favorable to us. Reading our previous entries from Iceland you can get an impression that it's always nice and sunny here, while the truth is that we just always choose these special, well-weathered days for our trips. So don't take these sunny pictures for sure if you think about coming here.
July is a period when the sun does not actually set completely behind the horizon. We were only at the beginning of the peninsula, and the golden light of the setting sun accompanied us for at least a few hours. For a longer time we stop at Stykkishólmur, where taking advantage of the fact that I am not a driver I use the benefits of the port's bar. Cezary satisfied himself with just coffee. Stykkishólmur is the "capital" of Snæfellsnes and is quite a charming town with sparse architecture. From here you can take a ferry to the western fjords, by the way stopping by the famous island Flatey. We didn't have time for this option, so we started the engine of our old good Toyota Yaris and moved on to the west.
Then a sharp peak of Kirkjufell ("Church Mountain") emerged from behind the horizon. This mountain, together with the nearby waterfall visible in the frame, is probably the most photographed object in Iceland, and you will see them on all kinds of advertisements or tourist guides. Its shape is really pleasing to the eye and stands out from other peaks, all the more so because it is a lonely steep hill right next to the sea shore.
Writing about Snæfellsnes I cannot fail to mention the small glacier Snæfellsjökull (which unfortunately we will not show in the entry, although it is located on the peninsula), which has become a hero of the classic literature! Jules Verne placed it in the "Journey to the Center of the Earth" as... a portal to the titular centre of the planet. Climbing on the glacier (and the volcano at the same time) on your own is quite dangerous, especially without proper equipment, that's why we in our sweatpants didn't even think about freezing while trying to follow in the footsteps of the heroes of Verne's nineteenth-century novel. An attraction for another, less "chilln' out" trip.
After several hours of driving, Cezary started to get tired. Admittedly, white Icelandic nights make it a little easier to fight sleepiness, but you can't escape from it completely. For this reason, we missed a loooooot of places in the Snæfellsnes peninsula to which we really want to come back to. It is a perfect alternative to the Golden Circle, popular among tourists. Snæfellsnes is just more interesting, diverse and enjoyable in our opinion. If you come to Iceland for just a few days - choose Snæfellsnes (and optionally Glymur) and this "miniature of Iceland" will show you all the natural treasures that the island of ice and fire has to offer.
The last stop we chose in the warm springs, which we reached around 2 AM. It's hard to get out of such fatigue soothing and relaxing bath, with such views around, but finally we had to go back to saving the money for much bigger travel destinations... I certainly look as if I had died in this water, but fortunately the sluggish Cezary brought us safely to Reykjavík, where we returned to the grey life of the immigrants. At least until the next trip!
