Oh yeah, there's a lot of water in Iceland. What a change from Germany, which has always seemed - to this coastal-dweller, at least - pretty land-locked! Besides being surrounded by the ocean and being dotted with holes spewing hot water from beneath the earth, Iceland is also home to imposing glaciers and epic waterfalls. Our trip out to the countryside the day before had brought us to the ocean's edge and past some steaming earth, but otherwise what we saw was very dry and very rocky. So the next day we drove out further east to finally get a peek at those glaciers, including Eyjafjallajökull, the site of the volcanic eruption earlier this year, and to enjoy a few waterfalls on the way.

southwestern Iceland

We stopped to get snacks at the local 1011 store (which isn't open from 10 to 11, but 24/7), drove out past the Hellisheiði power plant we'd visited earlier in the week (hold your nose, please), and visited the Saga Center where we learned all about Gunnar (who, if you recall, was every inch the warrior). Our first really exciting sight came into view shortly after we passed the town of Hella (hella-cool!). It was the volcano Hekla (oh, sorry, shouldn't say Hell).

Hekla is pretty bad-ass as far as volcanoes go. In ancient times, it was thought to be one of the entrances to Hell. The soil in the area is riddled with black ash layers from Hekla's many ejaculations.

from an exhibit at the National Museum of Iceland

It used to erupt about every 100 years, but more recently has erupted every decade. Last eruption: 2000. Eeek. Nice Hekla. Stay! Back away from the volcano now, dear. Where was that water supposed to be?

The info sign told us that this is the river Markarfljót. Which immediately made me think of South Park and then I realized that Iceland isn't the moon, or Mars, it's Marklar! Remember the waterfall? Well, there it is, behind that Marklar river.

 
us at Seljalandsfoss

Oooh, I loves me a long, tall drink of water! Hee hee. Seljalandsfoss was my favorite of all the waterfalls we saw. There was just something so majestic about this thin band of water streaming 150 feet over the side of the cliff above. There was a narrow, rocky and very slippery path around the waterfall as well, so we also got to walk behind a waterfall for the first time in our lives. (Another rain jacket/being a trooper moment for me, for sure, but well worth it!)

wanna visit Seljalandsfoss with me?

This waterfall was actually a stopping point on The Amazing Race season six - the season with all the crazy people like Victoria and John and Adam and Rebecca, 'memba them?! Here's a link to the show that hubby found, which I like to call "Is that a waterfall?". The first team missed the clue box because it was actually behind the waterfall! And in another clip you can watch them racing around and behind the falls and saying things like "I'm gonna throw up." I wish we'd had that dramatic music when we hiked around it, but then again, I'm glad that there wasn't a scary wrestling couple chasing us.

Alas, we did not find a clue box on the other side so we went back to the car and continued on our own route out to the next waterfall, where Phil would not be waiting for us. We crossed over the river again and the flooded plain it empties out into. There is so much water here, all coming from the glaciers atop the mountains, that the Markarfljót river is a constant flooding problem. The Ring Road (the national highway in Iceland that takes you along the coast around the entire island) is built up on embankments here so it isn't constantly washed out.

The recent eruption of Eyjafjallajökull, which erupted around the backside of this very mountain, flooded this river so much that they had to cut channels in the road to save the bridges. With the volcano quiet since May, the road was all repaired and we could travel on our way, closer and closer to the glaciers. To this spot, for example.

This is Eyjafjallajökull, looking ominous, above the famous Icelandic farm Þorvaldseyri. Check out the incredible pics of the eruption in April as seen from Þorvaldseyri! And here is Eyjafjallajökull again, gathering the clouds around it, above the next waterfall on our tour, Skógafoss.

Yet another big and beautiful Icelandic waterfall, right behind a tiny and homely little Icelandic forest.

You can't walk around Skógafoss, but there is a path up the side of it that is very popular among hikers. From here you can hike up into the mountains, between the two glaciers Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull, through an equally unpronounceable pass called Fimmvörðuháls to Þorsmörk, which offers beautiful views. (Fimmvörðuháls was actually the site of the first volcanic eruption this spring. The second eruption, at the crater atop Eyjafjallajökull proper, was the one that suspended air travel.) As we know, I am no hiker, so this multi-day hike would not have been for me, even before it became a massive lava and ash field. I settled for being amazed at how from here, you'd never know anything had happened.

We had driven about as far as we'd planned to for the day - almost to the middle of Southern Iceland. We just had to drive a few more kilometers to see the point where the volcanic glaciers actually slope down towards the Ring Road. And dump sulfur-smelling water into Jökulsá á Sólheimasandi, also known as "foul river".

wanna ride past a glacier and over a stinky river with me?

Glaciers: check. Waterfalls: check. We didn't have time left in the day to drive out to the black sand beach at Vík or the glacial lagoon of Jokulsarlon. But we'd seen a lot. Plus, the clouds had really come in by now, and on our way back, it started to rain. Luckily, we'd spotted these on our way out:

the Westman Islands from the Ring Road

The Westman Islands are a true natural phenomenon. A string of islands off the coast, all volcanic, only one inhabited. Heimaey, home to about 4,000 people, was threatened by a sudden volcanic eruption in 1973. The eruption covered half the town in ash and lava. Luckily, the entire fishing fleet was docked at the harbor and everyone was able to evacuate. The lava flow was halted just before it reached the harbor by inhabitants spraying cool seawater onto the lava. The newest of the islands, Surtsey, rose out of the water after an underwater eruption in the early 60's. No one is allowed on Surtsey except scientists who are studying the plant and animal colonization of new land. Sort of a view into the beginnings of Iceland itself. Erosion from the ocean suggests that the island may be worn down and finally disappear below the water by the end of the century. Wow.

We were welcomed back in Reykjavik by a beautiful sunset and a message from the kids back in Germany. It seems they had plenty of water there as well. While we were gone they were continuing to have one of the coldest and the rainiest August ever. The good times on Oma & Opa's new trampoline were apparently in jeopardy until Opa came up with this:

tented trampoline - Opa is a genius

Stay tuned for one last big post from our trip to Iceland. You won't want to miss this one!