On Queue: Iceland is Our Land: Day 2

Wholly exhausted from 40 hours awake, and lulled to sleep by the breeze through the open window, I'm pretty sure we didn't stir even once throughout the night. Seeing as Iceland has no snakes, no biting insects, no poisonous spiders, no predatory animals, and virtually no crime, open windows are the norm and were one of my favorite parts of Iceland. Sulphur water showers, on the other hand, smell straight up like eggs, and were not one of my favorite parts of Iceland. Though we did discover that running the cold water for 3-4 minutes makes the tap water palatable, we finally learned just to hold our breath when it came to our outdoor shower and the hot tub, which were both fed by a hot spring. Great to always have hot water with 9 girls sharing our BNB, but not too great for the smell!

PC: Sam W

We took off for Seljalandsfoss, about an hour and a half from Laugarvatn. The main waterfall was stunning from every angle -- which I mean quite literally, as you can take the path all the way behind and around the falls. (But take a raincoat and expect to get wet!)

Seljalandsfoss, PC: Hayley P

Seljalandsfoss, PC: Brian T

Seljalandsfoss, PC: Landry J

Seljalandsfoss, PC: Jane B

Behind Seljalandsfoss, PC: Sam W

The icing on the cake at this stop was Gljúfrabúi, the smaller (but perhaps even more impressive) cousin of Seljalandsfoss. At the very end of the main path is a marked entrance into a narrow, open-ceiling cavern that showcases one of the prettiest sights I've ever seen. Just look at this beauty!

Opening to Gljúfrabúi, PC: Brian T

Gljúfrabúi, PC: Sam W

Sam, Brian, Hannah, and I spent a few minutes sitting inside a tiny cave along the path to the waterfall, which made the perfect place to transition the engagement ring over to Zach!

Inside the tiny cave, PC: Brian T

The cover photo for the ring hand off!, PC: Sam W

Inhaling our PB&J, we took a quick break to regather the troops before heading out to Dyrholaey.

The journals Landry made for us, PC: Sam W

Wool shop at Seljalandsfoss, PC: Brian T

On the way to Dyrholaey, we decided on a whim to take a detour to Myrdalsjokull Glacier just off the road to Vik. Following a gravel path (and then ignoring "danger" signs after that), we walked right up to the glacier and were able to climb on the (relatively) small protrusions of ice at its base. If you do climb, be careful -- the ice is covered in most places by inches (and sometimes feet) of packed black sediment. A few members of our party jumped back just in time, as 3 feet of the stuff suddenly gave way as they stood on the edge of a 30-foot-high chunk of ice!

Myrdalsjokull Glacier, PC: Sam W

Right before the sediment gave way, PC: Sam W

Myrdalsjokull Glacier, PC: Brian T

Inside a piece of the glacier, PC: Brian T

Next, we were awed by the vertigo-inducing cliffs of Dyrholaey. Dyrholaey is a prime place for spotting puffins, who like to make their nests in the rock faces 1200 feet above the black sand beaches of Vik. The cliffs aren't for the faint of heart, as there are few real barriers between you and the ledge, but I was thankful Brian and our friends finally convinced me to crawl over to the edge for pictures. Dyrholaey was not only a prime place for puffins, but also, as we discovered, a prime place for an engagement, as it was here Zach asked Sharayah to marry him and she said yes! We broke the quietness of the mountaintop with our cheering, and I think even the puffins were excited!

Dyrholaey cliffs, PC: Emily M

We'll pretend I wasn't about to throw up from the height, PC: Emily M

Dyrholaey, PC: Brian T

SO MANY PUFFINS!, PC: Hayley P

Landry closing in on a puffin, PC: Sam W

Puffins are pretty cute...just not cute enough for me to walk over to the ledge, PC: Sam W

Dyrholaey, PC: Sam W

Celebrating the NEWLY BETROTHED! PC: Landry J


Iceland decided to go all moody on us as we left Dyrholaey, PC: Sam W

Lastly, we traveled to Reynisfjara Beach, entering the black sand at the parking lot of the Black Beach Restaurant. It was very rainy, windy, and cold, so we didn't stay too long, but we enjoyed running from the HUGE waves and skipping perfectly smooth, flat stones into the water!