Day seven on the Ring Road in Iceland

I go for a walk before breakfast to soak in the morning sunshine and enjoy the Iceland landscape in relative quiet. The occasional sheep bray or a lone car passing on the highway in the distance, along with the ocean waves crashing onto shore are the only sounds I hear.

I find a magical waterfall before heading into Vik town. I have an hour to kill before my horse ride, so I go to the infamous church overlooking town. The light this morning makes everything around me look so special and peaceful.

I leave Vik and drive the Southern coast of the Ring Road with no set destination for the day. I’ll just stop at recommended attractions that suit my fancy. First stop is the Sólheimajökull glacier. One can do an adventurous tour climbing onto the glacier itself, but I don’t have time for that. Instead I hike to a magnificent viewpoint.

I stumble upon Geysir area. Being from The West, this place immediately reminded me of Yellowstone, and was just as fascinating as that National Park. Steam rising from the belly of the Earth, with Geyser’s that would erupt cold droplets of steam onto anyone brave enough to stand in the Geysir’s trajectory. You know I tried this more than once, and it was a thrill every single time.

I come to Seljalandsfoss, and the largest gathering of tourists I’ve encountered are to be found here. Since I’m getting closer to the capital city it would be expected, but the sheer numbers of people are still a shock to my system after days of hardly seeing no more than groups of twenty or less at most other sites I’ve been to.

The waterfalls here though are spectacular, with one being able to hike behind one waterfall, and you can go through a cave tunnel to emerge at the base of another, watching the water cascade down right on top of you.

After a full day of driving and sightseeing along the Southern coast of Iceland, I eventually end up back in Reykjavík and the same hotel where I started this adventure a week ago.