Tag Archives: winter

The Blue Lagoon, Iceland

The Blue Lagoon, Iceland: A two day visit to the milky-blue geothermic hot spring in a lava field in the small town of Grindavik.

 

Excerpt from original post Iceland 2015: Reykjavik and the South Coast. Read about all of our adventures in Iceland here.

Day 1:

 

The Blue Lagoon is the number one tourist attraction in Iceland, and I have to say, it was also one of the things that I was looking forward to the most. The Blue Lagoon formed from the mineral and water runoff of the nearby geothermal power plant that harvests geothermal energy from the lava field near the town of Grindavik. The pale blue color of the lagoon is a result of the white silica mud at the bottom, giving it a milky blue color. In the 1980’s, locals discovered the lagoon and began sneaking in for a swim.

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The Blue Lagoon
Blue Lagoon Iceland
The Blue Lagoon
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The Blue Lagoon–lava rock covered with white silica mud and algae makes up the bottom of the lagoon

Eventually, it was developed into the giant hot spring swimming lagoon that it is today, and The Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel was built nearby. The silica mud is supposed to be good for your skin, and particularly good for people with skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis. The Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel is also a clinic for people with doctor referrals for skin treatments, but for the most part it is a nice hotel with a spa-like atmosphere and it’s own smaller private lagoon for guests only. It is small, although it has plans to expand by next year. It is recommended that you make your reservations far in advance.

We arrived The Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel at 2:00 PM, which was check in time. The lady at the front desk told us our room was not ready and to come back at 2:00. When we informed her it was 2:00 she apologized, it had been a crazy day for the housekeeping staff and she asked us if we wouldn’t mind waiting about 30 more minutes. They had a nice guest lounge area, so we didn’t mind. We sat and read for a little bit. When she came back and told us our room was ready, she gave us a gift pack of Blue Lagoon lotion products as a thank you for waiting. We learned later how expensive those lotions were–about a $40 value. It was very nice of her.

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Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel guest lounge

Our room was very nice, with a really comfortable bed and a view of the moss and snow covered lava fields. It included a mini fridge, fluffy bathrobes, and even had a towel warmer in the bathroom that ended up being perfect for drying our bathing suits.

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View from the deck of our hotel room at the Blue Lagoon Clinic
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The moss is flammable…
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The private blue lagoon for hotel guests only

The price per night was about $250.00, which is the off-season rate. It is pretty expensive, but worth it. The price includes a breakfast buffet, use of the private blue lagoon for guests only, and one daily admission per person for each day to the main Blue Lagoon, which is about a 10 minute walk through a path in the lava field. The regular admission price at the Blue Lagoon is about $50.00 per person, which doesn’t include a towel or robe. The hotel guest vouchers include towels and robes, and no advance reservation or ticket purchase is needed.

**Note: If you are visiting the Blue Lagoon without a tour group or staying at the hotel, you will need to make advance reservations. This is a new rule as of 2015, due to increased tourism maxing out the lagoon’s capacity.

After getting settled,  we were ready to check out the lagoon. We put our bathing suits in a plastic shopping bag, collected our voucher from the hotel, and walked across the slushy, icy path to the lagoon through the lava field.

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Checking in was easy, there was a separate line for people with vouchers and we breezed right in. We were given electronic bracelets that lock and unlock your chosen locker, and are used as a running tab for any purchases from the little cafe or the swim up bar in the lagoon. When you leave, you give your bracelet to the cashier to pay for anything you purchased while in the lagoon. It was a pretty awesome system.

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In the locker room, you are expected to take a shower with soap before putting your bathing suit on and going out to the lagoon. There are even attendants in the locker room to help people find the next open shower stall (and tell you that you need to shower). There are even diagrams in the shower showing you what areas to wash–armpits, feet, crotch. It was very specific.

I had a hard time figuring out how to lock the locker with my bracelet at first, but figured it out after a few tries. You have to close your locker door, and then scan your bracelet on the main scanner on the locker block, which locks it and confirms your locker number.

Paddy didn’t have the best experience at first–in the locker room he set his robe and towel down for a second on the bench and turned around and his towel was gone. Super lame. Watch your towel….maybe more so in the men’s room than the women’s.

Once out of the locker rooms, you walk out the door onto the deck and it is a mad dash in the bitter cold to hang up your robe on the outdoor hook and get in the lagoon.

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The water is really nice, and the bottom of the lagoon ranges from sandy and a little rough to soft squishy silica mud. There are geothermal heat regulators in various areas, and the water gets a lot hotter near them. We got beers and little packets of algae face mask from the swim-up bar.

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Blue Lagoon Bar
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Algae mask
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algae mask

There is a wood box on the far edge of the lagoon full of the white silica mud to use on your face as well. The lagoon also has a steam room, dry sauna, and a steamy cave that looks like a hobbit house, all located off the deck on the right side of the lagoon facing the main building. On the way out, you can get a good view of the lagoon from the observation deck at the top of the building–accessible by stairs in Lava Restaurant.

**Note: The silica and sulphur in the water really dry out your hair. My hair felt like it does after swimming in the ocean but amplified. It took two deep condition washings to finally get it back to normal, so some heavy-duty conditioner is advised for longer hair. They do provide conditioner at the lagoon in the showers, but it wasn’t very good. Wearing your hair up can help, but it gets so steamy that it’s difficult to keep it from getting wet.

After a good soak, we went back to the room to change and head into Grindavik for dinner.

Grindavik is a very tiny coastal fishing town. There isn’t a lot to see, aside from the Saltfish Museum. There are a few small restaurants, and after reviewing the options on tripadvisor, we decided to eat at Salthusid. We drove into town thinking there would be a main strip with restaurants or something by the waterfront, but there wasn’t. It was actually a little hard to find. Saldhusid is located just off the main road behind the grocery store Netto.

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Salthusid Restaurant

Salthusid was cozy and inviting, very Scandinavian. The name means “The Salt House” in Icelandic.

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Salthusid Restaurant

The waitress was very friendly, and it ended up being one of the best meals of our whole trip, second to Dill. We shared the lobster soup to start, and it was amazing. If Stokkseyri has the best lobster soup in Iceland, I would be very interested to compare their soup to Salthusid’s. It was so flavorful without being too heavy on the cream, with big fresh hunks of lobster in the bottom.

The best lobster soup ever at Salthusid
The best lobster soup ever at Salthusid

Paddy had a lamb tenderloin and I had cod with ratatouille. Both were outstanding. We had read that they make very good chocolate cake at Salthusid, but we were too stuffed to eat another bite. If we ever come back to Grindavik, we will be making this restaurant our number one dinner stop.

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Lamb tenderloin at Salthusid
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Cod with ratatouille at Salthusid

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On the way back to the hotel we could see the geothermal power plant all lit up and hard at work:

Geothermal power plant that accidentally created the Blue Lagoon
Geothermal power plant that accidentally created the Blue Lagoon
Day 2:

Friday was our last day in Iceland, and while the snow was melting now, it was WINDY. When we had left the Blue Lagoon the day before we had been leaving right as a huge tour group was coming in, and we were wondering if we could have the same luck of timing on our second trip. We went to the front desk to retrieve our daily voucher and to see if the tour groups come at certain times (they don’t), and they told us the weather was only going to get worse this afternoon, so it was best we go as soon as we can.

We seemed to luck out and get in between big tour groups again, fortunately. It was busy, but not crazy busy. Paddy slipped on the ice on the trail from the hotel to the Blue Lagoon and cracked his elbow. If you are walking on a snowy or icy day, be extra careful.

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The Blue Lagoon

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It was much windier than the day before. While the water was still really warm, the cold wind was uncomfortable on our heads. We went between the dry sauna and the lagoon, sitting under the walking bridges to shield ourselves from the wind. We finally found the best spot for a sheltered soak under the bridge and around the corner from the bar, up against some lava rocks. The water is hotter over there and the rock behind us blocked the wind a bit.

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The area in the lower left corner of this photo is be best spot to soak when it’s windy–the rock shelters you a bit and the water is extra hot.

We didn’t stay as long this time, we figured we had a good time the day before and the wind was getting to be a little much.

When we left, there was another HUGE tour group line waiting to get in. We were so glad we left when we did. At the end of the line near the parking lot we could hear some Germans shouting obnoxiously. We made it a little ways down the path to the hotel when I realized that I left my bathing suit bag in the gift shop at the front counter. I ran back to get it, and the whole time, the Germans never stopped shouting. It sounded like they were drunk….or angry? I don’t know. It was unbelievably obnoxious.

One of the biggest reasons we would recommend staying at the Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel is that it has it’s own private lagoon for hotel guests only. That way, you can enjoy soaking in the lagoon again after you get back from the main one, and it is quiet and much more relaxing. They also have an indoor lagoon area for when the weather is bad.

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Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel Private indoor/outdoor lagoon
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Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel Private indoor/outdoor lagoon

The indoor lagoon has a door in the corner for you to go out to the outdoor lagoon from the water, which was nice. I braved the wind for a little while that afternoon, but it was too much. It was a little disappointing, because I was hoping to get some relaxing time in at the private lagoon as well before we left.

One thing the hotel doesn’t have is a sauna or steam room, which I think would be a great addition.

We relaxed the rest of the afternoon and read books. Some people may find the Grindavik area a little boring, but we were really enjoying the relaxation time before heading home and back to our jobs.

For dinner, we had made prior reservations at Lava Restaurant at the main Blue Lagoon, our last and final splurge dinner. Head chef Viktor Örn Andrésson specializes in modern Icelandic cuisine and won Iceland’s Chef of the Year award in 2013 and Nordic Chef of the Year in 2014.

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Lava Restaurant at The Blue Lagoon
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Lava Restaurant at The Blue Lagoon
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Lava Restaurant at The Blue Lagoon
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View from our table, Lava Restaurant at The Blue Lagoon

The restaurant is huge, and a more traditional style than the infamous Dill restaurant in Reykjavik. The menu was an a la carte menu featuring starters, entrees, and desserts.

The wine list was pricey, and their selection of US wines were a bit questionable (Barefoot Merlot? Turning Leaf Zinfandel? Those are cheap $6.99 bottom shelf grocery store wines…on the wine list for $40 each). Not that we wanted American wine, but their American selection made us question the value of the rest of the high-priced wines. We stuck with less expensive house wine by the glass.

For starters we had the slow cooked arctic char with fennel, pear, and char roe, and the smoked haddock with apple and sun chokes. Both were outstanding, but the arctic char was the clear favorite for both of us. The char roe exploded in your mouth and added an unexpected complimentary complexity to the pear and char.

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Smoked haddock starter at Lava Restaurant
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Slow cooked arctic char starter at Lava Restaurant

For our entrees, Paddy had Viktor Örn Andrésson’s winning dish from the Nordic Chef of the Year competition, which was fried rack of beef and beef cheek with carrot, potato, morel and port wine glaze. I had the pan fried cod with roasted langoustines, cauliflower, fennel, pear, and dill. My cod was good, cooked perfectly and the flavor was great–however it was a little overly salty. Paddy practically licked his plate clean, he said the beef dish was truly award-winning.

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Pan fried cod and roasted langoustines at Lava Restaurant
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“Award-winning” beef rack and beef cheek dish at Lava Restaurant
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At Lava Restaurant

For dessert I tried the “award-winning” Nordic Chef of the Year dessert: Cranberries and organic dark chocolate with marzipan, lemon, hazelnuts, and meringue. Paddy had the apple and brown butter dish with brown butter ice cream, apple and celeriac foam, apple, caramel, brioche. Both were fantastic.

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Overall, we spent about the same amount of money at Lava as we did at Dill in Reykjavik. They were both great meals, but if you only have room in your budget for one big splurge in Iceland, I’d go with Dill. They are two completely different restaurants, however. If you’re not into 7 small tasting courses and would rather have a starter, larger entree, and dessert, Lava might be the one for you. We liked the tasting courses and variety at Dill, along with the very Icelandic and less-touristy atmosphere.

 

Overall, I feel the Blue Lagoon lived up to the hype. We would absolutely do it again, but to be honest we’d probably spend the majority of our time at the private lagoon at the Blue Lagoon hotel. The only thing we disliked about the Blue Lagoon was the hoards of tour bus tourists. Unfortunately, that is par for the course at a number one tourist attraction. The Blue Lagoon’s proximity to the airport makes it an easy and relaxing end to any trip to Iceland.

 

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases from product links on this site.

Vik, Iceland

Two nights in Vik, Iceland. A tiny town on Iceland’s southwest coast that is a great home base for southern ring road adventures.

We visited Vik, a small town in southwest Iceland for two days on a week long trip to Iceland in March 2015. It was winter when we visited, and road conditions were very unpredictable. We had to check the weather report daily to see when and if we would be able to drive that day or not, due to extreme winds and snow. We used Vik as a home base to see several attractions on the southern ring road. In good weather, Vik is only about a two and a half our drive from Rekjavik. There isn’t much to the town, but it is a great place to visit and use as a home base for exploring for a couple of days.

 

Excerpt from original post https://childfreelifeadventures.com/iceland-2015-reykjavik-the-south-coast/

Day 1:

We left Hveragerdi in the morning as early as soon as the sun came out. The weather report told us that the morning would be pretty clear and mild, but that a storm was moving in that afternoon. We got on the road as early as we could, headed east on Highway 1 to the coastal town of Vik. The drive wasn’t too bad in the beginning, and we stopped at two of Iceland’s iconic waterfalls.

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Seljalandsfoss: 

Seljandsfoss waterfall is just a very short drive off the main highway 1, and there are signs for it. In warmer weather, you can actually walk behind it which is pretty awesome. It was icy and cold when we visited, so we didn’t attempt the walk behind it. There was also a fair amount of icy spray from the falls so we didn’t get super close. This waterfall is definitely worth a stop.

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Seljalandsfoss

Skógafoss:

Just a short ways down the road from Seljandsfoss is Skogafoss, which you can actually see from the highway. This 200 foot, 25 meter-wide waterfall is one of Iceland’s biggest and most impressive. There are bathrooms at the falls, as well as a little restaurant if you’re hungry. We had packed sandwiches and ate them in the car to save money and use up our groceries.

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Skogafoss
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Skogafoss

We didn’t have far to go to Vik, but the black storm clouds on the horizon warned us that we had better hurry it up. It started getting a little dicey right before we descended into the town, but we made it. The winds were picking up and the powdery snow was blowing across the road, making it difficult to see.

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Menacing black storm clouds closing in
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Farmer herding his horses in as the storm approaches

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Snow blowing in the wind
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Snow blowing on the road

We finally reached Vik, very relieved to have made it just as the storm began raging.

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Heading into Vik
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Little church in Vik

We were staying at the brand new Icelandair Hotel in Vik, which had just opened in June 2014. At $175 a night, it was one of our most expensive accommodations on the trip, but very comfortable and modern. In the summer, forget it–the rates shoot up to $300/night. Way out of our budget.

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Icelandair Hotel Vik
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Icelandair Hotel lobby
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Icelandair Hotel lobby bar
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Ocean view room, Icelandair Hotel Vik
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View from the huge windows in our room

We checked into our room, happy to be out of the weather. I had woken up with a sore throat that morning and it became apparent by afternoon that I was coming down with a mild cold. We decided to relax in the room the rest of the afternoon and watch the stormy sea from our huge floor-to-ceiling glass windows in the room. I was glad that I had packed some cold medicine and vitamins just in case.

For dinner that evening, we asked the receptionist what our restaurant options were in town. The town is tiny and there aren’t a lot of choices. She talked up the Icelandair Hotel restaurant on site, and then mumbled disdainfully about “the grill across the street,” and “another place up the road and to the left.” I suppose it’s her job to steer us to the hotel restaurant.

Berg Restaurant at the hotel was very expensive, and looked a little overpriced. The grill across the street was a very affordable option, attached to the gas station, but we also weren’t in the mood for fried food. I consulted Tripadvisor and  decided to check out Halldorskaffi up the street.

The main street in Vik is Vikurbraut, which has a small grocery store, post office and liquor store (you do need to buy beer and wine at the liquor store, which closes at 6:00 PM), and two restaurants–HalldorsKaffi and the Lundi Restaurant in the Puffin Hostel.

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Vikurbraut St. in Vik
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View of church in Vik from Vikurbraut St
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Halldorskaffi Restaurant

Halldorskaffi Restaurant Doesn’t have a sign, we recognized it from the photo someone posted on Tripadvisor. After looking at all the options, I will say that it is the best restaurant option in Vik.

Service was very friendly. The best deal they have is their daily soup special, which is a self-serve all-you-can eat soup station with homemade bread. I had the soup of the day (cauliflower) and it was delicious. I also ordered the smoked salmon appetizer and it was also very good. Paddy had a burger and fries. They serve full entree dinners (mostly fish and lamb), pizzas, burgers, salads, and sandwiches. The prices were very reasonable.

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All you can eat soup at Halldorskaffi
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Lox (smoked salmon) appetizer and burger at Halldorskaffi
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Delicious homemade cakes and pies at Halldorskaffi

There isn’t any nightlife in Vik, and I wasn’t feeling so hot because of my cold so we spent the rest of the evening in the hotel room reading and listening to the storm.

We were super excited to find out from the front desk lady that the storm was supposed to pass overnight, and that we could actually expect some sun the next day.

Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon and the Southern Ring Road

Day 2:

Much of the snow had melted off the road overnight, and the weather forecast was actually good for the day. We got up early, ate some yogurt, bread, and leftover tuna salad for breakfast (we just used the car as our refrigerator for the night), and set out to do a marathon sight-seeing trip on our one unicorn-day of good weather.

An hour past Vik, there is another small town called Kirkjubæjarklaustur, but not much else for miles. (Be sure to have a full gas tank). Just a short ways past Vik is an area where part of Game of Thrones was filmed, and we could definitely see why. We realized that we were really out in the “wilds of Iceland,” with nothing but snow, ice, and glaciers. It was beautiful and humbling at the same time.

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After two and a half hours or so, pretty much driving on a solid sheet of ice in some parts of the road, we reached our main destination:  Jökulsárlón Glacial Lagoon. It is one of the big attractions in Iceland, and in the summer I’ve read that it is a conveyor belt churning out loads of tourists through boat tours. It was busy, but not too busy when we were there.

The sun was starting to peek out, but the wind was brutal. We walked towards the lagoon and climbed up on top of the grassy hills to get a good view, and were almost blown away.

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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon

We descended to the beach, which was better but the wind was still icy cold. It was a beautiful site to see, but we didn’t stay as long as we wanted, the wind was just too much. No boat tours were being offered either, which was fine. The view from the beach was pretty good by itself.

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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Freezing!
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon

Fortunately, there is a small cafe and gift shop selling seafood soup, pastries, and hot drinks. We had some seafood soup for lunch, which was mediocre but hot and warmed us right up. We used the restroom, picked up a couple souvenirs and turned around to head back.

On the way back we stopped at Skaftafell National Park. Visiting Skaftafell and hiking to glaciers and waterfalls in the park had originally been part of the plan, but we realized that this was a much better destination in the summer or early fall. We didn’t have a lot of time, but thought we’d pull in and see if there was anything to be seen within a short walk of the visitor’s center. There wasn’t. Even nearby Svartifoss required crampons to even attempt the trail. We checked out the visitor’s center and then moved on.

The sun was out full force while we drove back, and we were just happy that we got to see the Glacier Lagoon and the rugged, wild winter terrain of the southern Ring Road. It was even more beautiful on the drive back, as the blue sky and bright sun added some more contrast to the landscape.

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Icy wild arctic tundra without a soul around for miles

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Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach

Arriving back at the hotel in Vik, we stopped by the room to freshen up and then got back on the road a short drive west of Vik to Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach. We were hoping to catch a sunset but snow clouds were rolling in, and it began to snow a little bit. It was still a nice stroll on the beach, with the snow coming down.

Reynisfjara Beach is a must-see stop just off the Ring Road in south Iceland. The beach is covered in black sand and lava rock, with towering jagged sea stacks that look like monster teeth jutting out of the raging ocean. To the west is a rock arch going into the ocean.

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Reynisfjara Beach
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Reynisfjara Beach

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Rock arch, Reynisfjara Beach
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Big lava rocks on Reynisfjara Beach
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Reynisfjara Beach

Hálsanefshellir sea cave is to your right (as you face the ocean), made up of hexagonal basalt columns much like the ones we saw at the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. The columns are a natural geological wonder formed from lava pouring out of the land and cooling slowly over time. They are very rare but found randomly all over the world, and also make up the waterfall cliff at Svartifoss in Skaftafell National Park. The columns at Reynisfjara are also called the “organ pipes.”

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“Organ Pipes” at Reynisfjara Beach
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“Organ Pipes” at Reynisfjara Beach
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“Organ Pipes” at Reynisfjara Beach
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“Organ Pipes” at Reynisfjara Beach

**Note: The waves and current at Reynisfjara are very dangerous. Do not wade in the ocean or get close to the edge of the shore, waves have been known to come out onto the beach further than expected and the current can pull you in, even from knee-deep water.

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Raging sea at Reynisfjara

After the beach, we went back into town and had dinner at Halldorskaffi again. Paddy had the lamb burger and I had a chicken sandwich with fries. Both were delicious, but we were starving and it didn’t quite fill us up. We picked up some snacks at the convenience store across the street from our hotel on the way back.

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Evening sun in Vik

Back at the hotel, we went down to have a drink at the swanky hotel bar with (yak??) fur barstools. There were a few other tourists down in the lounge area, but it was otherwise pretty quiet. There were a few people eating in the restaurant.

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Before coming to Iceland, we watched a few travel documentaries which all featured the infamous Icelandic liquor Brennivin, otherwise known as “The Black Death.” Brennivin literally translates to “burning wine” and is a type of schnapps made from potato mash and flavored with caraway. It has a very herbal flavor to it, and after doing a shot of that, my cold went away. No joke. It was a pretty mild cold, but I’d like to believe that the “Black Death” brought me back to life.

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We had a couple beers and enjoyed the ambiance for a bit, but the drinks were expensive so we didn’t stay long.

Regarding Icelandic beer–beer was actually banned in Iceland from 1915 to 1989. The most popular and widely available beers are Gull, and Viking, which we found to taste like cheap, watery Budweiser or some other comparable American beer. Paddy did find a couple Icelandic beers that he liked, and said the Viking Classic wasn’t too bad. My favorite was the line of beers from the Einstök microbrewery. I didn’t get to try all of the Einstock beers, but the white ale and the toasted porter were delicious. Give Iceland a few more years, I think more craft beer may be on the way.

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While Vik may be a tiny town, there is a lot to see nearby. We would definitely recommend Vik and the Icelandair Hotel, although the price was a bit high, and it was the only hotel/hostel we stayed at that didn’t include breakfast. Exploring the southern ring road was one of the highlights of our trip. It really feels like a desolate other-worldly arctic landscape, unspoiled and wild. Just be sure to keep an eye on the weather in the winter, it can be one of the most dangerous parts of the country in high wind.

 

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases from product links on this site.

Lunar New Year in Seattle’s International District

Lunar New Year in Seattle’s International District: dragon and lion dances, martial arts performances, firecrackers, and a chance to sample a lot of great food on the $3 food walk

 

Every year, Seattle celebrates the Asian Lunar New Year that is widely celebrated across Asia. Many people refer to it as Chinese New Year, but many other Asian countries besides China celebrate it. The Lunar New Year is based on the Chinese lunisolar calendar, which is an astrological calendar revolving the month beginnings and endings around the cycles of the moon.

This year I am a liason for a Chinese exchange student through AFS, and have been learning a bit more about Chinese culture. We never really knew much about the Lunar New Year festivities or even that there was much of a celebration in Seattle at all, but this year we read up on it and decided to check it out.

Seattle’s “Chinatown” is pretty small compared to most large cities’ Chinatowns. It is officially called the International District, as the neighborhood includes Vietnamese, Korean, Thai, Filipino, Japanese, and other international restaurants and shops.

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Seattle’s Chinatown and International District

seattle chinatown international district lunar new year

We read up on the Seattle Chinatown International District website that the event schedule was from 11 AM to 3 PM on Saturday February 13th. The lunar New Year is never on the same day, as it coincides with the cycle of the new moon. It is usually sometime in late January to mid February.

We arrived in the International District at 10:30, and everything was just getting set up. Crowds were gathering around the stage at Hing Hay Park on S King Street. Paddy hadn’t eaten breakfast and was starving, so we ducked into busy Mike’s Noodle House which was open serving noodle soup and congee (Chinese savory breakfast rice porridge) and he ordered some soup. Most everything on the menu was between $6-$8, and he said the soup was great. Note: Mike’s Noodle House is cash only.

Paddy wasn’t quite finished with his soup when we heard drums and cymbals across the street, signaling that the the lion and dragon dances were starting at Hing Hay Park. He told me to go ahead and he’d catch up with me.

I was able to catch a dragon dance circling the crowd before trying to squeeze my way in for the lion dances.

Chinese dragon dance, Lunar New Year in Seattle
Chinese dragon dance, Lunar New Year in Seattle
Chinese dragon dance, Lunar New Year in Seattle
Chinese dragon dance, Lunar New Year in Seattle

The crowd was tightly packed, but I caught a bit of the first round of lion dances as I slowly squeezed my way forward.

Hing Hay Park Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Hing Hay Park Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dances Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dances at Hing Hay Park

The performance was put on by a local martial arts troupe, who also put on a martial arts performance after the lion dances. There were people of all ages performing and it was pretty impressive.

Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration

This tough little guy was my favorite:

Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Martial arts performance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration

Paddy found me in the crowd during the martial arts performances, and we both had a better view finally for the next lion dance, which was pretty fantastic.

It takes two people to comprise the lion, one person to be the back legs and one to be the front legs and operate the head, which has blinking eyes and an opening and closing mouth. It was really amazing how much they could make the lion appear like an excited kitty cat dancing and prancing around. Most impressive was when the person in the back lifted the front person to make the lion rear up or stand up.

Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration
Lion Dance at Seattle Lunar New Year celebration

At the end of the dance the lion “drank wine” out of a large gold container and became drunk, staggering about. It was entertaining.

Once the lion dance was over we picked up a map from the information booth of the $3 food walk. The food walk is a chance to walk around the neighborhood and sample a small portion of a dish from quite a few participating restaurants. It is a great way to get to know the food in the area without committing to one particular restaurant or meal.  There was also a tear off “passport” section of our food walk map that we could get stamped and fill out to enter to win a trip from Delta Airlines at the end.

Seattle Lunar New Year Food Walk
Seattle Lunar New Year Food Walk

**Note: Everything is cash only for the food walk, and there are not a lot of ATMs in the International District. Bring cash, or you can find a couple ATMs near/in Uwajimaya shopping center or at the Bank of America on 6th and Jackson.

We looked at our map and decided to start with the dim sum sampler at Dim Sum King on Jackson Street. The line was long but moved quickly as a lady at a table collected money, another stamped food walk cards, and a third filled the table with dim sum samplers as fast as they were being taken.

We got a sampler with a custard bun, a coconut bun, and two pot stickers. The pot stickers were average, but the pastries were phenomenal. My favorite was the coconut bun, which had a buttery sweet coconut paste on the inside. The custard bun was creamy with a nice crust. We will be back to this place for sure.

lunar new year seattle Coconut bun and custard bun at Dim Sum King
Coconut bun and custard bun at Dim Sum King

Next stop was Asia Bar-B-Que on Jackson for some honey pork and Singapore noodles. The Singapore noodles were good but a little bland, but the honey pork was moist, tender, and flavorful. The two together were a great combo.

lunar new year seattle asia bbq
Asia BBQ on Jackson St
lunar new year seattle food walk
Singapore noodles and honey pork from Asia Bar-B-Que on Jackson Street

We didn’t want to limit ourselves to Chinese food on the food walk, so we walked a few blocks further east on Jackson Street to Than Vi to sample some Vietnamese cuisine. We sampled their fried chicken wings with Sriracha, which were really good and so fresh from the fryer that we had to wait a bit to eat them because they were so hot.

Near Than Vi we saw another lion dance going on on the side of the street, and in a parking lot a block up the hill on Jackson we could hear a massive amount of firecrackers going off for about ten solid minutes.

lion dances seattle lunar new year

lion dances seattle lunar new year
Lion dances on the street

It was about 1:00 PM and we were starting to lose steam, so we headed back to Uwajimaya to sample the Japanese Takoyaki at Tako Kyuuban Takoyaki. Takoyaki is one of my new favorite things. It is octopus in dough fried in special fryers that are full of round indents. The cook pours the takoyaki batter into the fryer, and then when the takoyakis are just about cooked on the bottom, they are transferred one by one to the other identical side of the fryer with picks and turned and shaped with the picks while cooking until they are delicious little fried balls of awesomeness. They are then taken out of the fryer and squirted with a couple kinds of sauces, smoked dried bonito fish, and dried seaweed. Here is a diagram from their website:

takoyaki
Image from http://takokyuuban.com/
seattle lunar new year takoyaki food walk
Cooking takoyaki
seattle lunar new year food walk
Takoyaki

We decided to do one more food walk sample before we headed home, and Paddy wanted to end with something sweet. In the same Uwajimaya food court as the takoyaki stand was UniCone Crepes, also participating in the $3 food walk with strawberry banana crepes. They were tasty.

We dropped our stamped food walk passport off at the info booth to enter the Delta Airlines contest, and called it a day. That evening we went to our friends’ annual Chinese New Year party complete with karaoke.

Seattle’s Lunar New Year celebration was a great day, and we can’t wait to go back to some of the restaurants and have some full meals. There is a lot of great authentic food in the International District and the Lunar New Year celebration is a perfect opportunity to sample it and learn a bit about Asian cultures.

Happy New year!

seattle lunar new year
Paddy the karaoke rockstar

 

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Winter Driving in Iceland

 Winter Driving in Iceland: Tips on how to navigate the roads without ending up being a search and rescue statistic, or ending up with an expensive rental car repair bill

 

Driving in Iceland in the winter can be scary for even the most seasoned winter driver. The main reason is Iceland’s furious and ferocious winds, which have been reported to blow rocks off of glaciers and cars right off of the roads. Rental cars come equipped with snow tires but very little insurance, and there are places in Iceland on the ring road with absolutely nothing around for miles.

We drove around the southern part of Iceland in March with very little snow driving experience, and made it out alive. Here is our advice:

1. Pay close attention to the road conditions and weather reports

The most invaluable website during our trip was http://www.vegagerdin.is/english/road-conditions-and-weather/, which we were checking several times a day. They keep the road conditions up to date and you must check to make sure your route is clear before venturing out, especially in the winter. You don’t want to end up a search-and-rescue tourist trapped in a snow storm. For an up to date weather report for the day, http://en.vedur.is/weather/forecasts/areas/ is the Icelandic weather site. If a storm is predicted in the area you are planning on driving to, check with locals to see if they think going there is a good idea. If not, you may need to change your plans. On the day we wanted to go up to see Gullfoss the snow and wind wouldn’t let up, so we played it safe and stayed in. After we got back to the US, we read a news story about 50 tourists that had to be search and rescued up there the very next day. We were glad we stayed at our cabin and had a lazy snow day instead.

winter driving in Iceland
Winter driving in Iceland: Wind can cause snow to blow into the road causing very low visibility

2. The insurance is pretty much useless, but get the sand and ash protection just in case

Winds in Iceland can be insanely strong. Right before we went we read news stories of cars being blown off the road by the wind and rocks being blown off cliffs into people’s car windows. These are extreme examples, but the winds are strong at times and will blow sand and volcanic ash at your car, causing damage to the paint. The sand and ash protection doesn’t cost that much extra, and could save you some money in the event that you run into these conditions.

3. Park on a flat surface overnight, and don’t set your parking brake

Our car rental company told us not to set the parking brake overnight, or it would freeze and break off, and we would have to pay for it.

4. Go slow and let cars pass you if you are not used to driving in the snow

It’s okay to be the slow asshole on the highway if you aren’t comfortable or sure about the road conditions. I’m sure we pissed a lot of locals off on our first day out on snow-covered roads, but they drove around us and we made it in one piece. It’s better to take it easy than to risk an accident due to overconfidence.

Winter driving in Iceland
Winter driving in Iceland

5. Never slam on the brakes for any reason

Slamming on your brakes on an icy road is the best way to have your car spin out of control. If you need to slow down, take your foot off of the gas and downshift (this is where a manual shift car is a plus), and gently tap the brake.

We were driving along a snowy road in the southern part of the ring road, and I stopped the car to get out and take a picture of the white, desolate landscape. When I stepped out of the car and my foot hit the road I almost fell right on my ass. I didn’t fully realize that we were driving on a solid sheet of ice. Take caution and make slow stops.

winter driving in Iceland
Southern ring road winter wonderland: winter driving in Iceland

6. If you start to slide, don’t jerk the steering wheel

Aside from slamming on the brakes, the worst thing you can do if you start to slide is over-correct and jerk the wheel. Slow down by down-shifting and taking your foot off the gas, and keep a tight grip on the wheel to keep it as steady as you can.

7. Hold onto the car doors when getting in and out of the car

Again, the winds are the most dangerous part of driving in Iceland. They are STRONG. Strong enough to blow the door right off of your car. When getting in and out of the car, hold the door TIGHT to keep it from blowing back open. If the door comes off, you have to pay for it. Even the insurance with a $1000 deductible won’t cover it. And everything is more expensive in Iceland.

8. Never attempt driving on the F Roads in winter

Iceland blocks the F Roads (in the highlands in the middle of the country) off in the winter time, but every now and then some idiot will think his four wheel drive SUV can make it. Locals report seeing tire tracks around the blockades all the time. These people end up putting the lives of volunteer search and rescue workers at stake when they get lost or stuck. Don’t be a dumbass, just stick to the ring road. There are plenty of amazing sights to see there.

9. Bring a credit card with a chip in it for the gas pumps

Bring a credit card or debit card with a chip in it, and know your PIN number. Gas pumps won’t take American credit cards without a chip. We traveled just before the chip came out in the US, and we had to only use gas stations where we could pay inside. Some wouldn’t let us and we had to find one that did. Fortunately, in 2015 banks in the US started to put out chip cards, so hopefully this won’t be a hassle for you like it was for us.

Also, remember to fill up the tank before you attempt long stretches of road in between towns.

 

Iceland is a beautiful country. Summer is the peak visiting time, and the hotel, airfare, and lodging prices double June through September. We went in March, which is still winter in Iceland, and it was amazing. We didn’t get to see some of the things we wanted to because of the weather, but we had a great time in winter wonderland. Driving in Iceland in the winter was intimidating, but the snow tires made a big difference and we were cautious and everything went fine. If you plan on driving in Iceland in the winter, make sure you keep up to date daily on the weather report (it can change on a dime) and stay put if there is a big storm. Wind is the most dangerous factor in winter driving in Iceland, especially on the south coast. Stay safe and have a great trip!

Glacier on the southern ring road, Iceland
Glacier on the southern ring road, Iceland

 

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What to Pack for a Trip to Iceland in the Winter

What to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter: Iceland has some crazy weather, and most of its attractions are outdoors. What we brought on our trip to Iceland in the winter, and what is essential to staying warm, dry, and comfortable.

 

When most people think of Iceland, they probably think of snow and Ice. Iceland does have snow and ice in the winter, and some pretty spectacular glaciers, but it is also mostly green. I did a lot of reading online and in guidebooks to figure out what to pack for a trip to Iceland in March, and I’m glad we did.

Iceland in the winter is actually not nearly as cold as you might think. It is cold, but not as cold as places like the American Midwest for example. We didn’t have to worry about having exposed skin or forty-below-zero temperatures.

Snow is a factor, but the two main things to worry about in Iceland are wind and precipitation–rain, snow, or hail. Wind is the unique factor in Iceland’s winter weather, and it can make snow, rain, or hail pretty dangerous. If you travel to Iceland in the winter, we strongly recommend keeping on top of the weather report daily on http://en.vedur.is/weather/forecasts/areas/ and the road conditions at http://www.road.is/, especially on the southern coastal roads. Checking in with the locals before venturing out is also recommended. The wind can cause blizzard like conditions with snow that is already on the ground, making it very difficult to see. It can also blow your car right off the road, or rip the door off of your rental car (which you will have to pay for–hold tight to those doors when getting in and out of your car).

We were in Iceland for a week in March 2014, and these are the things we brought with us that we were glad we had:

1. Waterproof hiking shoes

Sturdy, warm, waterproof hiking shoes are essential for a trip to Iceland at any time of the year. Cold, wet feet will ruin any vacation, and whether it rains, snows, or you are walking through moss covered in morning dew, you’ll need waterproof shoes.

what to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter
Waterproof shoes are essential for a trip to Iceland. At Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach

2. Down snow coats

It isn’t guaranteed to snow, but it will be cold in the winter, and our down coats with a water resistant snow layer and warm hoods were a daily necessity. Whatever kind of coat you get, make sure it is warm, water-resistant, and can stand up to harsh cold winds. Hoods are definitely recommended.

what to pack for a trip to Iceland
At Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon

3. Snow pants

We got snowed in when we stayed in our cabin in Hveragerdi, and we were glad we brought our snow pants. We stayed warm and dry while tromping through the shin-deep snow to the main farmhouse to check the weather report on their wi-fi, and we played in the snow and made a day of it. I wasn’t expecting a ton of snow when we packed and wasn’t sure if we’d need snow pants, but we were really glad we brought them.

what to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter
Playing in the snow at our cabin in Hveragerdi

4. Snow boots

Lace up waterproof  hiking shoes will only stay waterproof for so long when submerged in snow. It’s a good idea to bring some snow boots as well in case you end up tromping around in the snow.

what to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter
Southern ring road winter wonderland

5.  Rain coats

We had more snow than rain while we were there, but never go to Iceland without a rain coat any time of the year. Bring one loose enough to layer warm clothing under with a good hood that you can cinch up. You can spend a fortune on Gor-Tex rain gear if you want, but unless you are doing some major hiking, a decent raincoat from another reputable brand will be fine.

6. Rain pants

Sideways rain can happen at any time in Iceland. Bring rain pants, and keep them with you during excursions in case you need to throw them on over your regular pants in a hurry. Take them with you in the summer too. I found some really nice women’s rain pants at Eddie Bauer that were fitted and I could wear thin long johns underneath. I wore them most of the trip. I also had a pair of cheaper baggy rain pants I could put on over my other pants if I needed to.

7. Warm moisture-wicking hiking socks

If you plan on hiking, good moisture-wicking warm hiking socks are great. They are expensive, but you get what you pay for. Nice wool socks are good for regular days, and I got a little extra wear out of mine by putting regular socks underneath them.

8. Long underwear

I think long underwear is self explanatory. We brought some thin silk-style long underwear to wear under normal clothes, and one pair each of moisture-wicking long underwear for hiking. We didn’t do much hiking because of the weather while we were there, but if you do the moisture-wicking kind is a good purchase.

9. Leggings

I wore leggings a lot. I suppose this tip is for ladies…but they were great to pair with a sweater skirt or sweater dress or for lounging around the hotel/cabin/hostel when we were cozying up and watching the storm.

10. Nice sweaters and boots for going out

Iceland isn’t a place where you need really fancy clothes. Paddy brought a nice sweater and some nice black jeans for going out to dinner, and it seemed that the locals dressed similarly. Don’t bother with the suit and tie or swanky dress. I just wore a sweater skirt, leggings, nice black boots, and a nice sweater when we went out to dinner and felt right at home.

what to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter
A nice sweater is all you need to wear out to dinner.

11. Winter hats and gloves

Winter hats and gloves are pretty much common sense. You may want to take a pair of thin gloves and a pair of waterproof snow gloves. Paddy also got a fleece head wrap that covered all but his eyes, and he said it really helped on windy days.

what to pack for a trip to iceland in the winter
Paddy with his fleece head wrap, trying to stay warm at Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon

12. Bathing suits

Bathing suits? In winter? Of course. Iceland has some of the best hot springs in the world and Icelanders LOVE swimming and soaking in pools and hot springs all year round. Many of the pools are heated and outdoors in the towns, and are used in the winter as well as summer. And don’t forget the Blue Lagoon–it’s touristy but definitely a must-see attraction.

Blue Lagoon
Blue Lagoon

13. Cold medicine

We brought some Alka-Selzter cold and flu packets, Emergen-C, and Nyquil with us just in case, and was glad we did. I got a mild case of the sniffles. It went on for two days, and then I took a shot of Brennivin and went to bed. The next day my cold disappeared. True story.

Brennivin Iceland cure for a cold
A shot of Brennivin–cure for the common cold?

14. A detailed road map

Always travel with a map while driving around Iceland. We borrowed a really detailed one of the south west part of the country from a friend of ours who has been to Iceland multiple times. I think you can buy them in most Icelandic gas stations. Take a guidebook with you that has maps at minimum. Stay off the “F Roads” in the highlands, they are not open for driving in the winter.

what to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter
A good road map is essential.

15. Box wine

This one is optional (obviously), but wine and booze in Iceland is pretty expensive and has a high sales tax rate. We packed some decent box wine in our checked luggage and it lasted us most of the trip. A large box is usually about 4 bottles worth. Icelandic customs allow up to 3 litres of wine into the country without tax, but no one checked. Icelandic customs import regulations can be found here for spirits and cigarettes. If you want to take some Brennivin or other Icelandic spirits home, wait to buy it at the duty free store at the airport after you get through security–it is much cheaper without the hefty tax.

what to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter
Drinking our box wine while snowed in at our cabin in Hveragerdi

16. Good books

Bring some good books for cozying up in the evenings or if you get snowed in somewhere. I was sure glad to have a good book with me for our snow day in Hveragerdi. It was nice to read in the cabin and watch the snow fall outside for a day.

what to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter
Bring books.

That concludes our suggestions for what to pack for a trip to Iceland in the winter. Stay warm, be safe, and keep checking the weather report if you are traveling around the country. It’s a beautiful place to visit. Read more about our trip to Iceland here.

 

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases from product links on this site.

Culinary Adventures: Oyster Stew

Our favorite oyster stew recipe: Alex Hitz’s Oyster Stew is a great fall or winter warmer.

 

I came across this oyster stew recipe in House Beautiful Magazine (I think it was one of the ones floating around my Mom’s living room) and tore it out and took it home. We loved it so much we shared it in a cook book of our favorite recipes last year for family (Mom got the recipe back, with style). It really brings out the oyster flavor. The original recipe (found here) calls for 1/4  cup bourbon, which was good but we like to use beer instead. Your call.

Alex Hitz’s Oyster Stew

Ingredients:

Serves 6 to 8

3 tablespoons salted butter

2 bunches green onions, thinly sliced, including both green and white parts

2 small cloves garlic, minced

2 cups milk

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 can of light beer 

1 cup very rich chicken stock

1¾ teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon white pepper

2 pints fresh raw medium oysters, plus 1½ cups of their drained liquor

Directions:

1. In a medium-size stockpot over medium heat, melt the butter. When the foaming has subsided, add the onions and garlic and sauté for three to four minutes until they begin to be translucent.

2. Add the milk, cream, beer, chicken stock, salt, white pepper, and oyster liquor. Bring this mixture to a boil for 10 minutes.

3. Remove the pot from the heat and add the oysters. They should “steep” in the hot stock for about three minutes, until they are heated through fully and just begin to curl at the edges. Do not overcook them. Serve immediately.



Oyster Stew
Oyster Stew with Caesar salad and cheddar biscuits warmed us up after a fall beach day in Grayland, WA


We have added some smoked oysters to this oyster stew recipe along with the regular ones on our trip to Grayland, WA, and it turned out really good. We like it both ways. Serve with warm crusty bread or biscuits.

 

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases from product links on this site.

Iceland 2015: Reykjavik & the South Coast

childfreelifeadventures.com

Our trip to Iceland in March 2015: Reykjavik, Vik, The Blue Lagoon, Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon, and the south coast

We’ve always been a little curious about Iceland. My friend Daniel has been obsessed with the country for years and has been there three times, bringing back stories about gorgeous waterfalls, giant glaciers, copious amounts of hot springs, locals who believe in elves, and the crazy Reykjavik nightlife. When I discovered that we could get there on a direct flight from Seattle with Icelandair that was only 7.5 hours long, we decided it would be a great option for a quick one week trip in March 2015.

Iceland is often referred to as “the land of the midnight sun.” Much like parts of Alaska, the sun only goes down for about an hour or two around June, and only comes up for an hour or two in December. Summer is the peak tourist season in Iceland, as that is when the weather is best and the days are long. It never really gets that warm in Iceland (summers around 50-60 degrees farhenheit), but the landscape is beautiful and the hot springs are plentiful. Iceland is also referred to as “the land of fire and ice,” due to the on-going volcanic activity over the whole island, in addition to massive glaciers. Erupting volcanoes, geysers, hot springs, lava fields, and black sand beaches can be found right along side snow and ice.

Iceland is an expensive country. In summer time (June through September 15), the prices on hotels, airfare, and rental cars double throughout the country. We opted to go in March, when daylight is good (sun rise around 8:00 AM and sunset around 7:00 PM), prices are lower, and the weather is still wintry. We got plane tickets for $622.00 per person round trip, which is super low for an international vacation.

We expected a little snow, lots of rain, and wind. What we didn’t expect was a LOT of snow, and a LOT of wind. Reading the weather reports and news in Iceland in the four weeks prior to our trip, we began to get really nervous about the weather and road conditions. The winter of 2014-2015 was one of the worst winters Iceland has had in years, with stories of cars being blown off the road by wind, wind blowing snow and rocks through the windshields of 10 separate tourists driving near Skaftafell National Park, and all kinds of search-and-rescue stories of tourists getting stuck somewhere in blizzard conditions.

Unfortunately, a lot of tourists get stuck places in Iceland in the winter while underestimating mother nature–much to the chagrin of the locals. Search and rescue teams are comprised of volunteers, and they risk their lives to help stranded tourists. If you decide to go to Iceland in the winter, pay close attention to the weather report and the road conditions before venturing out. The weather can change on a dime. Ask locals if your travel plans are a good idea that day before venturing out, and heed their advice. Try and keep your plans flexible, as you may end up stuck somewhere. Plan your last couple nights close to the airport or in Reykjavik so that  you have a little cushion of time in case you get stuck somewhere.

A note about clothing:

Most of Iceland’s attractions are outdoors, and no matter what time of year you go, waterproof is key. Sideways rain can happen at any moment. Make sure to bring rain pants, waterproof hiking boots, a rain coat, and lots of layers. In the winter, a down coat with a warm hood and snow pants are a good idea. We wore down coats and waterproof pants with long johns most of the time on this trip, and wore nice sweaters when we went out to eat in nicer restaurants.

Reykjavik:

Day 1:

We arrived in Iceland at 6:45 in the morning in a windstorm that made the plane swerve back and forth when landing on the runway. I had pre-arranged a Grayline bus to Reykjavik through Kex Hostel, which was very easy– they just told us they would add it to our room bill when we arrived, and emailed me a voucher for the bus. It was $15 per person one way, and took us right to the front door of the hostel.

After a 45 minute drive, fighting sleep while watching the sky lighten over the lava fields and listening to a group of American college frat boys talk about all the “clubbing” they were going to do in Reykjavik, we arrived at Kex Hostel.

Stepping out of the bus onto compact snow that was now essentially a big wavy sheet of ice, we collected our bags, “skated” carefully across the slippery sidewalk, and hauled them up the two flights of stairs to reception.

Kex Hostel
Kex Hostel
Kex Hostel front desk
Kex Hostel front desk

Kex Hostel is the quintessential hipster hostel of Reykjavik. It is probably the nicest hostel I’ve ever been to, however I can’t vouch for the dorm rooms–we reserved a private room. Because of our early morning arrival, I had booked the previous night as well so that we could check in right when we arrived (unlike the frat boys, who were trying to figure out how to keep their energy up until 2:00 PM when they could check in to their dorm). It was well worth it, we were dog tired and got no sleep on the plane.

Check in was easy, we pre-paid at the front desk and were given a key to our room on the third floor. It was a corner room at the end of the hall, and after seeing the photos of tiny private rooms on tripadvisor, I’m pretty sure we got the best one. It was huge, with an ocean view, large private bathroom with a tub, and a sitting area with antique furniture.

Kex Hostel Reykjavik
Our private room at Kex Hostel
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland 033
Our private room at Kex Hostel
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Our private room at Kex Hostel
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Our private room at Kex Hostel
Our private room at Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Our private room at Kex Hostel
view from Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
View from our room
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
view from our room

Don’t let the word “hostel” fool you, private rooms at Kex are not cheap like most hostels. Our room was about $150.00/night, just like a mid-range hotel room. In the summertime, the rate sky-rockets up to $350.00/night along with most hotels in Iceland. This is one of the biggest reasons we chose to travel in the winter.

**Money-saving tip: If you want to see Iceland in the summertime and are on a tight budget, consider bringing camping gear for the many campgrounds throughout the country, or at least a sleeping bag and a towel–many hostel or cabin accommodations charge less if you have your own sleeping bag vs them providing bedding and towels.

Our room included breakfast, and since we paid for the previous night we were welcome to eat at the breakfast when we checked in. The breakfast spread was typical of Icelandic hotels/hostels, but was probably the highest quality that we encountered. Included were several types of fresh baked bread, crackers, skyr (Icelandic yogurt, which is super creamy like Greek yogurt), muesli, tuna salad, deli meats, cheese, liver pate, tomatoes, cucumbers, little jars of fresh fruit, hard boiled eggs, juice, tea, and coffee.

Breakfast buffet at Kex Hostel
Breakfast buffet at Kex Hostel
Breakfast buffet at Kex Hostel
Breakfast buffet at Kex Hostel
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Outdoor patio at Kex Hostel–I’m sure this is very nice in the summer

**Money-saving tip: We found the Icelandic breakfast buffets to be so hearty that we were able to eat enough to last us all the way until dinner. We didn’t really eat lunch the whole trip.

After breakfast, we headed up to the room and crashed for most of the day. We finally got up around 3:30 to head out and explore. Normally we wouldn’t sleep so long in an effort to regulate our schedules and combat jet lag, but we had heard that Icelandic weekend nightlife doesn’t get good until around midnight, so we figured we might as well be up late that night.

First we explored the rest of Kex Hostel and had lunch at the bar downstairs.

Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Our room number–best room!
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Hallway with lighted pinball machine style room numbers

Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland

Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Third floor lounge area
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
“Classroom” on the third floor near the private rooms.
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
“Classroom” on the third floor near the private rooms.
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
“Classroom” on the third floor near the private rooms.
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Community kitchen on third floor for self-catering
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Random old-timey barber chair near reception
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Reception/bar area with a giant magnetic poetry wall
Kex Hostel Reykjavik Iceland
Part of the bar/ guest lounge area.

We were hungry, and I’d read great reviews on the Kex Hostel restaurant, so we decided to check it out. We found a table by the window (made from an old sewing machine table). It didn’t look like there was table service, so we ordered at the bar. I had the baked goat cheese and pickled onions on grilled bread with a side of the sweet carrots, and Paddy had the grilled chorizo. Both were about $18 each, which is actually a pretty good price for Iceland.

Kex Hostel Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland
Matsebill (menu) at Kex Hostel bar
Kex Hostel Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland
Kex Hostel Bar
Kex Hostel Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland
Kex Hostel kitchen

 

Grilled chorizo and mashed potatoes at Kex Hostel
Grilled chorizo and mashed potatoes at Kex Hostel
Baked goat cheese on grilled bread at Kex Hostel with a side of sweet carrots
Baked goat cheese on grilled bread at Kex Hostel with a side of sweet carrots

We were impressed with the quality of the food. There seemed to be quite a few locals at the bar as well, and I had read that the good food and good prices bring a lot of locals to the hostel. Several tables in the bar area had reserved signs on them. Overall, the prices are good (compared to other restaurants in Reykjavik) and I would recommend coming here for a meal even if you aren’t planning on staying here.

**Money saving tip: Tipping isn’t part of the culture in Iceland, so while the restaurant prices are expensive, you don’t have to factor in a gratuity at the end. Restaurant servers are paid a decent living wage, but if the service was really excellent, it isn’t rude to leave something if you feel like it.

After we ate, it was around 4:00 PM, and we had about three more hours of daylight left. We ventured out to walk around the city and take stock of our surroundings. We headed a couple blocks up to Laugavegur Street, the main shopping street in Reykjavik.

We found the “Bad Taste Record Store:”

Bad Taste Record Store Reykjavik
Bad Taste Record Store Reykjavik

The Chuck Norris Grill:

Chuck Norris Grill Reykjavik
Chuck Norris Grill

Instructions on how to tie a tie:

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And some interesting grafitti:

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Reykjavik Iceland 048

After exploring some of the little shops (most of the ones that stay open later are souvenir stores), we reached the city center and were getting a bit cold and ready for a break. We stopped into the Laundromat Cafe for some hot tea and beer. It was a funky little spot with a laundromat in the basement, lots of book shelves around the bar, maps on the walls, and a good looking menu. We weren’t hungry yet but we enjoyed the atmosphere and friendly service.

Laundromat Cafe Reykjavik Iceland (6)
Laundromat Cafe

We continued walking around a bit more and eventually got hungry for dinner. It was around 9:00 PM and most restaurants seemed to be either packed or touristy. We were also making a solid attempt to avoid tourist restaurants with whale and puffin on the menu, two animals that are close to being on the endangered species list. While whale was a traditional food in old Icelandic times, it is no longer sustainable or necessary to eat. The really sad thing is that most Icelanders don’t eat whale, a good 60% of the whale eaten in Iceland is consumed by tourists. With tourism exploding in Iceland in the past few years and only continuing to grow, it is worrysome to think of what this could mean for whales.

Fortunately there is a growing local movement against whaling in Iceland, IceWhale.is which discourages consumption of whale meat in Iceland and promotes environmentally friendly ways of enjoying the whales of Iceland with their slogan “Meet us don’t eat us!”. Their website also provides a list of whale-friendly restaurants.

http://icewhale.is
http://icewhale.is

We eventually stumbled into a Scandinavian restaurant (Called “Scandinavian,” fittingly enough) that had been packed all evening and was now starting to thin out. We were in the mood for local food, so we ordered some Icelandic beers and the marinated salmon with mustard sauce appetizer. We weren’t super hungry, so we had soup for our entrees, which was delicious. Paddy had the Icelandic lamb soup special of the day, and I had the lobster soup. The lobster soup was very tasty, although very rich. I couldn’t quite finish all of it and I’m probably better off not knowing exactly how much butter and heavy cream I consumed.

Scandinavian restaurant Reykjavik
Scandinavian restaurant Reykjavik
Lamb soup Scandinavian restaurant Reykjavik
Icelandic lamb soup
Lobster soup Scandinavian restaurant Reykjavik Iceland
Lobster soup
Freya beer Iceland
Freya beer

 

**Money saving tip: Icelanders make great soup, and just about every sit-down style restaurant has it. It usually comes with fresh bread and makes a great inexpensive meal.

After dinner we were ready to check out the nightlife. I’d read up on a few places and received a few suggestions from my friend Daniel, who has been to Iceland three times. Our first stop was a new bar I’d read about, Bar Ananas. I’m a sucker for theme bars, and this one had a tropical theme (ananas means pineapple in Icelandic). We walked in to what appeared to be someone’s birthday or bachelorette party, as it was filled with women and balloons. It didn’t appear to have any cocktail menus with specialty tropical cocktails, and the bar was completely blocked by gabbing ladies. We moved on.

Our second stop was the Lebowski Bar, which is a bar with a theme dedicated entirely to the movie The Big Lebowski. It was packed, but we found a couple of bar stools at the end next to a local guy at the bar by himself. On the cocktail menu were 13 different kinds of white Russians, but after all the cream I had just eaten in the lobster soup, I opted for a cosmo. It was weak and expensive.

http://lebowski.is/En/white-russian-menu.html
http://lebowski.is/En/white-russian-menu.html

We made conversation with the local guy who was kind enough to move over for us to sit together for a little while, until two staff members showed up and told us they had to take away our bar stools because it was “turning into a pub.” Deciding that it wasn’t really our scene, we finished our drinks and moved on. We thought we might try coming back the next day before it got busy.

Paddy wanted to go to a rock bar, so we walked up to the next block and went to Dillon Whiskey Bar, which I’d read is a good place to see live bands. There was a live local rock band playing in the upstairs bar, and it being around midnight I figured we were arriving right when things were getting going. Unfortunately, the show ended shortly after we arrived and no one came on after that. The songs we did see were good, and the bar cleared out a bit afterward and we were able to have a table. The atmosphere was nice and much more our style, and the bartenders filled my wine glass almost to the brim each time.

Dillon Whiskey Bar Reykjavik Iceland
Live music at Dillon
Dillon Whiskey Bar Reykjavik Iceland
Dillon

Dillon Whiskey Bar Reykjavik Iceland

We stayed out until around 1:30 AM, and then figured we should probably get to bed so that we could start getting on some sort of a more normal schedule. We thought that Kex Hostel bar would be busy at that hour, but there was just a couple people at the bar talking to the bartender by candlelight. I think the “party gets going at midnight” rule applies mostly to dance clubs and bars like the Lebowski.

 

Day 2:

 

The next morning we ate breakfast at the Hostel and headed out to the Icelandic Phallological Museum. Yes, it’s a penis museum.

Penis Museum Reykjavik Iceland

The penis museum was founded by local historian and teacher Sigurður Hjartarson. His fellow teachers who worked summers in the whaling industry used to bring him whale penises as a joke. Eventually he began preserving and collecting penises of other mammalian species, and in 2011 he opened the museum. His collection includes 282 penises from 93 different species of mammals, including a human donation. Sigurður Hjartarson maintains that no animals are killed for the sole purpose of collecting a penis.

Penis Museum Reykjavik Iceland
Icelandic Phallological Museum
Penis Museum Reykjavik Iceland
Sperm whale penis

While we were looking at the exhibit, I overheard a little British boy ask his mother, “Mummy, why are we at a pee-pee museum?” I didn’t hear her answer.

There is a recent documentary called “The Final Member”  that came out about Sigurður Hjartarson’s quest to obtain a human speciman for the museum, that waffles between hilarious and a little disturbing. We would highly recommend it. Trailer below:

**Note: Just about everywhere in Iceland takes credit cards, except this museum. Be sure to stop by the cash machine to withdraw some kroner before visiting. Admission is 1250 kr, or around $9.50.

After the penis museum we continued down towards Reykjavik’s main harbor to the Kolaportið Flea Market. I’d read that this market is a great place to look for an authentic used or new Icelandic sweater (lopapeysa). The flea market had all kinds of booths selling everything from antiques and trinkets to rock t-shirts and funky sunglasses. There was also a large grocery section of Asian food imports, and a little cafe area selling open-faced sandwiches and other snacks.

Kolaportid Flea Market Reykjavik Iceland
Kolaportið Flea Market

There were many booths selling sweaters, and some were used. I didn’t find any that I thought I would really wear that much though to justify the $80-$200 price tag. The wool is thick, and I think that it would be too hot for Seattle weather except for the one or two weeks every December where we have a big freeze and the weather drops into the 20’s. If you are looking for a good price on a lopapeysa, however, this is the best place to look. The market is only open on weekends.

Another great place to shop for an authentic hand-knit lopapeysa is the Hand Knitting Association of Iceland, which also has a shop in Reykjavik.

We wandered around the city a bit more, finding lots more interesting and detailed graffiti:

Reykjavik Iceland graffiti

Reykjavik Iceland graffiti

Reykjavik Iceland graffiti

Iceland 077

Reykjavik Iceland graffiti

Reykjavik Iceland graffiti

Reykjavik Iceland graffiti

Reykjavik Iceland graffiti

Reykjavik harbor Iceland
Reykjavik harbor

We were starting to get a little cold and tired so we stopped into Te og Kaffi for some tea and coffee, just off the main square.

After warming up, we headed back up Laugavegur street to do some souvenir shopping, with a quick side detour to take a quick peak at Reykjavik’s iconic church, Hallgrimskirkja. The winds were picking up, and it was getting pretty cold.

Hallgrimskirkja Reykjavik Iceland
Paddy freezing in front of Hallgrimskirkja
Hallgrimskirkja Reykjavik Iceland
Hallgrimskirkja

Reykjavik Iceland

Reykjavik Iceland

Reykjavik Iceland

Laugavegur street Reykjavik Iceland
Laugavegur street

We finished our souvenir shopping and went back to the room for a nap.

For dinner that evening, we had made reservations far in advance for Dill, which is arguably the best upscale dining restaurant in Iceland. Chef Gunnar Karl Gíslason takes Nordic cuisine to new and innovative levels, using local ingredients–much along the lines of the world-renowned restaurant Noma in Denmark.

Dill Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland

Dill Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland

Dill Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland

We may not ever be able to afford Noma ($300 per person for a seven course meal), but we were able to make room in our budget for Dill (much more reasonable at just under $100 per person for a seven course meal). Don’t get me wrong, it was really expensive, but worth it. In this culinary realm, food begins to cross from sustenance to art, bringing new flavors and textures and ideas to the dining experience that have not been done before.

Wine pairings with all seven courses were also offered at an additional $100 per person, but we stuck with one glass of champagne and one glass of red wine each. Our bill at the end was $250, which was slightly less than we had budgeted.

The meal came with four small amuse bouche starters and house-made sourdough rolls. I don’t eat lamb, so I was going to do a 5 course meal instead but the server said that the chef could make something different for me instead of the lamb tartare course, so I went ahead and did the 7 course meal as well. The chef did a scallop tartare dish for me which was very good and extremely nice of the chef to make a subsitution.

Dill Menu
Dill Menu
Dill Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland
Pork belly course with kale and black garlic
Dill Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland
Rutabaga course with cream cheese, sweet and sour dill oil, and toasted millet
Dill Restaurant Reykjavik Iceland
Icelandic Skyr with celery sorbet and roasted oats

Each course was small and complex,  and dinner took two hours total. We left full and happy, and the experience was worth every penny.

Afterwards we walked up to the Lebowski Bar to try one of their White Russians and get a look at the place before it got crowded. It wasn’t that crowded yet, but when we approached the empty tables, there were reserved signs on all of them. As much as I love the theme bar idea, it wasn’t really our crowd so we decided to move on to Dillon. That night they had a local Icelandic folk singer singing traditional Irish and Gaelic songs. The singer was pretty good, and the whole upstairs bar was singing along after awhile.

The downstairs bar was full of rowdy drunk Brits with neon glow stick raver glasses singing along to Oasis songs on the jukebox. We stayed upstairs.

My friend Daniel had suggested his favorite club Dolly (named after Dolly Parton–Dolly also has a sister bar in Copenhagen called Jolene), which we were curious about but it was in the opposite direction of our hostel, and we were enjoying the live music at Dillon. Maybe another time.

It started snowing quite a bit, and we walked back to the hostel around 1:00 AM in the falling snow, stopping for a couple quick tipsy photo-ops

Reykjavik Iceland

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Reykjavik Iceland graffiti

 

Snowed-in in Hveragerði

 

Day 3:

The next morning we checked out of Kex, and went outside to meet Blue Car Rental, which we had arrange to pick us up at the hostel. We thought they would be picking us up and taking us to their downtown location where we would go over a whole bunch of forms, have copies made of our passports and drivers licenses, given directions and be on our way in the Kia Ceed that we reserved online. Instead, we were met by a man with our car, who had me sign one form in the entryway of Kex, asked to take a look at my driver’s license, gave us a couple pointers about the car (don’t use the parking break at night because it could freeze and snap off and hold onto the doors so the wind doesn’t blow the doors off), and sent us on our way.

Things to know about renting a car in Iceland:

There are tons of threads on Tripadvisor about renting a car in Iceland, many of them filled with horror stories of being charged hundreds or even over a thousand dollars for dings, dents, etc. After reading through many of them, I determined that the big name car rental companies had the most horror stories, and Blue Car Rental had the least horror stories, so we went with them. In general, here is what you need to know:

1. The insurance barely covers anything.

If you damage the car in any way, there is a high deductible that you have to pay. This includes small dents. Blue Car Rental’s deductible was $1,100.00. If the windshield is cracked and needs to be replaced, you pay $100.00. If the chassis/underside of the car is damaged due to off-roading or driving too fast on rough bumpy roads, you are responsible for the whole amount of the damage. If the strong winds blow the doors off the car (it happens), you will be responsible for the damage as well.

2. You must pre-pay with most companies.

Reserving a car online was very easy, and I asked a couple questions via email to Blue Car before reserving, and they were very responsive and helpful. However–you have to pre-pay, and if you cancel your trip last minute, you might not get all your money back. (Your might consider travel insurance for emergency cancellations on your trip).

3. Rental rates double in the summer.

Consider going in the spring, or after September 15th to get the best rates. Like hotel rates, everything is double the price in the peak summer season.

4. Get the sand and ash protection.

Winds in Iceland can be insanely strong. Right before we went we read news stories of cars being blown off the road by the wind and rocks being blown off cliffs into people’s car windows. These are extreme examples, but the winds are strong at times and will blow sand and volcanic ash at your car, causing damage to the paint. The sand and ash protection doesn’t cost that much extra, and could save you some money in the event that you run into these conditions.

5. In the winter, pay close attention to the road conditions and weather reports.

The most invaluable website during our trip was http://www.vegagerdin.is/english/road-conditions-and-weather/, which we were checking several times a day. They keep the road conditions up to date and you must check to make sure your route is clear before venturing out, especially in the winter. You don’t want to end up a search-and-rescue tourist trapped in a snow storm. For an up to date weather report for the day, http://en.vedur.is/weather/forecasts/areas/ is the Icelandic weather site. If a storm is predicted in the area you are planning on driving to, check with locals to see if they think going there is a good idea. If not, you may need to change your plans.

6. American credit cards and debit cards don’t work on Icelandic gas pumps.

Hopefully this will change in 2015, but as of now the American banks and credit unions have not gone to the “chip and PIN” card model that has been used in Europe for years. Most bars, restaurants, and shops have card machines that can process the old-style magnetic strip that American credit cards have, but gas pumps don’t. We were able to get around this by pre-paying the gas station attendant, either by having them open the pump or put a pre-paid amount on the pump, or the N1 stations could provide a pre-paid gas card that could be used at the pump. If you are going out into no-man’s land, make sure you fill up your tank first. You may also want to buy a pre-paid gas card at the N1 to use at any N1 stations that might not have an attendant. Worst case scenario, have some cash on hand for emergencies–you might have to wait for someone with a card to come along that you could ask to buy the gas for you in exchange for cash.

Here is a video about driving in Iceland that I found on Icelandair’s video selection on the plane. It was corny, but pretty helpful.

With all the snow and quickly changing road conditions, you can imagine that we were nervous. Our car was equipped with snow tires, and I’d had a small amount of experience driving in snow before. The weather was pretty clear when we left Reykjavik, and we took it slow. Hveragerdi is about 40 minutes from Reykjavik on the main highway 1 (Ring Road) and it didn’t take us that long to get there. Our original plan was to drive the Golden Circle, and then head to Hveragerdi for the evening, but with all the snow we were just concerned with getting there in one piece.

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Highway 1 to Hveragerdi

There is a small mountain pass that you go through just before Hveragerdi, and then descend down into the town on a windy road. It wasn’t so bad, but we were glad to make it through without high winds and blowing snow.

I’d reserved our cabin through Icelandic Farm Holidays, and it was relatively easy to find, just outside of town. The icy winds were picking up when we arrived, and our cabin wasn’t quite ready yet. We drove into town and had some coffee and pastries at the little bakery, and checked out the grocery store and souvenir stores in the town’s main shopping center.

The main attraction in Hveragerdi is the natural volcanic hot springs in the area. Many of Iceland’s fruits and vegetables are grown geothermal greenhouses in the town. Our original plan was to hike to the hot river in Reykjadalur valley just outside of town, but the snow put the kabash on that plan.

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Nupar farm, Hveragerdi

Finally, we were able to check into our cabin. It was adorable, and reminded me a little of my Danish host family’s ski cabin in Norway.

Iceland-Hveragerdi-cabin
Paddy outside our little cabin in the snow
Iceland-Hveragerdi-cabin-Nupar
Cabin interior

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Iceland 135

Iceland 136

Iceland 139

 

We got settled in as the winds were starting to pick up. We relaxed for awhile, and then when the wind and snow died down a bit, we took stock of the kitchen equipment and went back into town for groceries for the next couple of days.

The grocery store prices were surprisingly good, pretty much like the prices at any US grocery store. My Danish language knowledge helped me decipher some of the Icelandic items in the store, I was surprised at how many food words were very close to Danish. We were unable to find any fish that was not frozen, and the vegetable selection was small. We did find some very tasty salmon and tuna salads, and some really good cheese. We bought a fresh loaf of bread from the little bakery where we had coffee earlier, and it was delicious.

We had a cozy afternoon and evening reading books. Unable to thaw our fish until the next day, we had salad and a mediocre frozen pizza for dinner. We found the cabin to be stocked with tea lights, which made it very cozy.

**Money saving tip: If you like to drink wine or hard alcohol, bring it with you in your checked baggage. Wine and booze in Iceland are very expensive, and have a high tax. Icelandair allows each person two free checked bags, and you can bring four litres of wine or two litres of wine and one litre of spirits per person into the country. We packed box wine and it lasted us the week and saved us a ton of money.

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Iceland 148

Iceland 149

 

 

Day 4: 

We were really hoping the weather would get better the next day, so we could go back and do the Golden Circle drive to see Gullfoss, Geysir, and Thingvellir National Park. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t stop snowing. We didn’t want to risk getting stuck in a blizzard, and the road conditions weren’t looking very good. While it was disappointing to not be able to see the Golden Circle, we made the best of it with a relaxing snow day reading books and soaking in the hot tub.

We were glad we played it safe, because when we got home I saw this article about 500 tourists getting stuck on the Golden Circle road, which happened the next day.

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The hot tub was heated by a natural hot spring. The wind wasn’t too bad so we enjoyed relaxing with some drinks and watching the snow fall.

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That night Paddy cooked a yummy Scandinavian-style salmon dinner with hollandaise sauce, potatoes, and sauteed leeks, zucchini, and mushrooms.

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Iceland 167

 

Heading east to Vik

 

Day 5:

The weather report told us that the morning would be pretty clear and mild, but that a storm was moving in that afternoon. We got on the road as early as we could, headed east on Highway 1 to the coastal town of Vik. The drive wasn’t too bad in the beginning, and we stopped at two of Iceland’s iconic waterfalls.

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Seljalandsfoss: 

Seljandsfoss waterfall is just a very short drive off the main highway 1, and there are signs for it. In warmer weather, you can actually walk behind it which is pretty awesome. It was icy and cold when we visited, so we didn’t attempt the walk behind it. There was also a fair amount of icy spray from the falls so we didn’t get super close. This waterfall is definitely worth a stop.

Iceland-Seljalandsfoss
Seljalandsfoss
Iceland-Seljalandsfoss-2
Seljalandsfoss
Iceland-Seljalandsfoss-3
Seljalandsfoss

 

Skógafoss:

Just a short ways down the road from Seljandsfoss is Skogafoss, which you can actually see from the highway. This 200 foot, 25 meter-wide waterfall is one of Iceland’s biggest and most impressive. There are bathrooms at the falls, as well as a little restaurant if you’re hungry. We had packed sandwiches and ate them in the car to save money and use up our groceries.

Iceland-skogafoss
Skogafoss
Iceland-Skogafoss-1
Skogafoss
Iceland-Skogafoss-2
Skogafoss

 

We didn’t have far to go to Vik, but the black storm clouds on the horizon warned us that we had better hurry it up. It started getting a little dicey right before we descended into the town, but we made it. The winds were picking up and the powdery snow was blowing across the road, making it difficult to see.

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Menacing black storm clouds closing in
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Farmer herding his horses in as the storm approaches

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Snow blowing in the wind
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Nothing but white
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Snow blowing on the road

We finally reached Vik, very relieved to have made it just as the storm began raging.

Heading into Vik
Heading into Vik
Vik
Vik
Iceland-Vik
Little church in Vik

We were staying at the brand new Icelandair Hotel in Vik, which had just opened in June 2014. At $175 a night, it was one of our most expensive accommodations on the trip, but very comfortable and modern. In the summer, forget it–the rates shoot up to $300/night. Way out of our budget.

Icelandair-Hotel-Vik
Icelandair Hotel Vik
Icelandair-hotel-vik
Icelandair Hotel lobby
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Icelandair Hotel lobby bar
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Ocean view room, Icelandair Hotel Vik
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Icelandair Hotel Vik
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Icelandair Hotel Vik
Icelandair-hotel-vik-4
View from the huge windows in our room

We checked into our room, happy to be out of the weather. I had woken up with a sore throat that morning and it became apparent by afternoon that I was coming down with a mild cold. We decided to relax in the room the rest of the afternoon and watch the stormy sea from our huge floor-to-ceiling glass windows in the room. I was glad that I had packed some cold medicine and vitamins just in case.

For dinner that evening, we asked the receptionist what our restaurant options were in town. The town is tiny and there aren’t a lot of choices. She talked up the Icelandair Hotel restaurant on site, and then mumbled disdainfully about “the grill across the street,” and “another place up the road and to the left.” I suppose it’s her job to steer us to the hotel restaurant.

Berg Restaurant at the hotel was very expensive, and looked a little overpriced. The grill across the street was a very affordable option, attached to the gas station, but we also weren’t in the mood for fried food. I consulted Tripadvisor and  decided to check out Halldorskaffi up the street.

The main street in Vik is Vikurbraut, which has a small grocery store, post office and liquor store (you do need to buy beer and wine at the liquor store, which closes at 6:00 PM), and two restaurants–HalldorsKaffi and the Lundi Restaurant in the Puffin Hostel.

Iceland-Vik
Vikurbraut St. in Vik
Iceland-Vik-1
View of church in Vik from Vikurbraut St
Iceland-Vik-Halldorskaffi
Halldorskaffi Restaurant

Halldorskaffi Restaurant Doesn’t have a sign, we recognized it from the photo someone posted on Tripadvisor. After looking at all the options, I will say that it is the best restaurant option in Vik.

Service was very friendly. The best deal they have is their daily soup special, which is a self-serve all-you-can eat soup station with homemade bread. I had the soup of the day (cauliflower) and it was delicious. I also ordered the smoked salmon appetizer and it was also very good. Paddy had a burger and fries. They serve full entree dinners (mostly fish and lamb), pizzas, burgers, salads, and sandwiches. The prices were very reasonable.

Iceland-Halldorskaffi
Halldorskaffi
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All you can eat soup at Halldorskaffi
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Lox (smoked salmon) appetizer and burger at Halldorskaffi
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Delicious homemade cakes and pies at Halldorskaffi

There isn’t any nightlife in Vik, and I wasn’t feeling so hot because of my cold so we spent the rest of the evening in the hotel room reading and listening to the storm.

We were super excited to find out from the front desk lady that the storm was supposed to pass overnight, and that we could actually expect some sun the next day.

 

Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon and the Southern Ring Road

 

Day 6:

Much of the snow had melted off the road overnight, and the weather forecast was actually good for the day. We got up early, ate some yogurt, bread, and leftover tuna salad for breakfast (we just used the car as our refrigerator for the night), and set out to do a marathon sight-seeing trip on our one unicorn-day of good weather.

An hour past Vik, there is another small town called Kirkjubæjarklaustur, but not much else for miles. (Be sure to have a full gas tank). Just a short ways past Vik is an area where part of Game of Thrones was filmed, and we could definitely see why. We realized that we were really out in the “wilds of Iceland,” with nothing but snow, ice, and glaciers. It was beautiful and humbling at the same time.

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After two and a half hours or so, pretty much driving on a solid sheet of ice in some parts of the road, we reached our main destination:  Jökulsárlón Glacial Lagoon. It is one of the big attractions in Iceland, and in the summer I’ve read that it is a conveyor belt churning out loads of tourists through boat tours. It was busy, but not too busy when we were there.

The sun was starting to peek out, but the wind was brutal. We walked towards the lagoon and climbed up on top of the grassy hills to get a good view, and were almost blown away.

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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon

We descended to the beach, which was better but the wind was still icy cold. It was a beautiful site to see, but we didn’t stay as long as we wanted, the wind was just too much. No boat tours were being offered either, which was fine. The view from the beach was pretty good by itself.

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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon
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Freezing!
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Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon

Fortunately, there is a small cafe and gift shop selling seafood soup, pastries, and hot drinks. We had some seafood soup for lunch, which was mediocre but hot and warmed us right up. We used the restroom, picked up a couple souvenirs and turned around to head back.

On the way back we stopped at Skaftafell National Park. Visiting Skaftafell and hiking to glaciers and waterfalls in the park had originally been part of the plan, but we realized that this was a much better destination in the summer or early fall. We didn’t have a lot of time, but thought we’d pull in and see if there was anything to be seen within a short walk of the visitor’s center. There wasn’t. Even nearby Svartifoss required crampons to even attempt the trail. We checked out the visitor’s center and then moved on.

The sun was out full force while we drove back, and we were just happy that we got to see the Glacier Lagoon and the rugged, wild winter terrain of the southern Ring Road. It was even more beautiful on the drive back, as the blue sky and bright sun added some more contrast to the landscape.

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Icy wild arctic tundra without a soul around for miles

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Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach

 

Arriving back at the hotel in Vik, we stopped by the room to freshen up and then got back on the road a short drive west of Vik to Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach. We were hoping to catch a sunset but snow clouds were rolling in, and it began to snow a little bit. It was still a nice stroll on the beach, with the snow coming down.

Reynisfjara Beach is a must-see stop just off the Ring Road in south Iceland. The beach is covered in black sand and lava rock, with towering jagged sea stacks that look like monster teeth jutting out of the raging ocean. To the west is a rock arch going into the ocean.

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Reynisfjara Beach
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Reynisfjara Beach

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Rock arch, Reynisfjara Beach
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Big lava rocks on Reynisfjara Beach
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Reynisfjara Beach

Hálsanefshellir sea cave is to your right (as you face the ocean), made up of hexagonal basalt columns much like the ones we saw at the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. The columns are a natural geological wonder formed from lava pouring out of the land and cooling slowly over time. They are very rare but found randomly all over the world, and also make up the waterfall cliff at Svartifoss in Skaftafell National Park. The columns at Reynisfjara are also called the “organ pipes.”

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“Organ Pipes” at Reynisfjara Beach
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“Organ Pipes” at Reynisfjara Beach
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“Organ Pipes” at Reynisfjara Beach
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“Organ Pipes” at Reynisfjara Beach

**Note: The waves and current at Reynisfjara are very dangerous. Do not wade in the ocean or get close to the edge of the shore, waves have been known to come out onto the beach further than expected and the current can pull you in, even from knee-deep water.

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Raging sea at Reynisfjara

 

After the beach, we went back into town and had dinner at Halldorskaffi again. Paddy had the lamb burger and I had a chicken sandwich with fries. Both were delicious, but we were starving and it didn’t quite fill us up. We picked up some snacks at the convenience store across the street from our hotel on the way back.

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Evening sun in Vik

Back at the hotel, we went down to have a drink at the swanky hotel bar with (yak??) fur barstools. There were a few other tourists down in the lounge area, but it was otherwise pretty quiet. There were a few people eating in the restaurant.

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Before coming to Iceland, we watched a few travel documentaries which all featured the infamous Icelandic liquor Brennivin, otherwise known as “The Black Death.” Brennivin literally translates to “burning wine” and is a type of schnapps made from potato mash and flavored with caraway. It has a very herbal flavor to it, and after doing a shot of that, my cold went away. No joke. It was a pretty mild cold, but I’d like to believe that the “Black Death” brought me back to life.

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We had a couple beers and enjoyed the ambiance for a bit, but the drinks were expensive so we didn’t stay long.

Regarding Icelandic beer–beer was actually banned in Iceland from 1915 to 1989. The most popular and widely available beers are Gull, and Viking, which we found to taste like cheap, watery Budweiser or some other comparable American beer. Paddy did find a couple Icelandic beers that he liked, and said the Viking Classic wasn’t too bad. My favorite was the line of beers from the Einstök microbrewery. I didn’t get to try all of the Einstock beers, but the white ale and the toasted porter were delicious. Give Iceland a few more years, I think more craft beer may be on the way.

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The Blue Lagoon

 

Day 7:

We decided on our second morning to go ahead and pay the $18 per person for the breakfast buffet at the Icelandair Hotel in Vik. It was a good buffet, but not that much different than most other Iceland hotel breakfast buffets. We did enjoy the smoked salmon and the pickled herring. We really think that for what they charge at that hotel, breakfast should be included. That was our only beef with the place, otherwise it was a very nice stay.

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Icelandair Hotel breakfast buffet

We got on the Ring Road road headed back to Reykjavik, but took a quick detour to the coastal town of Stokkseyri. I’d read of a restaurant called Fjorubordid that specializes in lobster and supposedly has the best lobster soup in Iceland. We thought we might check out the town and have some lobster soup for lunch.

Unfortunately, it seems the whole town is really only open in the summer season. Fjorubordid was open for dinner only that night. If you are traveling in the summer, Stokkseyri looks like it would be worth a stop, and has an elf museum (also only open in the summer).

We weren’t super hungry anyway, we had filled up on the overpriced hotel breakfast buffet to get our money’s worth. We headed back to highway 1 through the pass to Reykjavik, and then west towards The Blue Lagoon in Grindavik.

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The pass from Hveragerdi to Reykjavik is supposed to be a pretty drive. We wouldn’t know–all we could see was white.

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We only had a couple days left in Iceland, and we still had not tried the Icelandic hot dogs that everyone raves about. The hot dog (pylsur in Icelandic) is very popular in Iceland, and probably the cheapest meal you can get. You will see pylsur stands all over the place. We pulled into the Reykjavik suburb town of Hafnarfjörður and found a pylsur stand. Everything was in Icelandic, which I could decipher a little bit with my Danish, but there were so many options to choose from it was a bit overwhelming. We just decided to ask the English-speaking employee to give us the best typical Icelandic pylsur with everything. It came with remolade, a sweet spicy mustard, and raw onions. They were delicious and cheap, we’d recommend them.

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Paddy enjoying an Icelandic pylsur

 

We got back on the road and within a short time arrived at The Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel.

The Blue Lagoon is the number one tourist attraction in Iceland, and I have to say, it was also one of the things that I was looking forward to the most. The Blue Lagoon formed from the mineral and water runoff of the nearby geothermal power plant that harvests geothermal energy from the lava field near the town of Grindavik. The pale blue color of the lagoon is a result of the white silica mud at the bottom, giving it a milky blue color. In the 1980’s, locals discovered the lagoon and began sneaking in for a swim.

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The Blue Lagoon
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The Blue Lagoon
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The Blue Lagoon–lava rock covered with white silica mud and algae makes up the bottom of the lagoon

Eventually, it was developed into the giant hot spring swimming lagoon that it is today, and The Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel was built nearby. The silica mud is supposed to be good for your skin, and particularly good for people with skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis. The Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel is also a clinic for people with doctor referrals for skin treatments, but for the most part it is a nice hotel with a spa-like atmosphere and it’s own smaller private lagoon for guests only. It is small, although it has plans to expand by next year. It is recommended that you make your reservations far in advance.

We arrived at 2:00 PM, which was check in time. The lady at the front desk told us our room was not ready and to come back at 2:00. When we informed her it was 2:00 she apologized, it had been a crazy day for the housekeeping staff and she asked us if we wouldn’t mind waiting about 30 more minutes. They had a nice guest lounge area, so we didn’t mind. We sat and read for a little bit. When she came back and told us our room was ready, she gave us a gift pack of Blue Lagoon lotion products as a thank you for waiting. We learned later how expensive those lotions were–about a $40 value. It was pretty nice of her.

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Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel guest lounge

Our room was very nice, with a really comfortable bed and a view of the moss and snow covered lava fields. It included a mini fridge, fluffy bathrobes, and even had a towel warmer in the bathroom that ended up being perfect for drying our bathing suits.

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View from the deck of our hotel room at the Blue Lagoon Clinic
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The moss is flammable…
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The private blue lagoon for hotel guests only

The price per night was about $250.00, which is the off-season rate. It is pretty expensive, but worth it. The price includes a breakfast buffet, use of the private blue lagoon for guests only, and one daily admission per person for each day to the main Blue Lagoon, which is about a 10 minute walk through a path in the lava field. The regular admission price at the Blue Lagoon is about $50.00 per person, which doesn’t include a towel or robe. The hotel guest vouchers include towels and robes, and no advance reservation or ticket purchase is needed.

**Note: If you are visiting the Blue Lagoon without a tour group or staying at the hotel, you will need to make advance reservations. This is a new rule as of 2015, due to increased tourism maxing out the lagoon’s capacity.

After getting settled,  we were ready to check out the lagoon. We put our bathing suits in a plastic shopping bag, collected our voucher from the hotel, and walked across the slushy, icy path to the lagoon through the lava field.

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Checking in was easy, there was a separate line for people with vouchers and we breezed right in. We were given electronic bracelets that lock and unlock your chosen locker, and are used as a running tab for any purchases from the little cafe or the swim up bar in the lagoon. When you leave, you give your bracelet to the cashier to pay for anything you purchased while in the lagoon. It was a pretty awesome system.

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In the locker room, you are expected to take a shower with soap before putting your bathing suit on and going out to the lagoon. There are even attendants in the locker room to help people find the next open shower stall (and tell you that you need to shower). There are even diagrams in the shower showing you what areas to wash–armpits, feet, crotch. It was very specific.

I had a hard time figuring out how to lock the locker with my bracelet at first, but figured it out after a few tries. You have to close your locker door, and then scan your bracelet on the main scanner on the locker block, which locks it and confirms your locker number.

Paddy didn’t have the best experience at first–in the locker room he set his robe and towel down for a second on the bench and turned around and his towel was gone. Super lame. Watch your towel….maybe more so in the men’s room than the women’s.

Once out of the locker rooms, you walk out the door onto the deck and it is a mad dash in the bitter cold to hang up your robe on the outdoor hook and get in the lagoon.

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The water is really nice, and the bottom of the lagoon ranges from sandy and a little rough to soft squishy silica mud. There are geothermal heat regulators in various areas, and the water gets a lot hotter near them. We got beers and little packets of algae face mask from the swim-up bar.

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Blue Lagoon Bar
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Algae mask
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algae mask

There is a wood box on the far edge of the lagoon full of the white silica mud to use on your face as well. The lagoon also has a steam room, dry sauna, and a steamy cave that looks like a hobbit house, all located off the deck on the right side of the lagoon facing the main building. On the way out, you can get a good view of the lagoon from the observation deck at the top of the building–accessible by stairs in Lava Restaurant.

**Note: The silica and sulphur in the water really dry out your hair. My hair felt like it does after swimming in the ocean but amplified. It took two deep condition washings to finally get it back to normal, so some heavy-duty conditioner is advised for longer hair. They do provide conditioner at the lagoon in the showers, but it wasn’t very good. Wearing your hair up can help, but it gets so steamy that it’s difficult to keep it from getting wet.

After a good soak, we went back to the room to change and head into Grindavik for dinner.

Grindavik is a very tiny coastal fishing town. There isn’t a lot to see, aside from the Saltfish Museum. There are a few small restaurants, and after reviewing the options on tripadvisor, we decided to eat at Salthusid. We drove into town thinking there would be a main strip with restaurants or something by the waterfront, but there wasn’t. It was actually a little hard to find. Saldhusid is located just off the main road behind the grocery store Netto.

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Salthusid Restaurant

Salthusid was cozy and inviting, very Scandinavian. The name means “The Salt House” in Icelandic.

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Salthusid Restaurant

The waitress was very friendly, and it ended up being one of the best meals of our whole trip, second to Dill. We shared the lobster soup to start, and it was amazing. If Stokkseyri has the best lobster soup in Iceland, I would be very interested to compare their soup to Salthusid’s. It was so flavorful without being too heavy on the cream, with big fresh hunks of lobster in the bottom.

The best lobster soup ever at Salthusid
The best lobster soup ever at Salthusid

Paddy had a lamb tenderloin and I had cod with ratatouille. Both were outstanding. We had read that they make very good chocolate cake at Salthusid, but we were too stuffed to eat another bite. If we ever come back to Grindavik, we will be making this restaurant our number one dinner stop.

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Lamb tenderloin at Salthusid
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Cod with ratatouille at Salthusid

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On the way back to the hotel we could see the geothermal power plant all lit up and hard at work:

Geothermal power plant that accidentally created the Blue Lagoon
Geothermal power plant that accidentally created the Blue Lagoon

 

Day 8:

Friday was our last day in Iceland, and while the snow was melting now, it was WINDY. When we had left the Blue Lagoon the day before we had been leaving right as a huge tour group was coming in, and we were wondering if we could have the same luck of timing on our second trip. We went to the front desk to retrieve our daily voucher and to see if the tour groups come at certain times (they don’t), and they told us the weather was only going to get worse this afternoon, so it was best we go as soon as we can.

We seemed to luck out and get in between big tour groups again, fortunately. It was busy, but not crazy busy. Paddy slipped on the ice on the trail from the hotel to the Blue Lagoon and cracked his elbow. If you are walking on a snowy or icy day, be extra careful.

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The Blue Lagoon

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It was much windier than the day before. While the water was still really warm, the cold wind was uncomfortable on our heads. We went between the dry sauna and the lagoon, sitting under the walking bridges to shield ourselves from the wind. We finally found the best spot for a sheltered soak under the bridge and around the corner from the bar, up against some lava rocks. The water is hotter over there and the rock behind us blocked the wind a bit.

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The area in the lower left corner of this photo is be best spot to soak when it’s windy–the rock shelters you a bit and the water is extra hot.

 

We didn’t stay as long this time, we figured we had a good time the day before and the wind was getting to be a little much.

When we left, there was another HUGE tour group line waiting to get in. We were so glad we left when we did. At the end of the line near the parking lot we could hear some Germans shouting obnoxiously. We made it a little ways down the path to the hotel when I realized that I left my bathing suit bag in the gift shop at the front counter. I ran back to get it, and the whole time, the Germans never stopped shouting. It sounded like they were drunk….or angry? I don’t know. It was unbelievably obnoxious.

One of the biggest reasons we would recommend staying at the Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel is that it has it’s own private lagoon for hotel guests only. That way, you can enjoy soaking in the lagoon again after you get back from the main one, and it is quiet and much more relaxing. They also have an indoor lagoon area for when the weather is bad.

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Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel Private indoor/outdoor lagoon
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Blue Lagoon Clinic Hotel Private indoor/outdoor lagoon

The indoor lagoon has a door in the corner for you to go out to the outdoor lagoon from the water, which was nice. I braved the wind for a little while that afternoon, but it was too much. It was a little disappointing, because I was hoping to get some relaxing time in at the private lagoon as well before we left.

One thing the hotel doesn’t have is a sauna or steam room, which I think would be a great addition.

We relaxed the rest of the afternoon and read books. Some people may find the Grindavik area a little boring, but we were really enjoying the relaxation time before heading home and back to our jobs.

For dinner, we had made prior reservations at Lava Restaurant at the main Blue Lagoon, our last and final splurge dinner. Head chef Viktor Örn Andrésson specializes in modern Icelandic cuisine and won Iceland’s Chef of the Year award in 2013 and Nordic Chef of the Year in 2014.

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Lava Restaurant at The Blue Lagoon
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Lava Restaurant at The Blue Lagoon
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Lava Restaurant at The Blue Lagoon
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View from our table, Lava Restaurant at The Blue Lagoon

The restaurant is huge, and a more traditional style than Dill with an a la carte menu featuring starters, entrees, and desserts.

The wine list was pricey, and their selection of US wines were a bit questionable (Barefoot Merlot? Turning Leaf Zinfandel? Those are cheap $6.99 bottom shelf grocery store wines…on the wine list for $40). Not that we wanted American wine, but their American selection made us question the value of the rest of the wines. We stuck with less expensive house wine by the glass.

For starters we had the slow cooked arctic char with fennel, pear, and char roe, and the smoked haddock with apple and sun chokes. Both were outstanding, but the arctic char was the clear favorite for both of us. The char roe exploded in your mouth and added an unexpected complimentary complexity to the pear and char.

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Smoked haddock starter at Lava Restaurant
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Slow cooked arctic char starter at Lava Restaurant

For our entrees, Paddy had Viktor Örn Andrésson’s winning dish from the Nordic Chef of the Year competition, which was fried rack of beef and beef cheek with carrot, potato, morel and port wine glaze. I had the pan fried cod with roasted langoustines, cauliflower, fennel, pear, and dill. My cod was good, cooked perfectly and the flavor was great–however it was a little overly salty. Paddy practically licked his plate clean, he said the beef dish was truly award-winning.

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Pan fried cod and roasted langoustines at Lava Restaurant
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“Award-winning” beef rack and beef cheek dish at Lava Restaurant
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At Lava Restaurant

For dessert I tried the “award-winning” Nordic Chef of the Year dessert: Cranberries and organic dark chocolate with marzipan, lemon, hazelnuts, and meringue. Paddy had the apple and brown butter dish with brown butter ice cream, apple and celeriac foam, apple, caramel, brioche. Both were fantastic.

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Overall, we spent about the same amount of money at Lava as we did at Dill in Reykjavik. They were both great meals, but if you only have room in your budget for one big splurge in Iceland, I’d go with Dill. They are two completely different restaurants, however. If you’re not into 7 small tasting courses and would rather have a starter, larger entree, and dessert, Lava might be the one for you. We liked the tasting courses and variety at Dill, along with the very Icelandic and less-touristy atmosphere.

 

Day 9:

The next morning, on the day we were scheduled to fly home, we woke to hurricane-force winds shaking the windows. Our flight wasn’t until 5:45 PM, so we waited until 11:30 to check out. Our flight status still said on-time, so we just decided to head to the airport and wait.

Keflavik Airport is only about a 15 minute drive from the Blue Lagoon, which is very convenient if you make the Blue Lagoon your last stop on your trip. We had to fill up the gas tank before we dropped the car back off, so we pulled off at a gas station in Keflavik town off the highway. There were signs everywhere in English stating to pay at the pump. Unable to pay with our cards, I went inside and was ignored for a few minutes by the attendant, who finally came over to the counter and told me to pay at the pump. I explained that American cards don’t work at the pump and that we could pay cash if he could open the pump with a pre-paid amount. He said the machine also took cash, but when he went out to show us he discovered that the cash pump was not working. He wasn’t able to sell us any gas.

We drove further into Keflavik town until we found the N1 station, and we were able to pre-pay cash at the counter to fill up there. Hopefully by the next time we make it to Europe, our stupid American credit cards will have that damn chip.

We arrived to the airport a few minutes later and dropped the car off at Blue Car rental. Our car was found to be damage-free (whew!) and the employee drove us and our stuff across the parking lot to the airport entrance. We then waited another hour for the check in counters to open, and finally made it through security to the terminal to wait for our plane.

Image from www.kefairport.is
Image from www.kefairport.is

There is no shortage of duty free and last-minute souvenir buying opportunities at the airport. In fact, as soon as you get through security you have to walk through a duty free shop to get to the terminal. If you plan on purchasing some Brennivin to take home, be sure to do it at the airport duty free. It will save you a lot of money without the hefty tax.

We were able to fly out pretty much on time, thankfully. The winds died down enough for us to take off. We did end up hitting some bad turbulence over Calgary during the last hour or so of the flight back to Seattle though, which caused me to make use of three airsick bags. Good times.

 

Overall we had a great trip. The weather kept us from driving to as many sights as we wanted to see, but it was one of the most relaxing vacations we’ve ever had. Sometimes it’s easy to cram too much in and come back feeling like you need a vacation from your vacation. If we go back to Iceland, I think we’d go in late September or early October, or in May when the weather is better. I’ve heard great things about the remote and beautiful west fjords and I’d love to see more of the North. I feel like we had a pretty unique experience, it seems like all the travel photos I see of Iceland are green and mossy from the summertime. We really saw the definition of Iceland–wild, icy, arctic winter beauty. It isn’t all green moss and puffins, although that is nice too.

Culinary Adventures: Chinese Five Spice Cupcakes

Chinese five spice cupcakes with ginger frosting: A fun Eastern twist on the classic carrot cake, perfect for Chinese New Year.

Some friends of ours throw an annual Chinese New Year party every year, complete with all kinds of dumplings and delicious Chinese food. I wanted to bring something unique to add to the buffet table, and after a little internet searching came up with this Chinese five spice cupcakes recipe from SavorySpiceShop.com. It basically takes the classic carrot cake recipe and adds the twist of Chinese five spice and crushed pineapple. The pineapple didn’t add a strong flavor, but gave it a subtle tangy sweetness that complimented the five spice very well.

Ingredients:

  • For cupcakes:

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 3/4 tsp. salt
  • 2 tsp. Chinese five spice
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/4 cup crushed pineapple, drained
  • 3 x eggs
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 cups shredded carrots (about 3-4 medium sized carrots)

**For the shredded carrots I took the easy route and used a bag of julienned carrots and chopped them up into smaller pieces. You don’t want the carrot shreds to be too large, otherwise they may not cook all the way through.

Directions:

For cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper cupcake liners. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and Chinese five spice. In another large bowl, whisk together vegetable oil, crushed pineapple, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and carrots. Then slowly add the flour mixture and beat with an electric hand mixer until just combined, about 2 min. Fill the muffin cups ¾ full with batter. Bake until the Chinese five spice cupcakes are set, about 20 to 22 min. When they can be handled safely, remove them from the muffin tins and let cool completely on wire racks before frosting.

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Chinese five spice cupcakes
Chinese five spice cupcakes
Chinese five spice cupcakes
  • For frosting:

  • 1 x 8oz packet cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 2 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 tsp. ground ginger (see my note below)
  • 3 cups powdered sugar

**I used the ground ginger as the recipe stated, and found that I couldn’t taste it at all after it was blended in. I added about a tablespoon or so of pureed ginger (found in the refrigerated produce area next to the fresh herbs–it comes in a tube) and it really made the frosting perfect.

For frosting: In a large bowl, add the cream cheese, butter, vanilla and ground ginger. Blend the ingredients with an electric hand mixer until a creamy consistency is reached, while slowly adding the powdered sugar.

I piped the frosting onto the Chinese five spice cupcakes using a large decorating tip, and topped them with red sugar sprinkles and a fortune cookie. The fortune cookies looked and tasted great, but towards the end of the evening they began to absorb the moisture from the frosting and lost their crispness.

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Chinese five spice cupcakes
Chinese five spice cupcakes
Chinese five spice cupcakes

 

Overall I think this Chinese five spice cupcakes recipe is a keeper. Happy Chinese New Year!

Chinese New Year

 

Culinary Adventures: Maple and Apple Cider Brined Roast Chicken

Culinary adventures: Maple and apple cider brined roast chicken–our favorite fall/winter roast chicken recipe.

 

I got this recipe out of a magazine a couple years ago, and unfortunately the page I tore out of it has no indication which magazine it was. It is my favorite fall/winter roast chicken recipe now.

**Before you get started, note that this is a two-day recipe as you need to prepare the brine and brine the chicken in the fridge overnight for cooking the next day.

I did modify the recipe a tiny bit. The original roast chicken recipe called for a whole cup of kosher salt for the brine, but it ended up being pretty salty. A friend of mine who tried the recipe thought that was way too much salt and made it with half a cup instead, which is what I use now. It is plenty of salt.

The recipe also recommended marinating the vegetables in salt, pepper, and olive oil in the fridge overnight as well. I tried it the first time, but I really don’t think it’s necessary. There is a lot of fat in the chicken that flavors the veggies so I don’t think a lot of olive oil is needed. I put them in the roasting pan with a tiny bit of olive oil, salt and pepper (just enough to lightly coat the veggies and help the salt and pepper stick).

Ingredients:

1/2 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
4 cups apple juice or apple cider
4 cups water
1 cup pure maple syrup
2 tbsp Dijon-style mustard
1 5-6 lb roasting chicken
6 large carrots, cut into 2 inch chunks
2 large onions, cut into1/2 inch slices
2 fennel bulbs, trimmed and cut into wedges
4 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
6 sprigs fresh thyme
1 medium orange, halved
salt and ground black pepper

**You will also need kitchen twine and a large roasting pan.

Directions: 

1. For brine, in an extra-large stainless steel pot combine the kosher salt and brown sugar; stir in apple juice, water, and mustard. Cook and stir over medium high heat until salt and sugar are completely dissolved. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. 

2. Remove giblets from chicken, rinse inside and out with water. Place chicken in stockpot, making sure it is immersed in the brine. Chill for 12 hours or overnight. 

3. Once chicken has brined, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove chicken from brine and discard brine. Pat chicken dry inside and out with paper towels. Sprinkle chicken cavity with salt and pepper. Place orange halves and four springs of the thyme in cavity. Skewer neck skin to back, tie up legs and tail with kitchen twine. Twist wing tips under back. Spread vegetables around chicken evenly in roasting pan. 

4. Roast chicken for 1.5 to 2 hours, or until a meat thermometer inserted into center of an inside thigh registers 180 degrees. We put the lid on the roasting pan for the first hour or so, and then take it off. Remove roast chicken and vegetables, let stand 10-15 minutes before carving.

maple and apple cider brined roast chicken recipe

I always let Paddy truss the chicken, he’s the pro. If you’re not sure how to do it, here is a good instructional video I found on YouTube:

We arranged the veggies in the pot around and underneath the roast chicken, so that the juices would flow down and flavor the vegetables.

maple and apple cider brined roast chicken recipe

 

A satisfying meal for a cold winter day.

maple and apple cider brined roast chicken recipe

Friday Harbor, San Juan Island, WA in the Winter

The San Juan Islands have plenty to offer in the winter with lower prices and fewer tourists. What to see and do in Friday Harbor, WA in the winter time:

 

I was born and raised in Friday Harbor, San Juan Island, WA. Paddy spent his high school years there as well, and both of us lived there for a short period of time as adults after we met. It was a unique way to grow up, something I appreciate more and more as I get older.

Summertime is peak tourist season for the San Juan Islands. Hoards of tourists travel from all over the world to come see the beautiful islands, many in hopes of catching a glimpse of the infamous orca whales in the area. The tourists thin drastically after Labor Day and by November are nearly non-existent until spring.

Friday Harbor in the winter
Friday Harbor

Friday Harbor in the winter

While the locals breathe a heavy sigh of relief after the craziness of the summer season, those in the service industry must tighten their belts as their incomes decline for the winter.

I think winter is a great time to visit. We end up there in the winter most often because we visit family during the holidays, but winter time in Friday Harbor has its merits:

1. Prices are lower.

Hotel prices drop almost 50%. Almost all of the accommodations in Friday Harbor and San Juan Island cost a small fortune in the summertime. By spending less money on lodging, you’ll have more money for going out to eat and other things.

2. Less waiting in line.

Whether it is for a ferry or a popular restaurant, you will spend much less time waiting and more time doing things. Even with the newly introduced reservation system for the ferries, you will have more room to be spontaneous with your ferry times and reservations will be plentiful.

Friday Harbor in winter christmas lights

3. Friendlier locals.

As someone who worked summers in Friday Harbor restaurants and hotels for ten years, I can attest that summer can be hell for those in the service industry. Rude, entitled tourists, family groups of 16 expecting to walk in and get a table at a restaurant without a reservation, non-stop lines and never being able to find a parking spot in town takes it’s toll on the locals. In the winter, everyone is relaxed and happy to accept your patronage. Most people anyway.

Friday Harbor in the winter
Spring Street on a quiet November evening

4. Peace and quiet.

Going up to the island in the winter has a calming effect on me. It probably has to do with my memories of living there in the winter: cozy evenings by the wood stove, enjoying a cup of tea with a friend at her cabin in the woods, walks in American Camp with no one else around. Time slows down, and relaxation begins.

Friday Harbor in the winter quiet forest

There is a lot to see and do in Friday Harbor and San Juan Island, and I’m not going to cover everything here. Just the highlights of my favorite things to do and see for a winter visit.

How to get there:

You can reach Friday Harbor via Washington State Ferry from Anacortes, WA. Up until this month, the ferries were first come, first served. This meant long ferry lines in the summer, and needing to arrive 1-3 hours in advance depending on the season. There is absolutely nothing to do near the Anacortes Ferry terminal (except take a walk on the rocky beach), which makes for a boring wait.

There is now a reservation system for ferries both ways (you pay in Anacortes round trip). You reserve online, pay when you get there. A credit card is required to make the reservation but it is only charged a $10.00 no-show fee if you miss the boat. If you need to change your reservation to a different boat, you can do so up to three hours before departure of the sailing you reserved.

There has been some debate and controversy from locals about this system, as it doesn’t let people be as flexible. During tourist season in the summer, it could either be a blessing or a burden for local residents. Time will tell.

Cars loading onto the ferry heading to Anacortes in Friday Harbor
Cars loading onto the ferry heading to Anacortes in Friday Harbor

A “straight through” sailing from Anacortes to Friday Harbor (and vice versa) is about an hour. If there is a stop at Lopez Island, usually about an hour and a half. We’ve come to take the ride for granted due to the number of times we’ve taken it in our lives, but the scenery is stunning.

San Juan Islands ferry
Booths inside the ferry cabin

Friday Harbor in winter San Juan Islands ferry

 

San Juan Islands ferry
Ferry cabin
San Juan Islands ferry
Observation deck

San Juan Islands ferry winter time

Friday Harbor in winter (27)

Friday Harbor in winter (28)

Friday Harbor San Juan Islands in winter (17)

San Juan Islands ferry Outside deck seating

San Juan Islands ferry winter time

sunset from Friday Harbor ferry

Things to see and do:

 

**Note: Bring your car. It is expensive, but worth it as everything worth seeing on the island is outside of town, and there is no public transportation.

North side of the island:

Head out of town on Roche Harbor Road 9.5 miles to Roche Harbor on the north end of the island. Near the road down into the harbor you will find an expansive 19 acre outdoor sculpture park right outside the harbor road entrance. The Wescott Bay Sculpture Park has many unique pieces to view, so bring some rain gear and walking shoes and plan to spend awhile.

Westcott Bay Sculpture Park
Westcott Bay Sculpture Park. Image from http://www.thesanjuans.com/san-juan-island-activities/san-juan-workshops/westcott-bay-sculpture-park.shtml
Roche Harbor Canadian geese
Canadian geese in the airfield across from the Sculpture Park
Roche Harbor Canadian geese
Canadian geese in the airfield across from the Sculpture Park

 

On the opposite side of Roche Harbor Road from the sculpture park is one of my all time favorite places to see on San Juan Island, The Mausoleum.

The Mausoleum was built by Roche Harbor founder John McMillan as a final resting place for his family.

Parking is in a gravel lot facing the private airfield, and the trail is just up the road a few feet. An easy half mile hike through the woods takes you past several old tombstones that are gated by wire and picket fences.

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor
Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

The windy little path through the woods meets up with a wide path that leads to the Mausoleum, “Afterglow Vista.”

It is beautiful and eery at the same time. The structure contains symbolism of the Masonic order. Grecian style columns surround a marble and stone table on a stone platform with six chairs surrounding it. Each chair contains the ashes of a family member, as well as his secretary. One of the columns was built purposefully broken.

Roche Harbor Mausoluem
Roche Harbor Mausoluem

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

Mausoleum at Roche Harbor

I was here in December and there wasn’t another soul around. It was peaceful and a little spooky. I remember coming here as a teenager with my friends at night and scaring ourselves.

If you venture into Roche Harbor, you’ll find a harbor, a cafe, grocery store, gift shop, old historic Hotel De Haro, and remains of John McMillan’s lime quarry. McMillan’s Restaurant in the Hotel De Haro is pricey but very good. The restaurant and hotel are rumored to be haunted. Paddy worked with a guy who used to work there and he has stories of lights and radios coming on by themselves when he was alone at night closing the kitchen in the winter. In the summer you’ll find Roche Harbor bustling with wealthy tourists, the harbor full of expensive yachts. In the winter, it is a sleepy little historic spot.

Hotel De Haro, Roche Harbor
Hotel De Haro, Roche Harbor
Roche Harbor San Juan Island
Roche Harbor

On the way back to town, stop off at San Juan Vineyards for wine tasting and be sure to say hi to Mona the camel across the road.

Mona the camel San Juan Island

Mona the camel San Juan Island
Mona the camel
Mona the camel San Juan Island
Mona’s friend the alpaca

A camel? What? Yes, there is Mona, the San Juan Island camel who lives on a farm across the road from San Juan Vineyards. Mona has a story, which you can read here. San Juan Vineyards has even made a wine in honor of Mona, the Mona Vino.

Mona the camel San Juan Island
Mona
Mona the camel San Juan Island
Mona

As tempting as it is, please don’t feed Mona. Too many people were coming by offering her apples and carrots and she became in danger of developing diabetes. Just take a photo and say hi to her from the fence.

 

South side of the island:

 

I grew up out on the south end of San Juan Island, and it is one of my favorite parts. The beaches are the best on the south end, and the grassy trails of American Camp park and cliffs overlooking the sea are a place I used to spend hours wandering while growing up.

To reach American Camp Park, head out of town on Mullis Street (left turn off Spring Street if traveling from the ferry/main part of town) and continue about 6 miles on Cattle Point Road.

It’s not much to see in the winter time, but the most popular beach on the island is Eagle Cove Beach, which is accessed just before American Camp by taking a right down Eagle Cove Drive when you see the American Camp sign (just before the sign). The parking area will be on the left about 1/4 of a mile.

Eagle Cove Beach San Juan Island
Eagle Cove Beach
Eagle Cove Beach San Juan Island
With Dad at Eagle Cove Beach this December
Eagle Cove Beach San Juan Island
Dewey, my parents’ dog at Eagle Cove Beach

Eagle Cove Beach San Juan Island

The tide stays pretty high all winter long at Eagle Cove, but in the summer it goes out pretty far, creating an ideal sandy spot for families and skim boarders.

Eagle Cove Beach trail in the snow
Eagle Cove Beach trail in the snow
Eagle Cove Beach in the snow
Eagle Cove Beach in the snow
Eagle Cove Beach in the snow
Eagle Cove Beach in the snow

 

Back to American Camp. There is a lot to see in this expansive park. The park gets its name due to it being the remnants of a civil-war era American military camp (there is also a British Camp Park in the north part of the island, which is lovely but I prefer to visit it in the summer time.) From Cattle Point Road, turn right onto the small road at the American Camp sign (the road right after Eagle Cove Drive). A parking lot and visitors’ center is at the end of the short road.

**Note: the park ranger is pretty strict about keeping dogs on leashes everywhere in the park. Failing to do so may result in a ticket.

From the parking lot, there is a well-maintained pathway around the old officer’s quarters and other historical buildings, with plaques explaining the historical significance along the way.

Once you’ve had your fill of history, branch off on one of the trails heading towards the sea to explore the cliffs and hidden coves along the coast. If it is winter, you might have it all to yourself.

American Camp San Juan Island

American Camp San Juan Island

American Camp San Juan Island

American Camp San Juan Island

American Camp San Juan Island

American Camp San Juan Island
My favorite spot on the whole island
Seals at American Camp San Juan Island
Seals basking in the winter sun
Granny's Cove American Camp San Juan Island
Granny’s Cove at high tide

 

If you continue on the path going straight (south) from the visitors’ center parking lot and officer’s quarters, you’ll find more trails that will eventually connect with the Redoubt and the road to South Beach.

The Redoubt American Camp San Juan Island

The Redoubt American Camp San Juan Island
The American Camp Redoubt
Griffin Bay American Camp San Juan Island
View of Griffin Bay from the Redoubt

American Camp San Juan Island

American Camp San Juan Island
View from the American Camp Redoubt

 

There is more to see if you continue by car down to Cattle Point, the south tip of the island:

4th of July Beach

Some people like this beach on Griffin Bay for BBQs and picnics, but it is one of my least favorite beaches on the island. I find it rocky and kind of boring. Skip it and head to South Beach instead.

Jakle’s Lagoon and Mt. Finlayson

This is a loop trail with a peaceful woodsy walk to Jakle’s Lagoon and stunning views of American Camp on top of Mt. Finlayson. Mt. Finlayson isn’t much of a mountain, but it’s the highest point on the south end of San Juan Island. You can hike it either direction from the parking lot.

Mt Finlayson San Juan Island
View from Mt Finlayson
View from Mt Finlayson San Juan Island
View from Mt Finlayson

South Beach

South Beach is the largest beach on San Juan Island. Fires and BBQs are allowed in designated spots, but no overnight camping and keep your dog on a leash. There are outhouses available here.

Christmas Day walk on South Beach San Juan Island
Christmas Day walk on South Beach

Cattle Point and Cattle Point Lighthouse

At the end of the main road you’ll find a parking lot for Cattle Point Beach Park (Discover Pass required to park in the parking lot) and a short and very scenic trail to Cattle Point Lighthouse. The lighthouse hike is beautiful and I highly recommend it.

Cattle Point Lighthouse San Juan Island
Cattle Point Lighthouse

In Friday Harbor town:

Friday Harbor in the winter
Town
Friday Harbor Port
Friday Harbor Port

Back in town you’ll find a lot of shops and restaurants. The boutiques on Spring Street have some nice things but most tend to be a little expensive, especially clothing. Some of my favorite shops:

Serendipity Used Books

Located right across from the ferry landing at 223 A St, Serendipity Books is full of used gems at reasonable prices. They also buy books for cash or trade.

Serendipity Books Friday Harbor
Serendipity Books
The Second Act

The Second Act on 2nd Street has been around for ages, although it has changed locations a couple of times. I found some amazing vintage dresses there back in high school. It is a consignment shop so everything is used but in like-new condition. Prices are good and there’s new items all the time.

The Second Act Friday Harbor
The Second Act
Griffin Bay Book Store

If you didn’t find any used treasures at Serendipity, or you did but are looking for something specific, Griffin Bay Book Store at 155 Spring Street is the new book store on the island. It has also been around forever and has changed locations as well, as is common for island businesses.

Griffin Bay Books Friday Harbor
Griffin Bay Books Friday Harbor
Funk & Junk Antiques

Another great spot for treasure hunting. Also been around forever, has also change locations. Now at 85 Nichols Street.

 

Restaurants:

Some of my favorite restaurants on the island aren’t open in the winter, are closed on weekends, or have a habit of closing up for extended periods in the winter. Here are a few solid suggestions for winter which should be open:

Cask & Schooner

Cask & Schooner Friday Harbor

I’d have to say this is my favorite winter dinner spot. Formerly the Friday Harbor Alehouse, the new owners have really done a great job remodeling the interior and adding a whole new fantastic menu. I highly recommend the beet salad, and I’ve had the best crab cakes I’ve ever had in my life here. That’s a big statement for me–I’ve eaten a lot of crab cakes. If you’re not hungry, it’s still a great spot to warm up with a drink at the bar.

1 Front Street. Dinner specials rotate, available after 5:00. Regular pub menu available for lunch and dinner.

Cask & Schooner Friday Harbor
Duck breast dinner special

Cask & Schooner Friday Harbor

San Juan Island Cheese

Yes, they sell cheese. They also serve wine and beer and a delicious light lunch from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM Tuesday through Saturday (Cheeseboards and snacks available until 3:00 PM). Great spot to pick up a picnic lunch or stop in to warm up in the afternoon with some wine and a sandwich. Their bread is from local Bakery San Juan. http://www.sjicheese.com/

BLT at San Juan Cheese Friday Harbor
BLT at San Juan Cheese
Salad at San Juan Cheese Friday Harbor
Salad at San Juan Cheese
The Hungry Clam (breakfast)
Hungry Clam Friday Harbor
Hungry Clam

I’ve never been a huge fan of the lunch at the Hungry Clam, the fries are always really greasy. However, they took over the breakfast menu (and staff) of the long-standing local favorite Blue Dolphin Cafe, after the Blue Dolphin lost their old diner spot next door. Standard big greasy diner fare, and open early right next to the ferry landing if you want to go in for breakfast before your boat. Paddy always orders the California Omelet and I always order the Veggie Benny. Just be sure to leave enough time to dine, you need to be back at your car 20 minutes before departure for ferry loading. 205 A Street.

Mi Casita

Mi Casita relocated a couple years back to 680 Spring Street (inside the Best Western Hotel) and I’ve only been to the new location once. When I Paddy and I lived on the island 10 + years ago this was one of our favorite restaurants, with some of the best blended margaritas I’ve ever had. My favorite is the seafood quesadilla.

Vinny’s

Vinny's Restaurant Friday Harbor

Vinny’s has solidly good Italian food, and it has stood the test of time in Friday Harbor–something that is not easy in a seasonal economy. The atmosphere is nice and romantic.

Vinny's seafood pasta Vinny's Restaurant Friday Harbor
Vinny’s seafood pasta
Vinny's veal marsala Vinny's Restaurant Friday Harbor
Vinny’s veal marsala
Other suggestions:

I’ve heard great things about Cafe Demeter (80 Nichols Street) for coffee and pastries, Pablitos Taqueria (104 A First Street) and Tops’l Seafood and Sushi (1 Front Street, above the Cask & Schooner) but I have not yet had a chance to eat at any of them. My all time favorite lunch spot is The Market Chef, (225 A Street) but last time I checked they are still closed on weekends, which is the only time I am ever on the island. If you’re visiting on a weekday, definitely make a point to check the place out for lunch or to pick up a picnic to go. Everything they make is outstanding, including homemade bread for their sandwiches.

 

Where to stay:

Being former locals, we haven’t stayed at a lot of places on the island ourselves. However, we know a bit about a few of them and here are my suggestions:

Juniper Lane Guest House

Juniper (the owner) is a friend of mine and has done an amazing job of blending cozy island style with hip, modern decor to create a warm, inviting, and affordable B&B. Juniper Lane Guest House also offers a cabin for rent and two backpacker/family rooms that can accommodate up to 6 people with bunk beds. Children must be 12 or older to stay. The Guest House is not very far from town (a little bit of a trek but still walkable) and offers beautiful grounds and pastoral views.

Juniper Lane Guest House Friday Harbor
Image from http://juniperlaneguesthouse.com/
Organic Green Tea Room Juniper Lane Guest House Friday Harbor
Organic Green Tea Room (Image from http://juniperlaneguesthouse.com/)

 

Lakedale Resort

I used to work at Lakedale Resort many years ago and therefore know it pretty intimately. If you are looking for secluded peace and quiet or a romantic getaway, this is your place. The resort offers 9 lake view lodge rooms with jacuzzi bathtubs and gas fireplaces, as well as 6 cabins and one three-bedroom lake house. Cabins and the lake house enjoy shared use of a hot tub in a centrally located gazebo. The woodsy decor, lake views and fireplaces make it an ideal winter getaway, and the prices are much lower November through April.

Be aware that it is four miles from Friday Harbor town so you will need to drive into town for meals if you stay at the lodge. Cabins have full kitchens and accommodate up to 6 people with one bedroom, a loft bedroom, and a futon in the living room.

Lakedale Resort Lodge Great Room Friday Harbor
Lakedale Lodge Great Room
Lakedale Resort Lodge Room Friday Harbor
Lakedale Resort Lodge Room

 

Lakedale Resort cabin Friday Harbor
Lakedale cabin (image from www.lakedale.com)
Island Inn

I haven’t been to the Island Inn, but I’ve heard great things. It is centrally located in town within easy walking distance to everything. The rooms look modern from the photos and many appear to have great views of the harbor. They have some budget friendly-options as well.

Island Inn Friday Harbor
Image from www.123west.com
Friday Harbor House

Paddy and I stayed at the Friday Harbor House once in November, and it was really nice. The prices in the summer are atrocious, and even in the winter it is a bit of a splurge but much more reasonable. Most rooms offer views of the harbor, gas fireplaces, and jacuzzi tubs. The complimentary continental breakfast in the morning was outstanding, including house made quiche and coffee cake. Location is ideal–easy walk from the ferry and everything in town.

Friday Harbor House room Friday Harbor
Friday Harbor House (image from www.fridayharborhouse.com)

 

There are a ton of places to stay on the island, including many B&Bs. The above places are just a few suggestions, but there are a lot of other great accommodations as well. A good place to look is on Tripadvisor and http://www.friday-harbor.net/accommodations/index.shtml.

 

If you’re looking for a relaxing getaway, wintertime in Friday Harbor is about as laid-back as it gets. Only a two-hour drive from Seattle to the Anacortes Ferry, it makes for an easy weekend visit. The islands stay beautiful year-round, just remember to bring some rain gear and warm clothes.

Friday Harbor ferry dock
Goodbye, Friday Harbor

 

Friday Harbor