Golden Circle- Iceland

Arriving in Reykjavík in August, we weren’t expecting tropical weather but a rainy, 43 degrees with 30 mph winds was a surprise.  Luckily during our visit, the cool, rainy weather didn’t interfere.  Booking an Airbnb apartment on the outskirts of Reykjavík and a rental car, we had easy access to routes we selected.  In a country with a population of only 360,000, one of the things that quickly became obvious was the number of sheep in the countryside far outnumber the people, and horses are plentiful.  There are said to be around 800,000 sheep and 80,000 horses.  Icelandic horses are a special breed; they are smaller in stature and have a gentle nature.  Horse riding rentals was a common sight in our travels. 

One of the most popular trips for visitors with limited time in the country is the Golden Circle and was our first outing.  The trip is only about 147 miles, or a 3 1/2 hour drive if driven straight through.  For us, it was an 8-hour trip, and we missed several possible stops.  Thingvellir National Park is important from a national history perspective, in addition to being the location of the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates.  We walked between the two plates which continue to shift slowly apart at the rate of roughly 3/4 inch a year.  In 930 AD, this was the site of Iceland’s first Parliament, which continued to meet here until 1798.  

Moving on, our next stop was the Geysir Hot Spring area.  This geothermal field covers an area about one square mile with boiling mud pots and the Strokkur geyser which erupts every 8-10 minutes, spouting water as high as 100 feet.  The namesake for the park, Geysir, rarely erupts these days. 

Located along the Hvita river, Gullfoss (Golden Waterfall) cascades in two stages and is said to be one of the most popular attractions in Iceland.  Though during our visit we didn’t see the golden hue the falls are famous for, we did witness hundreds of other tourists trekking to the top of the falls to catch the beautiful views.  

Hot springs and swimming pools are an important part of Icelandic social culture.  Secret Lagoon Hot Springs had been on our agenda, but stripping down to a bathing suit in the 40-degree weather was just something we couldn’t get excited about, maybe next time.