After we got back to the mainland on Wednesday, we picked up our car and a quick lunch in Reykjavik and hit the road for Borgarnes, at the base of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula, which juts off the western coast of Iceland. On the way, we spied a lovely green valley with the ruins of a farmstead.
We made it to Borgarnes around 5 and checked into the oddly named Motel Venus (the teeny tiny rooftop in the bottom left). By that time, we had lost the sunshine and entered the fog and rain.
We went into the village and wandered around a bit. We visited two parks. One claimed to contain the remains of a Saga hero (not in the one I’m reading); the other contained this sculpture as its centerpiece. Throughout our trip we marveled at the profusion of public art, even in tiny hamlets like this one.
The next day, we continued west on the peninsula. The guidebook told us this “town” was sort of interesting. We discovered that Ari the Learned, a twelfth-century scholar and cleric, had been the first pastor of this church.
We got a little cranky after this stop and Will spied a sign for a geothermal pool down a dirt lane. We went to investigate; it wasn’t open yet, so we went to a nearby beach, where we were attacked by angry Arctic terns. We returned to the pool, which had opened, and spent the next hour submerged to our necks in hot mineral water while a cold mist frosted our hair (sorry, no photos of this).
We continued on in a better mood. We rounded the end of the peninsula and found a room for the night in Olafsvik and then returned to the south shore for a little more sight-seeing. I should mention at this point that the rural “highways” in Iceland are only intermittently paved. Here’s what our car looked like by evening.
We walked up a little path from the road.
And took the obligatory “awww” shot.
The evening light (it was about 9:30 at this point). An interesting fact about this peninsula is that there is a large, dormant volcano at the tip that is topped by a sizeable glacier. This volcano, Snaefellsjøkull, was where Jules Verne began his Journey to the Center of the Earth. It’s not the mountain pictured above; the clouds were too low for me to get a good shot of the big guy.
Later, we investigated the odd rock formations at Hellnar.
On our way back to Olafsvik, we came upon a spooky abandoned house. To give you an idea of how late it stays light, it was after 10:00 at this point.
Tomorrow we conclude with the northwest fjords and our return to Reykjavik.
August 15, 2006 at 8:13 am
The car was a Mitsubishi Colt. We had to pay a little extra for the upgrade to Volkswagen hubcaps, but it was well worth it.
August 15, 2006 at 11:35 am
You’re lucky the Blair Witch didn’t getcha.
August 15, 2006 at 11:57 am
I thought your reaction would be to the tern attack. The photo doesn’t really convey it, but there was a sizeable flock swooping and screaming around our heads.
August 15, 2006 at 6:31 pm
Nope. I tried not to think about that extensively.
Did I mention I’m never going to Iceland?
August 16, 2006 at 11:33 am
But where else will you ever get the chance to eat whale steaks?
August 16, 2006 at 12:49 pm
Japan.
August 16, 2006 at 1:29 pm
True, but it’s a more expensive trip with worse jet lag (though also on my short list of must-visits).
August 21, 2006 at 12:25 pm
The traffic must have been hellish at rush hour. Sorry things took a tern for the worse at the beach.
August 21, 2006 at 10:23 pm
Oh, Paul. Only you would dare to go there.