Meet a real top geyser
WELCOME to Keflavik Airport. Local temperatures are a pleasant minus three degrees,” said the pilot, cheerily.
We’d just touched down for a five- day adventure of supercharged natural wonders in Iceland – the land of fire and ice.
Stepping out into mid-afternoon sun, our boots four inches deep in snow, the sky was silver blue and the air smelt of sulphur.
Iceland is not your everyday holiday destination. There are no golden sandy beaches, balmy summer evenings or champagne spray parties at nightclubs.
Instead you can marvel at frozen waterfalls, hot springs and black sand beaches
Its uniquely startling landscape offers the wildest thrills and the coolest ways to chill, as well as a pretty good chance to witness the northern lights, the celestial phenomenon that attracts thousands of tourists every year.
A geothermal hotspot, with a population of just 360,000, Iceland was formed on a magma pocket, a point on the earth where the subterranean mantle is hotter and more active than the surrounding rock.
Thundering
As a result, the country’s residents can experience up to 500 earthquakes a week.
It is this unpredictable rock formation that explains its distinctive and dramatic terrain, from magnificent glaciers to thundering waterfalls.
While most tourists tend to book into hotels in the capital, Reykjavik, we opted for a self-catering stay in
Borgarnes, a little town on a peninsula on the shore of the Borgarfjorour, a two- hour drive north from the airport.
On our first morning, in bracing minus eight temperatures, we hit the road to Iceland’s biggest tourist stretch, The Golden Circle.
It has several stop- off points, where you can visit – mostly for free – some of the country’s most iconic landmarks.
A good place to start is Thingvellir
National Park, a geological sensation that sits between the North American and European tectonic plates, meaning you can, technically, straddle two continents.
Starting from a cute village church, we took the Oxararfoss Trail, which features locations of three scenes from Game of Thrones season four, including the Bloody Gate, its rocky path leading to the Oxararfoss waterfall on the River Ax.
But the best was yet to come.
Gullfoss waterfall, in the canyon of the Hvita River, is one of the island’s most soul- stirring spectacles. A
FALL GUY: Trip to Gullfoss waterfall
DIP IN: Bridge into the Blue Lagoon
roaring ro two-tiered cascade dropping just over 100ft into a narrow canyon, Gullfoss translates as “golden waterfall”. On sunny days, thousands o of rainbows hover above it, a natural reaction w with the clouds of spray fizzing from m the falls.
Further along the Golden Circle e tour is the Geysir Geothermal Field, plus lus dozens more hot pools that have been n erupting since 1294.
The biggest geysers of Haukadalur are Strokkur and
Geysir. Strokkur is dependable, erupting every five to ten minutes and is crowded with visitors all day y lo long hoping to catch it on camera. a. E Eruptions last about 30 seconds and nd can be seen for miles. We then headed down to Perlan, also known as The Pearl.
This futuristic-looking museum and restaurant with a revolving glass-domed roof, stands on top of Oskjuhlio Hill in Reykjavik.
Offer Offering panoramic views of the capit capital it is also a hotspot for watc watching the northern lights, which ca can be seen on clear nights be between August and April.
The site is built on top of six ta tanks that store 24 million litres of Reykjavik’s hot water.
A At night the tanks are lit up by flood floodlights that illuminate the tower f for the entire city to see.
DOME SWEET DOME: The Pearl museum
TOUR: Emma, left, with her friends
Th The road to reach it is just as hy hypnotic, passing by several sle sleeping volcanoes and beautiful fro frozen waterfalls.
T The beach itself is a geological phen phenomenon. The mysterious basalt
STEAMY BREAK:
colu columns, rising out of thrashing
Geothermal pools
Atla Atlantic waves, were once part of the shoreline’s li ’ cliffs liff and are now home to thousands of nesting sea birds.
But if you prefer, these peculiar-looking rock pillars are said to be petrified trolls, that were caught outside at sunrise and frozen in time.
Whatever you choose to believe, Iceland and its other-worldly sights are guaranteed to wow any visitor.
Iceland’s famous Blue Lagoon is the country’s flagship hot spring. Heated by geothermal activity, its tranquil waters are said to have skin-nourishing properties, due to o the white silica mud beneath it.
With the £38 basic admission fee, ee, you get a towel, locker, face mask sk and a drink.
Or you can upgrade to the £ 54 premium package for an extra face mask, slippers, use of a bathrobe, restaurant reservation and glass of sparkling wine.
But if you are looking for something off the beaten track, then try the black sand beach of Reynisfjara, a sunset paradise on the south coast.
SPLASH OUT: Blue Lagoon