Iceland Day 2 - Photo Heavy

The next day was the highlight of the trip. Included in the package I booked was a tour to hike a glacier. Yup, a glacier. :-)

So, we got up early, had an overpriced breakfast buffet at the hotel restaurant, loaded onto the tour bus & headed out.

We headed out away from the city, giving us our first real views of Icelandic landscapes. Just beautiful. So dramatic & different from anything I've ever seen before.

Our first stop was to view the volcano that caused such a ruckus when it erupted in 2010. Unfortunately since it was so cloudy we couldn't see the peak.

Our next stop was a a pretty waterfall just off the highway.

From there we went to a little restaurant/mini mart place for lunch, bathroom break & to get fitted for our crampons. (Crampons are the metal spikes that go on the bottom of your shoe when you hike on ice.) Then it was on to the glacier!
As we drove up to it our tour guide pointed out where the glacier ended in 1950 and in 1980 and then today. It's crazy how much it's receded in such a relatively short period of time.

I managed to squeeze on a pair of waterproof pants to go over my jeans & long underwear. On top I had a thermal quick dry shirt, a sweater and a thick winter rain coat. I added gloves, my furry hat, a pashmina scarf, pulled up my hood & was ready to go. Trying to get my crampons on my shoes with all that clothing on was a bit of a work out!
Hiking the glacier was way more physically challenging that I expected. Not only 'cause you're hiking up ice & it was raining. But also because you have to lift your feet higher and spread your legs wider when you walk w/ the crampons on.
Anyhow, it was awesome. It was beautiful & fascinating. To hear about how the glacier was formed while standing on it gave me a much clearer understanding of how it happened. And I felt like such an incredible badass! I mean, I was hiking on a fucking glacier! How cool is that!?
Tony took a TON of glacier pics. Here's just a small sampling of them.

By the time we left the glacier it had gotten pretty dark. We got daylight from about 9:30sih to 6ish most days, which wasn't too bad. So, we loaded up the bus and headed to see another waterfall before dinner. Dinner was a Icelandic lobster bisque, hearty bread & beer served at a little restaurant in the seemingly middle of nowhere where everyone crowded into long picnic style benches. It was warm, delicious and much needed. I was starving!

After dinner we were suppose to search out the Northern Lights, but it was too cloudy to see anything. So, the tour guides took the long way through the city back & gave us a little tour of the city. Of course it was 11 o'clock at night, I was exhausted, had a full belly and was on a smooth riding bus. Yup, I fell asleep. :-)

Next time, Day 3! More waterfalls, tectonic plates, a national park, and geysirs!