Saturday, August 1, 2015

Lady's Birthday Adventure - Part 6

We will begin by answering some questions posted on last weeks part 5.

Easy asked if all that volcanic activity smelled. The answer is some of it did. In one of the places we stayed the water had a slightly sulphur smell and taste. The place that looked like Mars was by the far the stinkiest place. It really smelled like rotten eggs. We didn't find the hot spring smelt very much.

The Daily Pip asked about the temperature. The temperature, as in the weather, was between 5-15C/41-51F (perhaps a bit warmer a couple afternoons in the sun). The temperature of the water in the places that it bubbled up at the side of the road were reported to be 80-100C/179-212F, so dangerously hot. The temperature of the bathing hot springs is apparently 37-39C/99-102F.

Now on to part 6 - Snow and Ice

You would think that as a Canadian who just survived the coldest winter on record I would have selected a trip to somewhere that was warmer. Truth be told, I like cooler temperatures. I don't mind visiting snow or having it around for a few days. Surprising for a place called Iceland, there is less snow than you would think during the summer.

In earlier post I have shared a few pictures with snow, my favourite picture, a favourite road, so here are some new ones.

Going up the Myrdalsjokull -(a glacier)


This was the view going up in a super jeep

The next picture is me near the glacier. We didn't stop on the edge of the glacier due to time. The drive up that big hill in the last picture took some time. The glacier is receding about 50 feet a year. Several years ago where I am standing would have been glacier.



This next set of pictures are from one of our favourite stops. This lagoon is where icebergs calf. It has been featured in a number of movies including Laura Croft Tomb Raider, Batman Begins, and Die Another Day.

This was the one spot where I spent a lot of time reflecting on the issues of climate change and global warming. If the glaciers are receding so quickly, what is the future of a beautiful place like this? Will my niece ever get the chance to see this, or will it be gone by the time she is old enough to travel? It was truly one of the coolest (literally and figuratively) natural wonders I have seen and imagining a world without it is a little sad.







Even a seal lived in the lagoon!


The bluer the ice, the older it is. The more water is compressed the bluer it gets

There was of course some snow and ice still in the mountains


This was at the top of the scary road!

That is a sample of some of the ice and snow we saw.

Next week, we will look at waterfalls. We saw more of them then snow!  I am also happy to answer any questions you have about the country.








12 comments:

  1. Hari Om
    I love that blue ice, all adding to the sense of Earth history.... YAM xx

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  2. It's great to see the rocks, the water and the ice and all things look like endless.. it's a little like watching Robert Falcon Scott and Josephine Peary on their way to northpole ...btw: Easy want's to spend the next howl-i-day on your Mars... he loves the smell of rotten eggs... dogs... sigh :o)

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  3. It looks way to cold for me - but I am sure the boys would love it :)

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  4. Wow! We loved seeing your great photos of Iceland. Ghostwriter has always wanted to go there!

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  5. That is beautiful! BUTT mom would probably freeze to death cuz she is old and freezes easily. The blue ice is very beautiful!

    Your Pals,

    Murphy & Stanley

    Pee Ess - Watch for the announcement on Wednesday of new details of the 2016 Retreat!

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  6. Really quite stunning places to see
    hugs
    Mr Bailey, Hazel & Mabel

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  7. So cool!!! My huskies would have loved that part of the trip!
    ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!

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  8. How beautiful!! I just love how blue the water and icebergs are!!

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  9. So cool! (Figuratively and literally). BTW we went to the Columbia Ice Fields (near Jasper) a couple of years ago. I had not been there for 30 years and I was SHOCKED at how much they have receded! When I look at the photos of my parents there on their honeymoon I am even more shocked. I guess global warming is happening everywhere!
    LOVE the blue ice!

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  10. Absolutely breath taking! I don't think I could handle that level of cold though, haha.

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  11. I don't really love the cold, but the beauty of places like that is so breathtaking! And I imagine it is even more so when you see it in person.

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  12. Those blue tinged ice fragments never cease to amaze. Such a beautiful colour.
    Cheers,
    Gail (who also lives in and prefers a cooler climate).

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