Tuesday (A) - 29 August - Day 2 of V & G

We stayed in Heimaey on Monday night, brekkie and back on the bus for more touring of the island.  We went to the southern most point of the island to a bird watch (never been so cold - so far) to see the puffins nesting.  They've nearly all migrated but there were plenty left for us to see.  From there, we walked into the crater of the volcano which, fortunately, is now dormant.  Then back to the harbour, on the ferry and across to the mainland to the Eyjafjallajökull volcano, the one that erupted in 2010 and caused so much distress to air travellers.  It's now covered in snow and glaciers and looks completely innocent...
On the way to the bird hide at Storhofdi Point

A cave at the bottom of the cliff

Puffins on the hillside - their nests are burrows into the hillside.

Just some beautiful scenery.

Freakin' cold!!!































We went to the Skoga Folk Museum about the eruption and life here since settlement.  We watched a video of how a farming family who live at the foot of the volcano managed during the eruption.  They are a very resilient people.  I guess they have no choice, living on a small island that is still growing.
It was at this museum that Maureen and I both spotted, but separately, something that I'd like you all to see if you can pick in the photo below:
No clues...
Once we left the ferry, we crossed very fertile farmland crossed with lots of rivers that flow from all the glaciers in the mountains.  The glaciers flow from the icecap that covers the centre of the island.  Lots of photos of glaciers but I'll save them for when we get home.  Well, most of them anyway.




The sun at noon - as high as it gets at this time of the year...
A couple of the glaciers we saw from the bus...










Then we went to Reynisfjara's black sand beach - warnings everywhere about sneaker waves.  Two tourists have been drowned off this beach because they were caught by sneaker waves.  Every fifth or sixth or seventh wave is bigger and stronger and, if you're not watching, sneaks much further up the beach than other waves have been doing.  They are so strong that if you get caught up in one, it washes you 3km out to sea.  No chance of survival in that freezing water.


 

Comments

  1. Elise3 September 2017 at 12:39

    Your doppleganger?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Gary and Trish3 September 2017 at 12:51

    The fantasy comment about even the youngest child helped?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Pam and Vernon4 September 2017 at 00:47

    It's not a pick in the photo...it's a shovel

    ReplyDelete
  4. Pam and Vernon4 September 2017 at 00:50

    Great photos of the Iceland we'd imagined, who'd have thought it would be cold???

    ReplyDelete
  5. Mike and Julie4 September 2017 at 03:47

    There is one live tree in the background.

    ReplyDelete

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