Iceland: Flora, Fauna, and Merry Weather

I hadn’t been back to Iceland since before COVID. So, naturally, as soon as the opportunity presented itself, I leapt at the chance to return to my favorite country—with sixteen of my closest friends.

Hallgrimskirkja and the
Leifur Eiriksson statue

Actually, it was a study tour I organized for alumni, faculty, and students from Erskine College. I generally avoid posting pictures of people without their consent, so you’ll notice a conspicuous absence of pictures of the sixteen people who kept me company on this trip, but I promise they were there!

Fellow travelers, from behind!

We spent a few days in Reykjavik on either end of the trip, and in between, our wonderful local driver/guide took us all the way around the country on the Ring Road, highlighting as many of the sights as we could see in a week and a half.

The sun smiles on Reykjavik (briefly)

I’ve done the Ring Road trip before (see this post), so rather than a blow-by-blow narration, let me just highlight some of the things I most enjoyed this time.

The Lava Show in Reykjavik, the only show
in the world where they play with real molten lava

First, our guide, Kristján, knew a great deal about the birds of Iceland, and on this trip, I learned about European widgeons…

A widgeon, not to be confused with a pigeon.

…saw my first ptarmigans…

A female ptarmigan. The males retain their
white winter plumage into the summer.

…and discovered that the bird that sounds like a video game sound effect, whose identity I had always wondered about, is a common snipe. I don’t have a picture of a snipe because they’re small, camouflaged, and shy, but here’s a link to a recording of the “winnowing” or “drumming” sound it makes with its tail.

We glimpsed seals, too…

The best picture I could get through the window
from the far side of the bus!

…as well as reindeer.

Reindeer are in introduced species, but 
they run wild in the east now.

And, of course, we saw many of Iceland’s beautiful horses, and even met some in person!

Another shot through a bus window.

These beauties were friendly and curious...
and slightly bitey.

We also visited a tomato greenhouse at Friðheimar, which sounds like a remarkably boring tourist attraction (unless you’re really into tomatoes, I guess), but this place was magical.

Tomato plants
(in case you've never seen one before)

Sitting amid the rows of tomato plants pollinated by bumble bees, we had a lunch of overwhelmingly rich tomato soup and fresh-baked bread…

Have you ever seen a bar in a greenhouse?

…then went across the street for a horseback riding demonstration (because, apparently, raising tomatoes doesn’t take enough time, so the greenhouse owners also breed horses).

A rider demonstrating that the tolt, one of the
Icelandic horse's special gaits, is so smooth
you can ride while carrying a full beer
(as one does) without spilling it

So much for the flora and fauna. How about that merry weather? As anyone who has ever visited Iceland knows, the weather is…not really great. We were lucky on this trip in that we got very little rain (though we did get sleet and even a touch of snow!), but we had a solid week of the windiest weather I have ever experienced. Even the Icelanders were complaining about it!

North Iceland or Sahara Desert? You guess!

The wind sandblasted our van and drove so much stinging grit into our faces that half of us didn’t even make it out of the parking lot when we got to Hverir to look at the sulfur springs and boiling mud pits.

This is why we hired a local professional
instead of trying to drive ourselves!

But what I loved about my group was that all of them were genuine troopers. No one complained about the weather (except to joke about it), and when it sleeted on us, everyone just pulled up their hoods and kept going. They inspired me with their tenacity and willingness to embrace the adventure, no matter how cold or wet it was.

Please observe the whitecaps on the Myvatn Nature Bath pools
(photo taken from indoors while the intrepid members of our group
went for a swim). The windchill was 24 degrees Fahrenheit.

And because they were willing to embrace the adventure, I was able to share with them my favorite country in the world, including some old favorites:

Djúpalon, the black-pebble beach
on Snæfellsnes peninsula

Dettifoss, the most powerful waterfall in Europe

Jökulsárlon, the glacial lagoon populated
by icebergs streaked with volcanic ash

Reynisfara, where tourists are warned
to watch out for “sneaker waves”
(surf that runs high and fast up the beach)

Geysir (this geyser's name is Strokkur)

And there were even some firsts for me:

Whale-watching at Hauganes

Ásbyrgi, the giant canyon that, according to legend,
was formed by the hoof of Sleipnir,
Odin’s eight-legged horse

Svartifoss, the black waterfall

The glacier Sólheimajökull

Raufarhólshellir, a lava tunnel, where we were just in time to see
the ice stalagmites, which form over the winter and melt in the summer

Seljalandsfoss, a waterfall I’d seen before
but had never gone behind, which is its main attraction

Naturally, the one time I decide to brave the climb to see the Seljalandsfoss from the other side, the wind is so strong it blew most of the falls onto the path instead of into the pool. Although my faithful rain jacket kept me dry, when I got back on the bus, water literally poured out of my pockets! But I would say the trip (and the drip) was worth it.

Rainbows come after (and sometimes during) the rain

It was such a privilege sharing this beautiful, unique place with my colleagues, friends, and students, and I hope they caught something of my love for it. And given that none of them got blown off a cliff, fell off a boat, lost their passports, or missed the plane, the experience was good enough from my end that I might even do it again!

Hvitserkur on Vatnsnes