Started driving on route 1 towards Egilsstaðir. Turned off to go towards Dettifoss. A short 20 km drive takes you to the parking lot and the falls are about 15 minute walk from there. Two waterfalls on the longest river in Iceland. Selfoss has a horseshoe shape while Dettifoss just plunges over a straight edge. It has the second highest amount of water flow in Europe. From a closer viewpoint, the immense force of the water can be felt and is quite impressive.






The ring road goes through a desolate desert-like area with little vegetation or anything else. Vast lava fields dot the landscape. It is totally different from what we are used to seeing. As you drive out of the Mývatn area, there is a sign on the road saying ‘no fuel for 132 kms’.

Stuðlagil Canyon - It was a detour from the ring road over roads in mixed conditions. There was a misunderstanding between the information in Rick’s book and the actual road sign and we went to a place that needed a long walk to the canyon but it was a flat well well-maintained path. Canyon with basalt columns on both sides with bluish-green water. Something unusual, never seen before. This was revealed recently when a dam reduced the water level of the river. It is becoming a popular tourist attraction. The authorities are building up the infrastructure to cater to that increase in tourist flow.




We drove into Seyðisfjorður and checked in at the guesthouse. Made a dinner reservation and then walked around town. Nice little small town. It has a ferry terminal for traveling to Denmark. The boat comes in once a week. The fjord here is huge - 10 miles long. At the tip of the fjord it is flanked by mountains that are around 3000 ft tall. 




Dinner at Nordic restaurant in Hotel Aldan. Both of us had the fresh catch of the day which was lemon sole. I had a gin and tonic and a glass of Portuguese white. Vaishali had the same wine and a Chardonnay.

This was the first night to see the northern lights during our trip. The sky stayed clear and the K-p index was higher than 1. Even with bright lights in town, we could capture some northern lights and some shots of star trails.