My first trip to Iceland

Back in September 2019 I went on my first photographic trip to Iceland which I planned with my friend and travel mate James Borg. We went for a 2 week stay from the 12th September till the 25th September so we will have enough time to visit certain places around the ring road and golden circle .

We decided to rent a Motorhome from GEYSIR Motorhome Rentals (www.motorhome.is) and made some research in which locations we’re going to camp, as around Iceland campsites are very efficient, so efficient that one can buy a Camping Card that gives you access to several camping sites all over Iceland for a maximum of 28 nights for one family (2 adults and 4 children 16 years old or younger). This camping card can be bought from www.utilegukortid.is

Þetta eru þau tjaldsvæði sem eru innfalin í Útilegukortinu árið 2020. These are the camping sites that are available with the Camping Card this year.

Campsites open all year (Iceland)

We landed in Reykjavik at around 23:55 pm and stayed in a nearby appartment just 10 minutes away by car from Reykjavik Airport, as we needed to rest to begin our journey early morning. (We stayed at the Keflavik Micro Suites).

We started the journey by picking up our motorhome and we headed to Bonus supermarket to stock some food and snacks for the trip.

( You can find Bonus supermarkets all over the whole country. We shopped mostly from Bonus, but there two others supermarkets that are Netto and Kronan but Bonus was the most convenient one)

Next stop was Reykjaness & the famous stacks. We also passed by Blue Lagoon and finally settled in Selfoss Campsite ,

that night we were unexpectedly surprised to witness the aurora for the first time .

After that incredible night, as soon as we woke up we headed to Kerid Crater . It is only 15min by car from Selfoss camping site and we managed to catch the sunrise reflecting in the crater.

This enormous crater was actually a volcano which is thought to have formed when the magma in the center simply depleted itself, and emptied the chamber beneath and caved in.

As we were in the Golden Circle it was a must to visit Bruarfoss , The Geysir ( geothermal geyser that erupts every 8–10 minutes & reaches heights of 20 meters) and Gullfoss . (if you are going around the Golden Circle it’s a must to visit these four locations).

This time we were a bit late on track as we drove late at night and we had almost 1h and 45min to our next campsite which was Seljalandsfoss Campsite. Unfortunately we missed a great sunset that evening but we had more days ahead so we just watched it while driving .

After a good rest with no Aurora at Seljalandsfoss we continued the journey with an incredible secret cave system that has a unique waterfall to it, Gljufrabui Waterfall Cave. From the moment you enter the cave you can feel the magic inside , it is beautifully green and the waterfall comes down with impressive power and the cave around it makes this waterfall more magical than any others.

Then off to the mighty Skogafoss and Solheimasandur Plane Crash. I was really looking forward to capture some images of the epic plane wreck on the black beach in South Iceland. In 1973 a United States Navy DC plane ran out of fuel and crashed on the black beach at Sólheimasandur. Fortunately, everyone in that plane survived and now its a main attraction in Iceland.

The planned next stop was Dyrholaey but we couldn’t get there as the wind was around Force 12 and we encountered severe weather with heavy rain. We needed to stop for a while , but after 1.30 hours the weather settled and we continued for Reynisfjara Beach (aka The Black Sand Beach) and we stayed there for sunset. Reynisfjara has been picked as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world , one needs to be careful as it's also one of the most dangerous tourist destinations in Iceland known for powerful sneaker waves.

We tried to keep with our plan to visit Vik Famous Chapel but it was getting late and we planned to go in a campsite in the highlands of Iceland next to Vik.

Later, we went to Pakgil Campsite , and we experienced the best night in the whole 14 days with the Aurora shining above us.

We waked up as usual early in the morning to go visit Vik Chapel and restock some food and snacks from Kronan Supermarket as it was almost 45min by car from Vik.

Iceland has got some spectacular canyons, one of which is Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon in South-Iceland. Fjaðrárgljúfur is a canyon with quite a unique serpent-like shape and it was not well-known to visitors to Iceland until a few years ago. This was planned to be our next stop in which we had to hurry a bit as we had almost 2h 30m drive to reach our final destination for the day: Skaftafell Campsite ( I have to say the most beautiful campsite we have ever been in Iceland through the whole trip - Highly Recommended).

The Skaftafell Area is actually in Vatnajokull National Park and in that area there is Svartifoss Waterfall were its name literally means ‘The Black Waterfall’. The narrow and extremely elegant cascade drops 20 m (65 ft) from a crescent-shaped cliff, composed of magnificent hexagonal black basalt columns.

On our 6th day we were in the Southeast part of Iceland were we had very bad weather. It was practically raining all day , it is very normal for Iceland but the locations we were to visit next were upon my bucket list as I hoped that I will be able to capture some good images .

Iceland is famous for these three locations up next Jökulsárlón glacier , Dimond beach & Vestrahorn aka the Mountain of Stokkness.

Before we went to Jökulsárlón we visited glacier Fjallsjökull, originating from Vatnajökull whichextends all the way to the lagoon’s surface, where large icebergs break away from the ice cap and fall into the water below.

With the many hundreds of icebergs that float atop the lagoon’s surface, Fjallsárlón is considered to be a strong second to the nearby, and more famous, Jökulsárlón glacier Lagoon.

Though smaller than its neighbour, it is less known, thus less crowded with other visitors.

Eventually we managed to take some images but unfortunately the mountain of Stockness was all covered with clouds. We stayed there for a while maybe it clears out, but we had no luck so we headed off to Hof campsite.

The next morning, although we were a bit disappointed from the day before as the severe weather continued even at night, we managed to continue our journey to the northern part of Iceland were our next destination was Seyðisfjörður. Seyðisfjörður is a small fishing village located at the end of the East fjords, in Iceland, in the Austurland region.

The typical wooden houses, for which the village is known, were mostly built by Norwegian fishermen in 1848.

We were then ready to visit Seyðisfjörður so we can then relax from the drive and explore the village and decided to visit

Viti Crater and Krafla volcanic caldera next.

Fully charged after a good night’s sleep we were ready for a packed day ahead as we planned to visit the mighty Dettifoss reputed to be the second most powerful waterfall in Europe after the Rhine Falls, as well as Krafla volcanic caldera (Recommended if your in the northern part), Viti Crater & Godafoss.

While at Krafla volcanic caldera I felt so peaceful … It was such a distinct experience that I’m sure I will never forget it … It’s like the earth itself came alive: a true volcanic experience.

After that amazing experience, we then visited Godafoss. We drove into a near by camping ground which was about 15min far, located in Sigríðarstaðir.

One of the top attractions in Iceland are the famous hot tubs, but we didn’t manage to visit one (Actually we tried to go in the blue lagoon in the beginning but it was fully booked as you need to book beforehand), but we managed to visit a beer spa.

This time it was a totally different experience drinking beer in the hot tubs: a great relaxing, fun experience.

The beer spa can be found in Árskógssandur and its called Bjórböðin - SPA & Restaurant.

We then continued to drive to Hosfos and set everything in Hvammstangi Campground so in the morning we can go to sea some seals at Illugastadir Seal Beach .

Till now we had only 6 days left and so we decided to spend them in the Snaefellsness Peninsula & thingvellar as there’s a lot to see especially in Hellnar as well as the black church of Budir ,londrangar , Snaefellness National Park & the centre of attraction: Kirkjufell.

For our first 4 nights from the 6 days left we stayed in the Arnarstapi camping grounds as from there we reached most of our destinations and Arnarstapi campsite is very organised and welcoming .

We were then approaching our last 2 days, so we went to visit Þingvellir National Park were you will be able to walk between two continents as it crosses 2 tectonic plates: the boundary between the North American and Eurasian , so Silfra is one of the best spots for diving in Iceland and many people find the rift unique on an international scale.

The reason for its fame is the astounding visibility in the clear, cold ground water and the magnificent surroundings.

Oxarafoss Waterfall is one of the main attractions of Þingvellir National Park were the pool at the base of the waterfall is filled with rocks and is often extremely icy during winter.

For our last night in Iceland, we stayed at Þingvellir camping grounds and we took our chances to see the auroraor the last time as the kp index was marking high, but again clouds manifested all around us, but since the aurora activity was strong we could still see the aurora colouring the clouds .

I feel that this country has touched my heart and as a photographic trip I can really say that it’s a true paradise were one can be pleased with the raw nature itself . The untouched nature is what makes Iceland so special and what draws more people to it. It’s like you’re seeing the whole world in just one country. I even enjoyed myself while I was driving as I was seeing different scenarios all the time: from volcanos to black beaches, glaciers and waterfalls and the aurora itself .

Winter in Iceland makes it even more special as one can go into ice caves but these are open between October till March. It is then another thing in summer as you’ll see it in a much more different perspective. You won’t manage to see the aurora or the ice caves, but you get to experience the midnight sun were you will have the whole night shooting sunset as nighttime will turn to daylight. Basically, Iceland is beautiful in every season you visit!

For a better idea of what type of daylight hours to expect when traveling to Iceland during the spring and summer months here is an overview.

April 15 - Sunrise: 6:00 Sunset: 21:00 Daylight = 15 hrs

May 15 - Sunrise: 4:15 Sunset: 22:35 Daylight = 18.5 hrs

June 15 - Sunrise: 3:00 Sunset: Midnight Daylight = 21 hrs

July 15 - Sunrise: 3:40 Sunset: 23:25 Daylight = 19.75 hrs

August 15 - Sunrise: 5:15 Sunset: 21:45 Daylight = 16.5 hrs

Sept. 15 - Sunrise: 6:50 Sunset: 19:55 Daylight = 13 hrs

For me Iceland is an incredible country and I think every photographer and adventurer needs to go and visit once in a lifetime as there’s so much to see and learn. For me its not going to be the last for sure and hopefully when things settle down from the covid19 pandemic, I’ll be there in no time.

Here are some images behind the scenes :

Iceland - The Land Of Fire & Ice