Iceland Day 6 - More Mountains, Churches, Waterfalls, Canyons

We started the morning with breakfast at our hotel, the Icelandair Hótel Hérað in Egilsstaðir. Wow, this was the best breakfast that we had in Iceland! There were multiple stations with hot and cold food. There were warm pastries, a waffle maker, and a variety of fresh fruit along with the typical meats, cheeses, cereal, and skyr. It was a great way to start the morning.

Before continuing our journeys on the Ring Road, we took a quick side trip to the quaint fishing village of Seydisfjordur. We had to cross another steep mountain pass called Fjarðarheiði. At the top of the pass, there was an icy lake and banks of snow - the coldest and most icy Icelandic spot we visited. 

The road down to the town was laced with waterfalls and was where the longboard/skateboard scene in the movie The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was filmed. The main attraction in Seydisfjordur is the often Instagramed blue church with the rainbow walk leading up to it. We were lucky to be early and there were only a few others there so we were able to get pictures without scads of tourists in the way.

We continued back to the Ring Road, picking up some lunch at the Netto store in Egilsstadir along the way. This was a long driving day, and for several hours we wound through beautiful but stark hills and valleys.

We took a detour off the Ring Road to see Dettifoss which is said to be the most powerful waterfall in Europe. There are two roadways to Dettifoss - we took the road less traveled which was gravel and very bumpy! (There is another road on the other side of the river that is paved and provides easier access to the falls)

The area was very deserted and looked like the surface of Mars. About all you could see were volcanic rocks, scrubby grass, and a few sheep prancing along the road.

The view from this side of Dettifoss is striking. You can climb down further over a very rocky path to get right next to the edge falls if you want - nope, nope, nope, not me! If you are not up for adventure on edge, the other side might be better for you!

We continued up the gravel road to Asbyrgi Canyon. It is shaped like a horseshoe and is filled with trees, which is unusual in Iceland because there aren't many trees in Iceland. We took a short hike through the trees to a little pond in the canyon. I have to say this was the one spot in Iceland that did not live up to the hype and wasn't worth the extra drive/hike for us.

We then looped around and drove down the other side on the paved road to Dettifoss. We did not stop at the second viewpoint to see the falls, but we did make a brief stop at Hjóðaklettar. This location had a bizarre collection of basalt rock column formations twisting in all directions. I think we would have enjoyed our short hike through this area if we weren't so tired at the end of our long travel day. 

We continued onto our hotel at Lake Myvatn - I'll share more about it in my next post.