Day 23 (29.7) – Reykjavík to Hvolsvöllur
I started my way to the Blue Lagoon and filled the tank with 10 € in the first gas station I came across. I was undecided between taking road 42 south or 428 instead(which is equally connected to road 427, despite Google not showing it). Road 42 probably had better views, but 428 was unpaved so I chose the later. The views were also great and the road quite good, with the only difficulty of much gravel in some sections. I took the picture below in this location.
I intended to take a bath at the Blue Lagoon, but after a long queue I found out that I needed to book the time beforehand. The next available time was late in the evening, so I continued my route instead. One can see parts of the lagoon without entering the resort. The resort gave me a bad impression in terms of mass tourism.
Without any more sightseeing, I went all the way to Hvolsvöllur where I decided to stay due to the strong winds that I suffered all day. Somewhere along the way I had coffee and ice cream for 4.5 €. In Hvolsvöllur I bought groceries for 5.2 € and filled the tank for 9.3 €.
Day 24 (30.7) – Hvolsvöllur to Kirkjubæjarklaustur
I have no complain about the campsites in the south. The one in Hvolsvöllur costed 9.6 €, plus 3.2 € for a hot shower. I continued my way east through the only possible route, the Ring Road.
My first stop was Seljalandsfoss. There was a machine to pay 5.6€ of parking, which I did despite not seeing any way of enforcing it. Seljalandsfoss is famous because you can walk behind it, which I also did. Unfortunatelly I don’t have any picture, but you can find them in the Internet as usual.
Next was Skógafoss. There are stairs to walk to the top of the waterfall, where you can see amazing views and some rapids. It’s actually one end of a very promising trekking route but I didn’t have time to do it.
From a parking there is a short easy walk to the edge of Sólheimajökull outlet glacier. It is possible to hire a walking tour on the glacier, but I didn’t want to spend the time and I had a good view anyway.
Then I stopped in Reynisfjara Beach. It’s one of the most amazing places in the south, with several types of rock formations to see, like in the picture below.
I continued east and my next sight was the lava formations of Laufskálavarða. The most interesting spot is this location where I took the picture below. There was a tradition of travelers making piles of stones for good luck, but now it’s disallowed to avoid damaging the landscape.
I finally reached Kirkjubæjarklaustur to spend the night. There I bought groceries for 21.3 €, and before I had lunch somewhere along the route for 39.8 €.
Day 25 (31.7) – Kirkjubæjarklaustur to Höfn
Kirkjubæjarklaustur campsite was another good camping. I mostly appreciated that it had a roofed place to hang your clothes. One night costed 7.1 €, shower included.
I filled the tank with 17.4 € and continued my way east. This day I stayed in the ring road, stopping to watch the glaciers and lagoons along the route. They are all visible from the road, but in some cases you can get really close with just a short walk from the nearby parking.
The picture below was taken in front of Svínafellsjökull Glacier. It obviously isn’t the glacier itself, but pieces of ice and water coming from it.
I stopped to have a good view of Fjallsárlón lagoon, which I share with you below. The best part couldn’t be captured in a picture: I was quietly enjoying the sight, with nobody nearby, when I heard a loud thunder noise coming from the glacier. I guess a big piece of ice fell somewhere, but I couldn’t see anything happening.
Of course, I stopped by Jökulsárlón lagoon, which you can’t miss because it is right by the road. It was the most popular among tourists. I didn’t take any picture, but you can find plenty in the Internet.
Somewhere along the route I had coffee and a cake for 6.5 €. The trip ended in Höfn, a town famous for its seafood restaurants. I went to Pakkhús, where I spent 7.2 € in a beer while I waited for a table, and then 62.8 € in a dinner of lobster and cake dessert. It was worthy.
Day 26 (1.8) – Höfn to Egilsstaðir
One night in Camping Höfn costed 7.2 €. It included the shower, which I remember being as good as the rest of the facilities. I filled the tank with 14.6 € and continued my route north-east. This day would be more about riding that sightseeing.
Following a recommendation of the Lonely Planet guide, I took road 92 to Neskaupstaður. I didn’t like it: it was all asphalt, the scenery was nothing I hadn’t seen before, and I found the road scary and dangerous due to the combination of steep slopes, tight turns and traffic.
I filled the tank again with 10.9 € to do road 953. This was a different story, a curly dirt road with lots of gravel and slopes. The views were great and different depending on the section. Unfortunately I didn’t have time to go all the way, I turned around here. The video below was taken on the way back, from the fjord to the west.
After that I went to spend the night in Egilsstaðir.
Day 27 (2.8) – Egilsstaðir to Seyðisfjörður
The camping in Egilsstaðir had good facilities too. This one had several washing machines. One night costed 11.3 € and included the shower.
I had the breakfast buffet in the Cafe next to the camping, but for the price of 13.5 € I thought it wasn’t worthy. I packed my stuff and left it at the camping to travel light, since I was passing by in the evening. I filled the tank with 8.5 € and went to explore the area south-west without any specific plan.
I first went along road 931 in the north of Lagarfljót because it is unpaved, but it wasn’t that fun because there were houses so I drove carefully. Then I continued south-west along road 910, which is a boring paved road.
I remember taking some roads south, getting kind of lost, and ending in a dam that was probably this. They were dirt roads but too good to be fun, so I went back north to the same point of road 910.
From more or less the same point of road 910 I took road F923 north. It seems Google Maps doesn’t know about this road, but you will find it in any paper roadmap. This is one of the best roads I did in Iceland, full of gravel and stones. At the beginning there was a river crossing, then a steep slope down, and in the north end the biggest river crossing I did in Iceland. You can see it in the video below. At the other side there is a farm and from there the road is quite good.
When I reached the Ring Road I had lunch in a nearby restaurant for 17.2 € and filled the tank for 10.6 €. Then I tried road 901 from east to west, a fast dirt road, not challenging but fun. After that I took road F905 south, but it’s one of those roads with perpendicular carving. I got annoyed with the vibration and turned around. Finally I took the Ring Road and road 93 to Seyðisfjörður, stopping in Egilsstaðir to pick my things. In Seyðisfjörður I bought groceries for 14.7 € and spent the night waiting for the ferry back to Hirtshals.