I knew Iceland would be special! It has been on our radar for quite a while, so I couldn't have been more excited to visit at last, and was eager to explore and collect some more memories.
We had two and a half days to hit all the highlights, so we decided to keep moving, driving straight from the airport to visit Thingvellir, the volcanic national park which sits in a rift valley caused by the separation of two tectonic plates, and then on the second day hopping from waterfalls to geysirs, to the incredible Gullfoss, before ending the day by relaxing in the thermal pool of the Secret Lagoon. On day three we took a less structured approach, stopping off at the spectacular Kerid Crater before setting off to drive around the coast for a hundred miles or so, just enjoying experiencing the ever changing volcanic landscape, the crashing waves of the turbulent North Atlantic coastline and finally, as our amazing luck would have it, the shimmering Northern Lights dancing us to sleep on our final night.
Being quite early in the year, we were hoping that the Golden Circle wouldn't be too busy, and maybe it wasn't compared to the busier summer months, but it felt busy as we had been spoilt by the relative quiet of our recent visit to the 'as-yet-undiscovered' treasures of the Azores.
Most of the sights involved a drive followed by a short walk to a viewing platform shared by other visitors, but we set off early on our second day to try to beat the crowds, for a 6.5km return hike to visit Bruarfoss, the reknowned blue waterfall.
It was worth the early start as there were only two cars in the carpark when we arrived. Wrapped up warmly, we set off upstream following the wide Bruara River which is composed of meltwater from west Iceland's largest glacier, Langjökull. At first the path was wide and dry and we were walking, boots crunching, on gravelly volcanic rock. We crossed a stream and the path took us away from the river slightly, through some low shrubby bushes, the terrain becoming more and more muddy until we were squelching along, almost up to our ankles - thank goodness we had worn walking boots!
As the path returned to the river, and firmer ground, we reached the first of three waterfalls, Hlauptungufoss. Barely mentioned in the reviews I had read, we were not prepared for the spectacle in front of us, as the clear ice blue meltwater approached the falls and was forced through the narrow gorge, the overspill forming several smaller waterfalls further along the rocks. The noise was deafening and the power and speed of the water rushing past was quite dizzying to watch.
Continuing alongside the river, the path turned sandy, and then rocky, and we had to scramble a little; but it was an easy scramble, made even more pleasant by the constant babble from the water on our left. After 500m or so we reached the second waterfall, Midfoss, which was much less ferocious than the first, instead tumbling gently over scattered rocks before falling to a glacial pool below, a frozen ridge of ice visible below the surface giving the water an aquamarine beauty.
Beyond Midfoss, the path turned from the water heading inland around a river island covered in moss and lichen, and then led us uphill and inland for a while, back through skeletal shrubs and mud. Returning to the river, the path approached the final highlight, giving glimpses of Bruarfoss for a hundred metres or so until we reached a bridge which doubled up as a viewing point.
Different again, this time the glacial meltwater spilled from a horseshoe shaped outcrop to form an icy blue ribbon flowing under the bridge, with rivulets of excess water cascading over the whole of the rocky surface, it was quite a spectacle.
After spending a few moments enjoying the majesty of nature, its colours, movement and sheer force, we made the return journey which was equally enjoyable as we could enjoy each of the previous waterfalls again from the opposite direction.
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