(Jo) 

After a bit of overnight rain, we woke up to glorious blue skies and sunshine. The wind was still blowing pretty hard and is supposed to keep blowing for a couple of days, which makes driving the camper van on the narrow roads (with basically no shoulder and sharp dropoffs) a little more intense than usual. With temps forecasted to be near 60, Lin and Harrison broke out their shorts and claim to not have regretted their decision. While the temps haven’t been usual Rhode Island summer weather, with proper gear/attire, it’s been pretty pleasant most of the time. 

Lin and Eden started their day with a morning run along the river we could see from our campsite and then crossed a bridge to a large island in the middle of the river to add some mileage around the island. After breakfast, we did the usual camp cleanup: water bottle refills and then jug refills at the campground’s outdoor kitchen sink; emptying out the camper’s gray and black water; refilling the camper’s water reservoir; and offloading our trash. Eden also packed up her tent after sleeping in it near the camper for a second night. 

Our first stop was the Heimilisidnadarsafnid (really) Textile Museum just a few minutes from the campground in Blonduos. Eden, Keiran, and Jo enjoyed the small museum with quite a few exhibits: 1) modern knitting pieces that integrated stone, horsehair, and some kind of salt crystals; 2) traditional Icelandic attire; 3) embroidery (so, so intricate!); 4) the collections of an Icelandic woman, Halldora Bjarnadottir, who died in 1981 at the age of 108; she was an educator, crafter, collector, and women’s organizer, who donated all her belongings to the museum before her death; and finally 5) an exhibit about Icelandic wool and its uses, where Eden and Kieran carded and spun a bit of yarn using Icelandic wool and a drop spindle. 

While we enjoyed the museum, Lin, Elliot, and Harrison headed to the gas station to fill up with diesel and figure out the engine coolant, which was very low. Then they grabbed a few groceries before picking us up at the museum. 

Our next stop was Vatnsdalshólar, which required several kilometers on a bumpy dirt/gravel road to a gorgeous lookout over a lake surrounded by mountains and green valley. Kieran counted the 89 steps up the steep hill to the lookout where we enjoyed the surrounding view and tried not to let our hats blow away. A highlight for some of the kids was a lengthy visit from a local herding dog who showed up soon after we arrived and welcomed lots of petting and scritches. I think some are missing Ace more than others! Lin couldn’t resist a few minutes of drone flight in an attempt to capture the beauty of the location.

Then it was on to Kolugljúfur Canyon, again requiring some time on bumpy roads and a questionable use of the parking area by most of the people there, making it a little challenging to navigate around the potholes and puddles in the camper, but we succeeded and enjoyed another windblown walk along the rim of the canyon and then across the bridge to see the main series of waterfalls. It was really beautiful and just the right size. The huge falls are sometimes just too much! This one had multiple streams and levels and was lovely to watch, even if the canyon setting made it a wee bit precarious to view. 

From there, we headed to the Kidka Wool Factory Shop in Hvammstangi to peruse the many Icelandic wool sweaters, blankets, hats, socks, mittens, wrist warmers, horse blankets, and who knows what else! Eden ended up with a pair of fleece-lined mittens and Jo got a book: How Iceland Changed the World by Egill Bjarnanson, but mostly we just poked around. Icelandic wool is quite rough and scratchy, so even though everything is beautiful, the reality of wearing a lot of it in our everyday lives kept us from big purchases. 

Just up the road from Kidka is the Icelandic Seal Center, so we drove over to see if it was worth a visit and decided to skip it for a frolic along the nearby coastal path (Jo opted for a nap in the camper as she tries to shake the tail end of a cold). 

Our final stop of the day (definitely a light day in terms of stops and number of steps) was at Erpsstadir Creamery on a dairy farm for delicious ice cream and Skyr. The views of the verdant valley, the cows mowing the grass just feet away, and a couple of adorable pigs provided the perfect setting to enjoy our treats and for the kids (and Lin) to spend on the inground trampoline.

We drove about three minutes to an idyllic campground (Saelukotid Arbilk) with fabulous views, arriving at a record early time just after 6:30 pm. After dinner, Lin and Harrison threw a football again. The weather was just perfect, and the sunset / dusk lingered forever.