Today we are doing part of the Golden Circle and the highlight will be snorkelling at Silfra where we can see the tectonic plates. We a bit nervous about snorkelling since it was just reopening today after a fatality, but we are excited for this experience.

We woke up to rain, but as we have learned it does not last long. The sun came out and warmed us up. The weather changes fast and frequently here. We began our morning with a drive through the mountains. This was interesting as we drove through rain, snow, sleet and ice. The scenery here continues leave me in awe. We saw mountains, Icelandic horses, lakes, a volcano and more waterfalls. Our pictures can’t even express the beauty of this country.


On our drive we saw, Grabrock crater in Borgarbraut.


As we continued our drive to Pingvellir National Park we had to go through the Hvalfjorour tunnel. It goes under the Hvalfjorour fjord. It is 18 930 feet long and reaches a depth of 541 feet below sea level.

We arrived at Pingvellir National Park full of nerves and excitement. We were a group of 5 – us 3 and 2 ladies from Belgium. Our guide Richard P was wonderful we felt safe and ready for what he described would be an amazing experience. It was quite the production getting ready. On top of our own thermals and wool socks there was a thermal onesie – like Thomas’s snowsuit and then a dry suit. The dry suit was a challenge because it was very tight around the neck, thankfully I was the only one in our group that didn’t need what I can only describe as a rubber dog collar.

Getting ready!
Tectonic Plates here we come!
That’s me!

 

Our group stretching to touch both the North American & European tectonic plates

We did it!

 

The water was not as cold as we thought it would be. It was 2C, but in the summer only gets to 3C. The water was crystal blue glacier water and tasted so clean. Is was more of a float following the small current. This was truely an incredible experience. Again the pictures can not capture how awesome this was. After our snorkel, we were given hot chocolate & cookies. I would highly recommend this experience with Dive.IS.

While at the park, we hiked to Oxararfoss. This magnificent waterfalls is almost hidden between two ridges. This is definitely a tucked away gem worth seeing.

After this it was time to make it to our Airbnb for tonight. We stopped at the gas station for groceries. Got to our cabin, made and enjoyed a pasta dinner with some wine.

To top off this day, the night sky continued to entertain us. Full moon, stars, and red lights possibly from geothermal.