Reykjavik; Thursday, 06 April, 2006

After an early breakfast we waited for collection for another tour. This time a full day tour, and this time the transport wasn’t a coach.

A little after 8:30 a very large, very comfortable, off-roader turned up to take us on our tour of the south coast.

After taking in the geothermal springs that run Reykjavik and stopping for lunch supplies, we started driving along the edge of the Eyjafjallajökull glacier stopping at the front end of the glacier just where the ice melts into a small lake and river. We then drove back along the edge to the Seljalandfoss waterfall

After spending some time at these spectacular falls, we carried on along the coast to the small island of Dyrhólaey where we got stunning views over the glaciers, mountains and the lava beach. From the top of the island we drove across the causeway back onto the mainland and then onto the lava beach. Standing on the beach surrounded by very black sand, black sand dunes and a stunning sea is one of the most bizarre experiences I have had.

From there we continued on to Skógafoss another spectacular waterfall, this time with the sun light just right for it to create rainbows over the pool at the bottom.

With the sky still clear, we headed back into Reykjavik for a spot of dinner before being picked up for the delayed Northern lights tour.

Sadly, the Northern lights stop being visible a few days after we went, and on the day we went they were very weak. After a couple of hours of driving in the dark in a luxury coach, pulling randomly over to the side of the road every now and then to check we finally saw faint green stuff that looked like clouds in the sky, too weak to be photoed, but still an experience.

By the time we got back to the hotel it was 1am and we knew that we had to be up early tomorrow to get the flight home.