Alive and well...

Thursday late - 2am Friday morning to be precise. 

Well, after driving for what seems like a thousand miles I am back at base. Unable to sleep after too much coffee and the aurora tonight which were spectacular - aided by the fact that we still had the car, so could head out of the village and away from the streetlights. 

Iceland has amazed me every day. Just when I think I'm beginning to understand the landscape, the roads and the weather, it all becomes chaotic, diverse and unexpected. The snow we have had so far is really dry. Even if you fall into it or step into a snow hole (ha ha...) your clothes stay dry. The roads are mostly covered in ice. Ice around 3 inches thick, often with a bit of snow on top. The snow ploughs do a fantastic job of clearing everything in their path, whilst leaving that lovely, 3 inch ice rink for anyone without crampons to slip over on, and for cars to - wait for it- travel at 90km/hr on.... This is the norm. Yesterday, day one, every time a slight curve in the road was visible half a mile ahead, I'd use the gears to slow down in readiness for any potential skids or slides. Everyone else - yes EVERYONE goes at 90 all the time. It's terrifying!!! Considering we cancelled our Christmas party because our street had a bit of ice... In Iceland we'd be laughed out of town and ridiculed for a long long time. 

I won't do a chronology of the trip but give you a few highlights. It was really difficult to get good pictures of the myvatn nature baths because we were so desperate to get in, nothing else mattered. Also the front of the phone kept steaming up and finally it was too dark. 

I do want to take you through this experience a little because it was memorable and blissful. 

Imagine that you are really cold, but you are well wrapped up with hat, gloves, boots, coat etc. Now imagine that the -3 degrees are worsened by a harsh wind offering a further 5 degrees reduction for wind chill. Probably the best example I can remember is standing on Mam Tor in winter when it's really windy and freezing cold. 

Now visualise taking your clothes off - all of them. Getting in a communal shower in a cold changing room where the water is cool at best, then trying to get your costume/ trunks on when you can't feel your fingers. Ok? Feeling it?

Now step back onto Mam Tor in your cossie!

Fortunately that final painful bit before the total and utter bliss of stepping into a hot bath big enough to swim 50m in, is as short lived as the hop and skip over the frozen ground and steps. (As demonstrated by the guy in the picture) 

The sulphur smell takes a bit of getting used to but the ability to sit, float swim in basically - a hot bath, is amazing and wonderful. We stayed in until our fingers and toes looked like walnut shells. Getting out and changed was so much easier as the warmth had penetrated my bones and I sauntered to the changing rooms!! **Friday update. I now have some actual images from Ujin's carefully waterproofed iPhone!

I was the only one actually swimming. Most people were just sitting in the warmth. I did about 10 circuits of the nature baths.

This is a 'better' stretch of road... on our epic journey to the Myvatn area.

Coffee seems universally great so far and usually has free refills, and these looked fabulous - very arty colours.

One of the major highlights of the trip (and of my life so far - apart from the nature baths..!) was Godafoss waterfall which is about 50m off the main Route 1 road and insanely beautiful. We visited both days as day one was dull and overcast, but with very subtle grey/blue light. The following day was bright sunshine and gave a completely different feel to the place. 

The above image is day one and it is very difficult to pull out the land and horizon as it was virtually impossible to see any line. The colour of the water was stunning however.

Day 2 more land and definition. Both beautiful and a privilege to see in reality.

The three pictures above were taken in Hverir where the earth bubbles and stinks like the worst kind of rotten eggs. So worth visiting though and the colours, particularly when there's only snow everywhere, are intense. I discovered whilst writing this, that there are many more places near this where you can visit craters and other smelly muddy places. The sulphurous mud on my boots will not come off and the house stinks of rotten eggs....

This is one of the main streets of Akureyri, the northern 'capital' of Iceland. Note the size of the snow plough I'm standing next to... The road is pretty much the same as most of the road everywhere in the north at the moment. Covered in ice with a lovely layer of snow on top, especially to lull you into a false sense of security. And then fall over. I have done this so many times I've lost count.

I'm just about done, but do need to add that having a car was wonderful, not least because the Aurora were amazing last night. We drove out to the outskirts of the village to get some fantastic vistas and shots. At the end of the night, and when the car hire was just about finished, I dropped my housemate and another artist off home and then zoomed up to the dark place to take more aurora pictures. I spent another hour up there in the pitch black, freezing and managed to get these.

Even a little bit of distant light pollution affects the numbers of stars to be seen. The image below was facing blackness - the only light, from the aurora and the magnificent stars.

I think that's about all folks. Tomorrow, I have the exciting job of seeing a man about a fish.... but that's a whole other story.

Feeling a bit melancholic today. Maybe because I'm surrounded by such beauty but Steve, Matthew and Lizzie are't here. Missing you all, but I think I'll manage another two weeks!!

Love,

Aly x