Onion River Exploration Project: From Reykholt to Husavik

Day 6 (8/5/13)

A couple of Trolls we met on our trip

Day three starts with a hike to the top and around the rim of an extinct volcano. Although the wind had died down a little since yesterday it was still quite windy when we get to the top of the crater. There are three craters in the Grabrokargiger system, Stora (big) Grabrok, Litla (small) Grabrok and Grabrokarfell. We hiked around Stora Grabrok but were able to see over into Grabrokarfell. There is a moss that is one of the first plants to take hold on the lava. When it is dry it turns almost white but gets greener as it gets wetter. When we started our tour around Iceland it was rather white but with the rain it was getting greener by the time we were done. Iceland is very particular about respecting their surroundings and stress protection of the vegetation. Heavy fines are leveled against anybody offroading or even walking in undesignated areas. Even cairn building was forbidden in certain areas like the craters. The vegetation is very fragile because of the newness of the environment. It was a good thing that we started the day with a hike because much of the day was spent traveling. We had to make it from Reykholt on the western coast to Husavik on the northern coast before we stopped for the night. Along the way we traveled through many beautiful valleys and fjords until we got to Skagafjordur known as the “Valley of Horses”. Eventually we stopped at Akureyri, Iceland’s third largest city, for a visit with some Trolls and some shopping. After that it was off to Godafoss (Waterfall of the Gods) one of Islands most beautiful waterfalls which is saying a lot when they have so many. Legend has it that the local chieftain threw all of his sculptures of pagan gods into the falls when he converted to Christianity. Finally we made it to Husavik where we are going to stay for the next couple of days without having to repack in the morning.