We were up early and hit the road, continuing eastward along the south coast. Thanks to some timely googling, we found a rough unmarked dirt road, leading about ten slow and bumpy minutes inwards to a gravel berm. From there, we began a three-hour hike (round trip) UP and into Mulagljufur, an epic canyon some have dubbed "The Land Before Time".
After a long trek upwards, with only two other (younger and fitter) people ahead of us, we crested a final ridge and saw the full canyon in all its glory - the greenest of greens, several waterfalls feeding a stream, a hanging glacier, soaring birds, sheep grazing up the mountainside.....and the utmost peace. Jane was literally moved to tears.
We spent a half hour just enjoying the spot, before other hikers started to appear. It was still VERY hard to leave, but we began the long trail back - the view going down wasn't too shabby either, with a glacial lagoon beyond the ridge to the left and the ocean far below in front of us.
Once we jostled our way back to the Ring Road, a short drive saw us at Fjallsarlon, that same glacial lagoon on yet another tiny finger of the immense Vatnajokull glacier. One of our favourite bands (Iceland's own Kaleo) shot their video for "Save Yourself" here on an iceberg.
Next up was the larger glacial lagoon at Jokulsarlon, filled with people and icebergs which have calved off the glacier. We were lucky to actually see a chunk break off a large iceberg, causing it to roll over in the bay and reveal its glassy underside. Pure magic. We also grabbed fish (Atlantic Cod) and chips for lunch at a food truck called "Nailed It" - and they did. Easily the BEST we have ever had, anywhere.
Walking under a long single lane bridge, we wandered out onto Diamond Beach, where the iceberg chunks end up in various sizes, all glittering in the black volcanic sand.
We completed another spectacular day with a stunning drive along the coast, with mountains to the left and ocean to the right, until we stopped for the night at the town of Hofn. I had to put gas in the van for the first time - though only down to half a tank, gas stations are few and far between in Iceland. It's done a little differently, with a console to choose your language and pump and pay, but at least we are used to PIN cards. At $3.289 per litre, my choice of 12,000 Icelandic Kronurs just got me back to full.
After buying some snacks, shampoo and laundry detergent at the N1, we had showers at the campground and then a simple dinner of boil in bag meals. We then settled in for the night and listened to music we brought on a small wireless speaker, with a nice view of tomorrow's mountains.
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