Escape to Spring

Part of the series: Living in Saskatchewan

Snow fall, My Front Yard, Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Being my first full winter in Saskatchewan, when we had a foot of snow at the beginning of November last fall, I wasn't overly concerned.

When the middle of April arrived this spring and I still couldn't see my front yard due to the two feet of snow in it, I became... agitated.

And when I got caught in a freak snowfall last Tuesday evening, I was just barely hanging onto my sanity.

So on Wednesday, when Angharad was commiserating with me on the never-ending winter and texted me this little note:

"Come on ovah for some rare sunshine with blossoms added!"

I booked one of my flight pass trips to go to Vancouver for the weekend. :) I know. Twist my rubber arm or what!?!?

Iceland Highlights

Based on my research so far, it seems that a road trip of Iceland will be mostly waterfalls, hiking, and driving through scenery. The planned highlights will be whale watching, a boat tour of the Glacier Lagoon, and a day at the Blue Lagoon hot springs. Knowing me, if I'm not careful about how many waterfalls I plan to hike to, after 10 days, I'll be completely bored and tired of stopping just to hike to another waterfall. I have also noticed a horseback riding tour, which might be interesting, as long as I get a REALLY easy horse to ride, and there are some islands that it might be possible to visit by ferry for a day here and there. The trick when planning a trip like this is to make every day just a little bit different, and I'm a little concerned that if I follow the National Geographic tour, or even Rory's itinerary, I won't enjoy myself the entire time.

This will take some very careful planning.

Further notes:

• Gentle Giants whale watching from Husavik; 50-100 EU/person.
• Ferry to Grimsey - Arctic Circle. Departs from Dalvik at 12:00 Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Departs at 16:00. (~71 CAD)
• Westman Islands - Ferry leaves from Landeyjarhöfnmore 4x daily; $32/person

National Geographic's Iceland Trip

National Geographic has a trip that you can take with them – a cruise around Iceland. It is a 10-day Itinerary, with an optional pre-trip extension of 3 days. To me, in combination with the knowledge that a Ring Road exists around Iceland, and at first glance, this translates fairly simply into a really great road trip.


National Geographic Itinerary (including the pre-trip extension)

Day -3: Fly into Keflavik airport. Stay at the Blue Lagoon Spa overnight.
Day -2: Drive to Reykjavik, check into Grand Hotel. Guided walking tour of the capital in the afternoon.
Day -1: The Golden Circle: Geysir/Strokkur, Gullfoss, National Park of Thingvellir, return to Reykjavik
Days 1 & 2: Walking tour of Reykjavik’s Old Town – highlights include: Hallgrimskirkja, National Museum
Day 3: West Coast of Iceland: Latrabjarg cliffs, Flatey Island; explore coast by Zodiac
Day 4: Isafjordur
Day 5: Northern Coast of Iceland: Siglufjordur – Herring Museum, Akureyri – Walking tour, botanical garden
Day 6: Myvatn and Husavik: Hverarond mud pools, Krafla geothermal area, Viti crater, Godafoss, Grimsey. Explore the coast by Zodiac. *Midnight sun of summer*
Day 7: Exploring the Langanes (East Coast of Iceland): hiking, coastal exploration by Zodiac…
Day 8: Djupivogur: Vatnajokull ice cap, boat ride through Jokulsarlon
Day 9: Westman Islands:
Day 10: Blue Lagoon, Fly out of Reykjavik.

After more in-depth analysis, the National Geographic trip, being a cruise, includes quite a bit of coastal exploration that might not be possible if you are doing a road trip. I’ll have to compare that with the road map, and will also compare it to the itinerary and sights that Rory mentioned in his blog.

Iceland - Officially on my list!

Part of the series: Planning

I have been wanting to add Iceland to my list of places to go for a long time now, but never could quite figure out where to start.

I found it today. It's called the Ring Road, and it goes all the way around the island, with lots of scenery to see on the way.

• Reference: Where the Hell is Rory

Rory's Itinerary:

Days 1: Fly into Reykjavik. Walking tour(s) of city.
Day 2: Golden Circle Tour: Thingvellir National Park, Gullfoss waterfall, Haukadalur, Kerio Volcanic Crater
Day 3: Reykjavik to Vik: Seljalandsfoss waterfall, Eujafjallajokull volcano, Skogafoss falls (hike up above falls), glacier (unnamed)
Day 4: Vik to Hofn: Laufskalavarda, Fjadrargljufer gorge, Gigjukvisl Bridge, Skaftafell National Park (Jokull Glacier), Jokulsarlon (glacial lagoon), Glacial River Bridge (information office, boat tour through lagoon, black sand beach)
Day 5: Hofn to Myvatn: Drive through Fjords along coastline, Geothermal pools @ Myvatn
Day 6: Myvatn to Akureyri: Drive around Myvatn Lake, Skutustadagigar, Dimmuborgir (lots of hiking paths), Hverfell crater (hike to top for view), Grjotagja, Namafjall, Dettifoss falls, Halfragisfoss falls, Husavik (whale watching), Godafoss falls
Day 7: Akureyri to Reykjavik: Western coast of Iceland

More to come.

Gotta Love National Geographic!

I am a little bit obsessive-compulsive when it comes to certain things like planning my trips, eating my M&Ms, and loading a dishwasher.

Also, about what my desktop background looks like. And for that, I go to National Geographic. (www.nationalgeographic.com) They have a section called Photo of the Day, which I have mentioned previously on this blog. (Trier, Germany) The photos are generally spectacular, with a different theme each month. Much better than any stock image that comes with a computer.

This morning, on my daily check for the Photo of the Day, I noticed a couple of other sections on their website. Really, I was looking for what I have decided will be my Christmas gift to myself (after I move into my new house, which is why I don't have it already) - a set of hard-cover books called the 500 Best... Road trips, food trips, journeys, hidden journeys, etc. - I think I am going to get myself 4-5 of the series. ANYWAY, what I found were two sections that I hadn't noticed before: Adventure and Travel. And within each of them, a list of 20 must-see places this year!!! (Lists figure high on my Most Favourite Things List) :)

After a VERY brief glimpse, I decided that the Adventure section was a little to... adventurous for me, but oh, the travel section is just right!