We started off day four of the trip in high spirits, after spending the night in the luxurious Hotel Laki. The previous night we'd been awoken by an exited Mr Dalton who informed us that the Northern Lights were making their first appearance of the trip. We all quickly got dressed into the first items of clothing we could find and then looking like we'd just robbed a charity clothing store in the dark, we headed outside to see the aurora (with the exception of Dan Milne who somehow managed to sleep through the commotion and therefore lock me out of my room). We were lucky to be staying in a hotel in such a remote location, because if we were in the city Reykjavik, we would be unable to see them due to light pollution; the lights were so faint that even our best cameras were barely able to take a photograph of them.
Despite the late night awakening, we were all ready to set off in the morning, thanks in part to a buffet breakfast on offer in the hotel.
We headed for Skaftafell National Park, the largest national park in Europe, and our first stop was Skaftafell visitor centre where we watched a short film about the Skaftafell floods of 1996 which devastated the area and we also had a look at the many exhibitions on display.
Next, we headed for Jökulsárlón ice lagoon where we observe the calving icebergs but mostly tested out our stone skimming skills. Then we headed for a nearby cafe to have lunch.
Next on the itinerary was a visit to the beach where the calved glaciers were washed out to sea. We climbed on the icebergs which had been washed up on the beach.
Despite the majority of us getting wet feet, we were looking forward to climbing on Europe's largest moraines (mounds created by glaciers) and photographing the tongue of the glacier which had created them.
For the final stop of the day we went back to the Skaftafell visitor centre to climb the hill which shadowed over it. To get to the top, we had to walk a few kilometres on tough, changing terrain, but once we conquered the summit, we were glad we made the effort; the views of the glacier channeled by the hill a few hundreds of metres below made a fantastic photo opportunity, even if we'd fallen over a few times on the ice to be granted the opportunity. We spent a few minutes taking in the view before we headed back down to the bus, feeling like we'd just been the first people to conquer Mount Everest.
On the long journey back to the hotel, there was a surprisingly hyper atmosphere on the bus. We were 'entertained' by a selection of 80's songs which were somehow made to sound even worse by the girls at the front of the bus but soon the inviting sights of the hotel came into view, ending another long day of activities in Iceland.
We then got washed and dressed and headed to tea, which again like the previous night, was superb.
Jake Glowienko
Despite the late night awakening, we were all ready to set off in the morning, thanks in part to a buffet breakfast on offer in the hotel.
We headed for Skaftafell National Park, the largest national park in Europe, and our first stop was Skaftafell visitor centre where we watched a short film about the Skaftafell floods of 1996 which devastated the area and we also had a look at the many exhibitions on display.
Next, we headed for Jökulsárlón ice lagoon where we observe the calving icebergs but mostly tested out our stone skimming skills. Then we headed for a nearby cafe to have lunch.
Next on the itinerary was a visit to the beach where the calved glaciers were washed out to sea. We climbed on the icebergs which had been washed up on the beach.
Despite the majority of us getting wet feet, we were looking forward to climbing on Europe's largest moraines (mounds created by glaciers) and photographing the tongue of the glacier which had created them.
For the final stop of the day we went back to the Skaftafell visitor centre to climb the hill which shadowed over it. To get to the top, we had to walk a few kilometres on tough, changing terrain, but once we conquered the summit, we were glad we made the effort; the views of the glacier channeled by the hill a few hundreds of metres below made a fantastic photo opportunity, even if we'd fallen over a few times on the ice to be granted the opportunity. We spent a few minutes taking in the view before we headed back down to the bus, feeling like we'd just been the first people to conquer Mount Everest.
On the long journey back to the hotel, there was a surprisingly hyper atmosphere on the bus. We were 'entertained' by a selection of 80's songs which were somehow made to sound even worse by the girls at the front of the bus but soon the inviting sights of the hotel came into view, ending another long day of activities in Iceland.
We then got washed and dressed and headed to tea, which again like the previous night, was superb.
Jake Glowienko
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