Day 5 — The South
We woke up to a very beautiful view of the ocean in Vik. The day was warm and sunny, and we took to the road without wasting time. First we drove around the city for a bit, which is a really nice village. Perhaps the highlight of Vik is the little church that overlooks the city and the ocean from the top of a hill. It is worth to see the view from the church as well, where you can check the whole city and the rocks at the end of Reynisfjara.
We left the city for Reynisfjara, the most famous beach of Iceland perhaps, known for its black sand and beautiful rock formations. One thing to note is that this part of Iceland is different from the rest. There are a lot more people here in the south and virtually anywhere that is part of the Golden Circle. This is the place you’re gonna run into a lot of tourists, maybe have some difficulty finding a parking spot and definitely needing more patience to get the pictures you want. It’s really important to be super aware while driving, that are a lot of people trying to go faster than it is allowed, passing others in places they shouldn’t etc.
We got to Reynisfjara pretty early, and there weren’t that many people there. The rock formations are very interesting, with basalt columns present as well. At the end of the beach there are rocks coming out of the sea, sort of making a barrier between you and Vik.
After the Black Sand Beach we headed to nearby Dyrhólaey, a small peninsula with a lighthouse in it. The rocks are beautifully shaped, and house a huge number of birds.
After Dyrhólaey we headed to a place infamous for being hard to find. The DC3 wreckage in the middle of a ash and black sand desert is well known, and getting to it is easier than it is said to be in every post about it. You just have to follow a pretty well marked trail and you’ll eventually reach it. You can also walk, though it is not really recommended if the weather is anything near not great. Especially because they can get worse pretty quickly in Iceland. If it’s summer though, there’s not much to worry about.
When we got there there were a couple of, well, not pleasant guys, to say the least. They kept driving with a huge SUV around and very close to the plane. Stopping near it and taking pictures of the car. They were probably shooting some promo material for some brand trying to look cool and adventurous. I get it. I get people working and doing what they have to do. But be considerate about it. There were a couple more people just there waiting for those guys to do their thing and get out so they could also enjoy it. One thing people should keep in mind when traveling is that that place, that thing, is not yours. It is everybody’s. Pay attention to other people who are around you. Pay attention to what you’re doing to that place. As you can see, their monstrosity in wheels made some pretty noticeable scars in the sand. This wasn’t the only place we found this kind of stuff. Some places had deep scars in the ground that were getting bigger and deeper because of erosion. When you have a machine so big you can just pass over anything, you don’t pay attention to what you’re actually doing to what is below. There’s no point in going to Iceland to admire its wilderness if you’re inside a tank that is ruining that same wilderness.
This one ran as kind of rant I guess. In the next one I’ll keep it more focused on the places, which will be the rest of the Golden Circle. So lots of well known, but still beautiful, places.
