Day two started off really early, thanks to sleeping half the day away the day before. I woke up about 6 AM and could not go back to sleep. Our car was dropped off around 8. As we had a full day planned, we set off not long after. The car was really nice- a cute Hyundai that was pretty much brand new- it had 800 kilometers on it when we got it.It even had seat warmers and an iPod hookup, so I was pretty content to ride around in it for ages.
Our first stop was a bakery that, in retrospect, probably wasn't open yet. Stores in Iceland close early and open late, especially on weekends. Most stores won't open until noon on Sunday, if they're open at all, even in Reykjavik. Gotta love a country that appreciates sleeping in!
Our original plans for this day included Gulfoss and Geysir, but thanks to our wonderful hosts, we crossed those off our lists already. They only thing we had left to do was Thingvellir. Instead of a Th, in Icelandic, that word begins with a letter that looks like a lowercase p and b over top of each other. Unfortunately, I can't do it on this computer.
Thingvellir is an UNESCO World Heritage Site, which is fancy. Iceland started their parliament here in 930 and continues until the late 1700s. The site is gorgeous, though this is one place where I feel I would have benefited from a tour. The place was crammed full of old tourists on tour buses. As much as I didn't want to be on one of those tours, I feel like I might have gotten a better understanding of the historical significance of the place.
Quick pizza for lunch and a stop at an outlet store because I forgot my sweater- talk about all the stupid things to forget to grab- and then we headed north to Djupavik. Reykjavik is less than 200 miles from Djupavik, but it takes over 6 hours to get there! Djupavik is a tiny town up in the West Fjords. Two people live there full time, and they are the owners of Hotel Djupavik, which is where we stayed.
The trip north was pretty nice. We went in a tunnel under the water for a good five minutes, which was kind of surreal when I really thought about it. I mostly just wondered what would happen if it sprung a leak!
Our plan was to stop in a town called Holmavik and get smoked puffin. Unfortunately, the restaurant decided to close that day. Pretty annoying, as the hours in our guidebook were listed for everyday. There was no note or posted hours. This type of thing happens to Sam ridiculously often, so we were very disappointed. The only other place in town to buy food was a gas station/convenience store with burgers, so that is what we ate.
The road to Djupavik from Holmavik is the real reason why the trip takes so long. For 2 1/2 hours, we drove on a dirt road, winding around fjords. I think it is something like 30 miles in distance, but takes ages. It is completely worth it, dirt roads and all, because the scenery is among the most gorgeous I've ever seen in my life. We'd be driving around these fjords, ocean to our right, high cliffs to our left, thinking we were in the middle of nowhere, and all of a sudden, there'd be a house. No matter how many there were, there'd always be a cute little sign designating the name of the "town". Iceland only has about 300,000 people, but they're more spread out than one might think!
Finally, we rounded a fjord and there was a tiny, picturesque town next to a huge waterfall- Djupavik! This town used to be one of the main hubs for herring fishing in Iceland until herring populations declined dramatically and fishing became no longer viable. The town and factory were abandoned. All that is left are the abandoned factory, about 10 small houses, and the hotel, which was formerly a boarding house for the young women who worked at the factory.
Sam is part mountain goat, and he decided to climb the fjord off of which the waterfall comes. He's crazy, as it was steep, cold and very windy, but he got some good pictures. The hotel's dog accompanied him. After that, we had an amazing, albeit very expensive dinner at the hotel's lobby. I had really good pork and Sam had lamb. They were each 40 dollars, but there was also nowhere else to eat anywhere close. Though we had lots of snacks, we both decided that a full meal would be much better! We retired (okay, passed out) in our adorable little room about 10.
Day Three
Sam and I both woke up at 4 AM. Yay for time change and going to bed really early, right? As we were in twin beds across the room from each other, we didn't realize the other was awake for a good half hour or so. Once we both knew the other was awake, we were both ready to go- which was annoying, as it was 5 AM, still dark, and we wanted to eat breakfast before leaving. Breakfast didn't start until 7:30, which is an awfully long time to sit in a room and wait. Our original plan was to go to a geothermal pool after breakfast, but since we were awake so early, we decided to just head out then. Once the sun started to come up, we set off to the end of the road.
Krosness, which is the end of the road Strandevir (that might be misspelled) is another Icelandic town that really probably shouldn't be called a town. It lies about 12 miles from Djupavik, but due to the condition of the road, it took us about an hour to get there. I think I might have seen two houses, but they do have a really cool geothermal pool. Built in the 50s, it is still in really good shape. The sun wasn't quite up when we arrived, and it was about 37 degrees Fahrenheit outside. The pool, however, was easily 80-90 degrees, heated by water from a geothermal spring underneath. There is nothing like being in a 90 degree pool next to the ocean and fjords, completely in the middle of nowhere. The only other living creatures we saw were some sheep. They weren't very big fans of us making noise in the pool, and scampered off to another side of the hill.
Breakfast was our first exposure to Icelandic breakfast. Lots of sliced meats and cheeses, like a typical European breakfast, but they added an Icelandic twist. There were two kinds of pickled herring, one of which was in a mustard sauce. They also had assorted flavored butters, like a mushroom butter that paired very well with the herring.
After breakfast, it was time to hit the dirt road back to civilization. Needless to say, we both got pretty sick of another 2 1/2 hours of dodging potholes. We both breathed a sigh of relief when we made it back to the smooth glory of a paved road. I will say this- if roads in Iceland are paved, they are in great shape. One might think the elements would have a greater impact, but if this is the case, Iceland is great at combating it. Even the dirt roads weren't in terrible condition- I've been on much worse. Still, I can't imagine driving for so long on those dirt roads just to get to the next town!
Sam heard great things about a town called Siglufordur, and it was more or less on the way to our next destination. This town, the site of another old herring factory, used to be a three hour drive from the closest town, but Iceland built a one road tunnel on the side of the mountain that reduced the drive to a little over 30 minutes. One way tunnels on the sides of mountains sound about as dangerous than they are, and we had a couple close calls with trucks barreling through the tunnel at crazy speeds. Fortunately, we made it to Siglufordur in one piece just in time for lunch.
Our first try was closed (seems to be a trend), but fortunately, the place across the street was open. I can't remember the name, but it was in a bright yellow building. Inside looked like a hunting lodge, with big tables made of trees. The feel of the place was great, and their crepes were pretty good too!
After lunch, we stopped by the herring museum they'd made out of their own herring factory. It was really cool to see, but I feel like a lot was lost in translation, especially in the case of a David Lynch-esque movie featuring factory workers, a guy sitting in an office, and someone driving a truck down tiny roads. Either way, it was interesting to see how the herring industry influenced the town so much.
Though pretty, most of the other activities in Siglufordur were outdoor- long hikes, horseback riding, etc- and we didn't really have the time for that, as we were heading off to Husavik to meet our hosts. We arrived there about 7. It was a long day in the car, and our hosts greeted us with lasagna and comfort. Yay! They were very sweet- a young couple with two rambunctious children. The kids and I made friends despite not being able to understand a damn word the other said! I crashed pretty early once again (I guess that's the effect of getting up at 4 in the morning)
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