The Frozen Scenery of Iceland

On January 11, 2021January 11, 2021 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Iceland4 Comments

We have visited many places where the scenery was just absolutely amazing and Iceland was certainly one of those places. We will often take hundreds of photographs, using multiple cameras, and even though we find the photographs stunning, they don’t always capture the moment. Whether it was driving around the Golden Circle or heading along the coast to places like the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, the views are just spectacular. It is such a rugged environment and the fact that we visited in winter made it even more stunning. We stayed in the capital city of Reykjavik and rented a car so that we could drive ourselves around the beautiful island.

Although we have shared many of the photographs during our time in Iceland such as those of the black beaches, the Gullfoss Waterfalls, and Geysir, there are literally hundreds of images that we haven’t had the chance to share. The contrasts of the scenery from volcanos, the ocean, ice and snow, lava fields, mountains, and glaciers make every image unique. We decided to take this opportunity to share some of the photographs that we took during our trip that we have never previously shared.

We spent several days driving around Iceland, so the conditions were different as it was sometimes sunny and sometimes snowy. Also, because it was winter, the days were very short with the sun not rising until around 10:00 a.m. in the morning and setting in late afternoon. That allowed us to have different views of the places that we visited with many changes in lighting. At times the scenery was almost hauntingly beautiful and other times it was simply awe inspiring. Although we didn’t get a chance to make our way around to some of the more distant destinations in Iceland, like those driving around the Ring Road, the places that we did visit have made for some of our favorite memories.

Looking Forward, Not Back in 2021

On January 5, 2021January 5, 2021 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Blogging, Travel Tips1 Comment

We would normally start off the new year with a recap of our travels from the previous year, but since our travels were so limited we decided not to do that this year. There wasn’t anything magical about the first of January that will suddenly make everything that was wrong with 2020 come to an end as we are all too painfully aware and the start of 2021 feels pretty much like a continuation of 2020. Travel restrictions continue around the world and despite the hope that a vaccine brings, it is going to take a while before it provides the impact that everyone is hoping it will have. That assumes, of course, that the new mutations don’t impact the efficiency of the vaccines. We cancelled all of our major trips that we had planned in 2020, including trips to Turkey and Western Africa. Although we don’t have enough confidence to start planning anything new quite yet, we have tentatively planned to visit Portugal at the end of April.

The new year does come with a sense of optimism that perhaps we will all return to some sort of normalcy in the coming months. Like many people, we are itching to get back to exploring the world and perhaps the lack of travel will inspire us to go to places that we hadn’t previously considered. We still hope to do a safari in Africa before the end of the year and have several other ideas of places we’d like to visit. It is truly hard to believe that it will have been at least a full year since our last trip out of the country and close to a year and half since our last significant trip, which was to Vietnam in November of 2019. When all of this started in March of last year, we really didn’t expect it to last for more than a few months and now it feels like it is never going to end, but we are trying to be hopeful.

With that said, we are not just putting 2020 in our rear view mirror, but doing our best to erase it from our minds. Until we can get to someplace new, we will continue to revisit some of our past trips to help us find inspiration for the future. We are doing lots of research on places that we’d like to see in 2021 and probably reading more about them than we would have previously done. We are also paying attention to the changing requirements for travel, such as proof of a negative test and potentially proof that you have been vaccinated, which we hope isn’t the case going forward. We know that some people found a way to continue traveling even in 2020, while others probably won’t travel until things have completely returned to normal. Whatever your plans are, we hope everyone has a safe and wonderful new year.

New Year’s Fireworks Over the Acropolis in Athens, Greece from Our Trip in 2017

Black Lava Beaches on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula in Iceland

On December 18, 2020December 18, 2020 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Iceland1 Comment

One of the most interesting things that we’ve seen in our travels are the black lava beaches in Iceland. There are several of them on the island, but we visited the ones that are on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. They are especially interesting when seen during winter when the black of the lava contrasts with the white of the snow. As time goes by, the larger lava rocks slowly erode to an almost sandy appearance, but it is still quite rough. We stood for quite some time just watching the waves pounding against the rocky shore, the power of nature in all of its glory.

To get to the black beaches on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, you go into the Snæfellsjökull National Park and head toward the Malariff Lighthouse. From there you simply continue to the shore where the beaches line the coast. You will also get a chance to see the twin peaks of Lóndrangar, which are huge lava rocks along the shore that have survived years of erosion. As we continued down the coast away from Malariff, we came across even more dramatic lava rocks on the shoreline. The lava has been carved into sheer cliffs with the waves crashing along their base. Even further along the coast, we came across large lava fields along the shore that almost looked like we had been transported to a foreign planet.

Visiting the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, which has been described as Iceland in miniature, is definitely something that should be seen during any trip to Iceland. For many reasons, seeing the black beaches along the coast is something that we found extremely beautiful as well as geologically fascinating.