Day 19: A Day Trip from Reykjavík: the Reykjanes
Trip Start
Jul 05, 2010
1
19
21
Trip End
Jul 25, 2010
Reykjavík, Iceland
Friday, July 23, 2010
Weather on the Reykjanes is reputed to be the worst in the country. It lived up to that reputation today. Three vehicles arrived at 10:00 to take those who wanted on the Reykjanes tour. David and Franzi were the only members of the younger crowd who went. Þorleifur drove one vehicle with his geologist friend, Stan, and Jake. Franzi, David, AJ, and I went with his son, Bjőrn Þorleifsson. The third vehicle was driven by another friend. The weather was so bad, I was never introduced to the other men.
Our first stop was at the geothermal field at Seltún, a nice array of boiling mudpots around a maar that exploded after a well was drilled. We then drove through Grindavík and past the geothermal power plant to the large geothermal field at Gunnahverir. It was impossible to distinguish between the steam and the fog. Our next stop was at the Reykjanesviti, at the extreme southwestern tip of the peninsula. This is where the midocean ridge comes ashore. It is rather graphic with tensional faults and fractures on the side of the graben and pillow lavasand hyaloclastites exposed in the outcrop. Several abstract sea stacks stood just offshore. The wind was fierce and I had trouble keeping my balance at one point. Stan assisted me. Soon Þorleifur and Bjőrn appeared to help, as well.
Our final stop was at the Brú Milli Tveiggja Heimsálfa (Bridge Between Two Continents), south of Keflavík, where a footbridge was constructed across the 20-meter wide rift graben to dazzle visitors. It was worth the visit.
The weather cleared, somewhat, on our way back to the city. Bjőrn took Franzi, David, AJ, and me on a scenic detour through Hafnarfjőrður, a nice, harborside, bedroom community on the west side of Reykjavík. He dropped us off downtown so we could do some shopping. We stopped for a cup of coffee first and then went to the hand-knit woolen goods guild shop. I bought some nice gloves but proceeded to lose one of them within an hour. I bought a few more trinkets and then the three of us took a cab back to the campground where I showed everyone the glove I had bought.
At 8:00, Þorleifur and Bjőrn arrived again and began ferrying people over to Áskur, a nearby Icelandic restaurant that is becoming the traditional farewell dinner spot. They gave us our own dining room. I was glad to see that Þora was there too. Everyone was there except for Antony. I was also sorry that Þráinn was unable to make it.
Upon Þorleifur's recommendation, I ordered flounder. Had I seen that foal was on the menu, I probably would have ordered that. Þora and several students did. It was an excellent meal; everyone enjoyed it.
At the end, I said a few words and then Þorleifur gave a nice speech and presented me with a symbolic ash-filled vase, representing Eyjafjallajőkull and a daisy coming out of the top, symbolizing, the plume, regrowth, his mind in the clouds… who knows? We promised each other we would work together again.
I paid the bill and we were ferried back to the campground. Bjőrn took his car home and then returned to lead those who wanted on a night of clubbing in downtown Reykjavík. Most of the younger crowd went with him. A few of us stayed up chatting and dissecting the trip. Two things that I will do differently in the future are 1) include a tour of the Reykjanes on the trip from Keflavík to the campground on the first morning and 2) get a second dining tent if thee are more than 12 people. This was my best trip to Iceland, so far.
I closed up camp around 1:00 and went to bed, wondering when the midnight carousers would return.
