Journey to the Center of the Earth

Snæfellsnes Peninsula - July 18, 2022

Went to the bus this morning and guess who was there!?! Elena and her mom - fun! See that, I can already tell it is going to be another good day. We are heading to the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, the area recorded in the Jules Verne's book, "Journey to the Centre of the Earth."

We are on the bus for about two hours before we make it to our first destination, but today's drive has probably been the most beautiful so far. The Snæfellsnes Peninsula is full of large volcanoes covered in lush green grass and the long winding highways snakes its way around the mountains.

We get out at Vatnaleid to stretch our legs for fifteen minutes. Mountains surround us on both sides and the view in front looks out over a moss-covered lava field that extends into a lake. I walk down the hill toward the lake and there is a small dappling of sheep over the landscape. They look wild on the landscape, but each sheep out there has an owner. They run free all summer and are gathered by the locals prior to the winter. The gathering and sorting of the animals in September is a big event and most locals participate. Once gathered, the sheep are sorted by the numbered tags they wear in their ears. Until then, they roam free over the landscape and make for a pretty picturesque view. As I descend down the hill, it becomes clear why the sheep are here. There is large cave hidden behind a beautiful waterfall that flows down towards a stream that makes its way to the lake. Seems like an amazing place for the sheep to gather with their local sheep friends and catch up on everything that has happened since last summer.

After a short drive, we arrive at Kirkjufell (also shown in Game of Thrones). Kirkjufell is an interesting arrow shaped mountain with steep edges, and it accompanied by a lot of other interesting scenery including a waterfall, a lake, and a small town.

We stop at Ljósufjöll on our way to Djúpalónssandur beach and climb to the top so that we can look down into the volcanic crater. From the top, I can see a few more volcanic cones rising out of the flat moss-covered lava. On the north is a beautiful view of the mountains and glacier of Snæfellsjökull.

We climb back down and head to Djúpalónssandur beach. Djúpalónssandur is another black sand beach, but unique because of the rusty iron remains of a 1948 shipwreck that are haphazardly scattered across the beach. The remains are protected and remain there as a monument to the 14 dead and 5 survivors of the wreak.

The eeriness of the scattered ship remains is heightened by the unique landscape of fairytale shaped lava formations surrounding the beach and the freshwater lagoons. All this, and it still has a perfect view of the Snæfellsjökull volcano and glacier that you can sometimes catch site of through holes in the lava formations.

After Djúpalónssandur, we head to Arnarstapi and the Lóndrangar basalt cliffs covered in the hexagon shaped pillars that form when the lava flows into water.

This was once a volcanic crater, but erosion has worn down the walls of the crater leaving behind rocky formations jutting out of the water and a number of caves in the cliff walls, now home to some very loud nesting terns.

We walk from Arnarstapi to the neighboring fishing village of Hellnar. With the cliffs on the right and a beautiful field and omnipresent Snæfellsjökull volcano acting as a backdrop for each site in the Snæfellsnes peninsula, I can understand why the area is steeped with stories of elves and trolls roaming the landscape.

After we make it to Hellnar, we head to the golden sand beach of Ytri-Tunga. Oddly enough, this beach is unique because it is not black. We spot a number of seals basking on the volcanic rock in what little sunlight they can find but they are so far out, it is hard to snap a picture. Instead, we spend some time walking the beach before heading to our final destination, the black church, and then back to Reykjavik.

Tired and happy, we get back in the van and get ready to make the two-hour trip back to Reykjavik. What a beautiful last drive to have through Iceland. Snæfellsnes Peninsula is truly one of the beautiful areas in Southern Iceland.