Fuji

Having had a great afternoon exploring the Goldern Circle, we set off early the next morning to head towards Vik, the southern most village in Iceland.  The plan was to stop at Seljalandsfoss & Skogarfoss as we explored the Southern Coastline.

We arrived at Seljalandsfoss about 11am and the place had already started to buzz with tourists, many buses were stopping for people to have a 30 minute break.

We approached the waterfall and found there are steps to climb at each side. I climbed them, thankfully I had a set of crampons on my boots, these were a necessity. Only a  few people climbed and ventured to the edge of slab of ice at the top. With nothing but a piece of string guarding the edge, they were taking their life into their own hands.

Due to the ice, wind & amount of spray it was hard to get a good photo as the tripod could not sit still on the ice.

The steps at the other side were not as steep but went in deeper, this was taken from the other side

After venturing on to Vik and exploring the black beaches before having dinner in a lovely cosy restaurant we started on the return journey to Reykjavik. On the way home we stopped for a few minutes at the waterfall to get some photos at dusk and without the hoards of tourists.

And a couple in Black and White:

These waterfalls were well worth visiting, the sound of the water is awesome.  Next post will be of Skogafoss.

On a recent trip to Reykjavik, Iceland we were fortunate to witness the Northern Lights in full display. I say fortunate as they are also one of the most elusive and unpredictable attractions Iceland has.

Before our trip we checked the Icelandic weather and forecast site to plan our itinerary. On the Saturday we knew there was supposed to be a clear sky and Aurora activity along the South Coast so decided to travel down to the waterfalls of Skogarfoss and Seljalandsfoss, visiting Vik the most southerly town. Our hope was then to catch the Northern Lights on our journey back to Reykjavik that evening.

We left Vik about 1845, visiting the waterfalls again in the hope of getting some pictures without the myriads of tourists and continually looking for green in the sky. As we approached Selfoss we started to see a few faint streaks in the sky and shortly after followed the car in front and pulled over to witness the amazing display.  Having seen people capture the Northern Lights in Northern Ireland which are really only visible via a camera, it was amazing to actually see these scenes with the naked eye.

We stopped at a couple locations on the route to Reykjavik here’s the awesome sights,

14mm lens with ISO 1250, Shutter Speed: 15seconds, Aperture: f2.8

14mm lens with ISO 1250, Shutter Speed: 14seconds, Aperture: f2.8

14mm lens with ISO 1250, Shutter Speed: 14seconds, Aperture: f2.8

My favourite shot from the night:

14mm lens with ISO 1250, Shutter Speed: 14seconds, Aperture: f2.8

This was the first overseas trip on which I got to use the Fuji X-T1.

At Keflavik airport we picked up a rental car, as we had decided it would give us more freedom to explore Iceland. One of the sites we checked frequently before driving was Iceland Road conditions. Snow tyres were a must at this time of the year.

From the airport, we took Route 1 heading inland towards Gulfoss & Geysir through Pingvellir National Park.  Flat plateau’s quickly gave way to majestic snow covered mountains.

Here’s some photo’s from en route to Pingvellir.

Having enjoyed a beautiful journey up to Gulfoss we stepped out of the car to howling winds. Wrapped up and with my balaclava replacing my hat that had blown off, we joined the steady stream of tourists on the board walk down to  the waterfall. The sound, size and views of Gulfoss were amazing.  Here’s a few photographs from different angles.

A few abstract photos at Gulfoss:

15minutes from Gulfoss, on the way back to Reykjavik, is Geysir. The snow around the geysers is melted from the boiling waters and everyone stands around expectantly waiting for  hot water and steam to jet from within the earth below. The blue of the erupting water was incredible.