Our second day in Iceland was amazing! Our first stop was only ten minutes away at the Hraunfossar and Barnafoss Waterfalls. They are a series of waterfalls flowing through and around lava rock. It was amazing to see the formations of the lava rock and the beautiful color of the water flowing through. This was only a glimpse of what we would see the rest of the day.
We then made our way to the snæfellsbær peninsula where we were immediately met with some of the strongest winds I have ever experienced. We stopped along the shore numerous times, first stopping at the Ytri Tunga beach where we were able to watch for seals, look at whale bones washed up, and for the first time witness the weather change rapidly. We continued on our journey to a giant cliffside with powerful gusts of wind. There were a few times where I felt like I was going to fly away as the wind reached speeds of over 50 miles per hour. Along the cliff I witnessed some of the biggest waves I have ever seen. It’s incredible that people would take out small wooden boats and risk their lives to fish in the ocean during this time in the season where so many things could have gone wrong.
I don’t think I can really compare this landscape to anything I’ve ever seen before. Everything about today was unlike anything I have ever experienced. Going from driving through mountains formed by volcanoes immediately to a freezing coastline with incredibly fast wind speeds was very fun and interesting. Today was a great day of hiking and exploring and I can’t wait to experience more of this country and its incredibly volatile cold weather.
Swanson School of Engineering 