Day 5 Monday May 16, 2016

Today was absolutely a beautiful wonderful ride. We started the day around 10:30am after a nice breakfast in the hostel kitchen. Our ice cave tour wasn't until 5:00am, so we took it easy in a little town with various shops. We had lunch at a gas station which can I just say how nice Icelandic gas stations are. I had Icelandic meat soup served in a china bowl. We enjoyed the conversation and sun streaming through the windows. I asked Thor about popular Icelandic music and he said there is a band called "Soul of John" that has been popular for 30 years. I'll be on the search for a good CD. Our bus we fondly call the "Golden Egg" had maintenance issues, so we proceeded to push the front of the bus in the parking lot to get it out of the way of the other cars. Wow. That bus is heavy. It quickly got replaced, thanks to Thor's dad, with the 45 passenger van now called the "Golden Goose." We are riding in luxury now. We all miss the cozy Golden Egg a little though.

We stopped at Deidartunguhuer thermal spring which produces 180 liters of water per second. The largest amount of output in the world. The water is 212 degrees Fahrenheit so  keep back, Haetta! We also stopped at Snorri's Pool which is the oldest bath in Iceland. This was the start to Icelanders' love for community at pools. Our long awaited stop, Langjökull glacier and ice cave, was absolutely fantastic. We rode in a huge vehicle with gigantic tires up through the snow and mountains to the ice cave. Our tour guide's grandfather was one of the first scientists to go on a scientific expedition of this glacier in 1875! As we drove up the glacier he pointed out places where the glacier used to be, but has now melted away for good. The expanse of land and snow covered mountains was spectacular. Inside the cave, we could see the layers of snow and layers of ash from the 2010 volcanic eruption. The compacted snow, fir, surrounding us was not ice yet. In 70 to 100 years the glacier I stood in will most likely all be gone. Melted away carrying hundreds of thousands of years of captured ice.

Despite my two layers of gloves and wool socks my fingers and half of my feet froze numb. I guess I need more layers! Our last stop was to the Hravnfossar Barnafoss water falls which were created in 800 AD! By now it is 9:30pm and the sun is setting. I sat on rocks and took in the spectacular view. Watching the sun set was a wonderful way to end the day. I just can't comprehend the beauty of the landscape. Today was good, no today was great. Time for sleep.