My weather luck finally ran out!

I can't complain, though, as I had 4 days of glorious weather. One Icelander told me that this week was the best weather they've had all summer, and the weather today was not too bad. It was overcast for most of the day, though the sun or a bit of blue sky did show up occasionally, and the rain was not too heavy. They say if you wait for the rain to stop here before you do things, you never see or do anything. Later in the day, as I started the drive up the east coast, there was also fog and I started to experience some of the notorious wind. Do you know that if you don't hold your car door firmly when you open it, and it is damaged by the wind, no insurance will cover it? Even if you've got the top policy on your rental. There is even a sticker on each door, reminding you to hang on.

I started the day doing a hike to the Skaftafellsjökull glacier in the Skaftafell region. It was an easy hike, and very flat for Iceland. It really wasn't raining much, but it was very overcast. I am always surprised at the amount of water that flows off glaciers. When you see it, you are no longer surprised at how fast the glaciers are melting—it's more like I wonder how they can lose that much water and not be melting even faster!

I found the flora on the hike back (by a different route) even more interesting. All the plants are very low the the ground and make a colorful carpet. They are also very easily damaged, so it's very important to stay on the marked trails. And, of course, at all of the sites I've visited so far, I've seen evidence that tourists have ignored the signs and damaged the plants to get that perfect selfie. Like the morons on the cliff the other day, for some reason some tourists think that the rules don't apply to them. But I'm off track now.

Anyway, the largest plant was a type of birch, and it looked more like a small shrub than a tree. The rest were a real mixture, from heather to mosses to different types of berries. I actually ate a black crowberry—they had been part of the meal from the other night, so I knew they were edible. There were also some mushrooms, but nothing that I could identify.

From the national park, we moved on to Glacier Lagoon. Side note: I'm still traveling in sync with my friends from the other day, though we'll part company tomorrow. It's been great fun hiking and hanging out with them, and I've seen things I might well have missed had I not been with them. I'm okay traveling alone, but I do enjoy sharing the fun with other people, especially when they're people on the same wavelength. Anyway, Glacier Lagoon was really foggy and drizzly, but the brilliant color of the icebergs brightened things up. There were a bunch of large bergs, many with that glorious blue color, sitting in the bay, and other, mostly smaller ice bergs floated by. The site was pretty crowded. There was a large group of SE Asians making a huge racket—probably a group of 15-20 people—but they were having such a wonderful time that I ended by smiling with them. They were literally dancing with joy, and anyone so very happy should be able to make some noise.

In the visitor's center, I finally tried one of the famous Icelandic hot dogs. They are made with lamb (and other things) and I'd heard really good things. My verdict: it was a hot dog, and not the best one I've ever eaten. I think I'll give Icelandic hot dogs a miss from here on out. Sorry, no pictures of the hot dog, but it was a long skinny hot dog with a skin more like a sausage.

Across the highway from Glacier Lagoon is Diamond Beach. The icebergs float down the river from the bay and out to sea. Lots of them then wash up on the black sand beach. The appearance of the chunks of ice on the black sand gives the beach its name. Of course, the day was overcast and raining, so the ice wasn't sparkling like it would in the sun, but it was still pretty impressive and I got some pictures that I like.

I had commented earlier in the day that I hadn't seen a single mammal (except for domestic) since I arrived, so I was excited to see grey seals. They were in the river and off shore, and appeared to be having a wonderful time in the water. I did get some pictures, but I was having trouble keeping the rain off my lens at this point, so they're not very good pictures. I still think they've got very cute faces—it must be the large eyes.

At this point, we had decided on a campground for the night, just south of the East Fjords, so I headed north. The weather decided to get nastier, but the rain still wasn't too bad. The fog was a little unnecessary, I thought. It was still a lovely drive up the coast. It reminded me a little of the California coast, with mountains and cliffs right up against the ocean, but the geology is very different, with a lot of gray stone and many waterfalls coming over the cliffs. I hate to say it, but you really can get tired of waterfalls, even glorious ones. I met a German couple tonight (scientists!) and the husband was at the point that he will just say, Oh, it's just another foss (the Icelandic word for waterfall). I'm not quite there yet.

This is a lovely campground in the hills above the coast. They've got a large building with a cooking area and picnic tables (and heat!), and everyone crowded in to fix their dinners. Had I realized cooking would be so easy tonight, I might have brought food for a hot dinner. Of course, I didn't see a single store today. I did see a combo gas station and cafe (I'm getting hooked on Swiss mochas), but no grocery at all.

Tomorrow I'm going to explore the East Fjords, then start moving a little faster heading back toward Reykjavik. I've decided to complete the Ring Road—rather than retracing my steps along the southern coast, I'm going to drive the northern coast. I won't be able to dawdle, as I have to get the camper van back on Sunday afternoon. I hope to get to Myvatn or Akureyri, which would be close to half way back. I'll explore the northern coast and the western part of the country when I come back on the 27th for another week.

At Glacier Lagoon