Sunday, June 9, 2024

Day 8 (June 2):

 We camped in Staftafell National Park, which was a lovely campground. Trees, showers, washing sinks, and even a free washing machine/dryer, though still no wifi. In the morning, Meg took the hike to the waterfall, and then we both hiked (this time really a short hike) to the nearby glacier. Along the way, we passed some of the native birch trees, which once covered as much as 40% of Iceland. Early settlers cut them down for housing, fuel, and to make room to grow crops. They introduced sheep. All of that led to massive erosion and <1% of the land now covered with trees. They're working on reforestation and it was nice to see the birch up close. 


We drove through the moss desert that day. It looks pretty bleak this time of year, but this stuff is amazing. No roots, so it's VERY susceptible to disturbance. Later in the year, it turns purple. We were standing at an approved overlook:

As we traveled, the winds got stronger and stronger, making it hard to keep the camper on the road. We drove through several dust storms, both from areas of human disturbance, and not. The wind was just really strong. 

So we powered on to get to Vik. At checkin, I asked the guy if these winds were normal and he said they were - but in fact there were yellow wind warnings out all over the country. Normal - but nothing to trifle with! 

The hexagonal building was an indoor kitchen/cleanup/hanging out space. The campground was pretty quiet when we arrived, but more and more and more campers arrived until it was hopping by 10 pm. 



Around Vik:

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