We started day four with breakfast at the hotel again. This morning I finally tried skyr, which is a traditional dairy food from Iceland. It is kind of like yogurt but thicker and a little more creamy. It was different from what I usually eat at home but honestly really delicious and a great way to start the morning.
After breakfast we got on the bus for about an hour and a half drive toward Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon in Vatnajökull National Park. We first stopped at Diamond Beach and the glacier lagoon and the views were absolutely breathtaking. The lagoon forms when pieces of a glacier break off in a a process called calving. These chunks of ice float through the lagoon and eventually drift out to the ocean. Waves then wash some of the ice back onto the black sand beach, which is why it looks like sparkling diamonds sitting on the sand. It honestly looked different everywhere you turned.
After that we continued to the Skaftafell area of Skaftafell Nature Reserve where we went on about an hour hike up the mountains. Along the hike we saw waterfalls and some incredible views of the surrounding mountains and glaciers. On our way back down we made a few stops to learn more about the landscape.
One stop was to look at a twisted metal bridge that was destroyed during the 1996 Skeiðarársandur glacial outburst flood. In 1996, volcanic activity under a glacier caused a massive glacial outburst flood called a jökulhlaup. Water that had been trapped under the glacier suddenly rushed out, carrying huge chunks of ice and debris. The force of the flood was so powerful that it bent the steel bridge and completely destroyed the road. We also got to see Hvannadalshnúkur, which is the tallest mountain in Iceland at about 2,110 meters. It sits on the edge of the Vatnajökull glacier and shows how glaciers and volcanoes shape Iceland’s landscape
Later we stopped at an area with amazing basalt columns similar to those seen near Svartifoss. These columns form when lava cools slowly after a volcanic eruption. As the lava cools and contracts it cracks in geometric patterns, often forming tall hexagonal columns. It is a natural example of physics and cooling patterns happening in rock.
After a long day of exploring we finally made it back to the hotel where we showered and rested a bit. A few of us stopped and tried Icelandic pizza which was honestly super tasty. Later we went out for dinner where I had lamb with mashed potatoes followed by an amazing dessert that was kind of similar to cheesecake.
Now we are back at the hotel getting ready for the night. As I am writing this we are actually camping outside hoping to see the northern lights. Fingers crossed we get lucky tonight.
Swanson School of Engineering 