The Adventure Begins

In early 2018, I wanted to take a trip to visit a country that I had never been to. Being married to my truly understanding wife, Ann Marie, who has supported my previous travel "bucket list" excursions,  I posed the idea of a trip to Korea/Japan. This idea was quickly nixed due to the uncertainty of the political situation with North Korea threating to shoot missiles at South Korea and its neighbors.  My next idea was "how about Iceland with the added benefit of having our four 13 year-old grandchildren accompany me".....she, having had seven children with little help from her lovable spouse (me), smiled and said with humor in her voice...GO AHEAD....thus my adventure began.

Over the ensuing months I discussed the idea with our children Laura, Tom, Paul and Katie whose children (2 boys/2 girls), all born in the same year, 2005, would accompany me on my journey.  I, being months shy of turning 80 years of age, incurred a degree of  reluctance on my children's part....you need a chaperone....you can't do it by yourself....you're too old....you'll never survive!!! Bottom line, the parents (Paul and Katie) of the two girls (Natalie and Ava)  came up with lame excuses about soccer/lacrosse/we don't trust you; my granddaughters were denied the opportunity of their lifetime! However, my two "favorite children"(,Laura and Tom), willingly agreed to have me take their sons, Sam Malnight and Jack Worosz, on this adventure. A magnificent opportunity for Papa to enjoy a week in Iceland with his teenaged grandsons and pass-on the desire to travel the world. Grammy's view was that three ADHD individuals would be heading off to Iceland with only the adult, ME, not on some form of medication!!

Plan - Intrepid Travel had a special offer for a one-week Icelandic Tour - Family with Teenagers- at a reduced price...booked the tour for July 13 - 20...made plane reservations...sent Internet sites describing Iceland to Jack and Sam so that they would know a little bit about what they would be seeing.

On Wednesday, July 11, Ann Marie and I picked-up Jack at his Alexandria home. He was packed and ready to go. As we departed, his smiling parents said good-bye by waving as we drove off. After an overnight stop in Hazelton, PA we arrived at Sam's home (Laura/Rick live there too) in Wayland, MA. Over the next few days, we checked what we had packed, making sure that we were well prepared to face this upcoming adventure.

Getting Ready

Departure

On the evening of Friday, July 13, (an omen??) we drove to Boston's Logan airport to catch our flight to Keflavik, Iceland...a five hour flight that covered four time zones. Since we knew that food in Iceland was expensive, we stocked up on junk food, soda and candy!!!

As we boarded the plane, I advised the boys to get some sleep since we would be arriving in Iceland at 6:30AM, Iceland time, and we would have a full day ahead of us...get some sleep....

As we departed Mother Earth, the boys inserted their headphones into their little ears and began to explore the myriad  of offerings available on Icelandic Air's in-flight entertainment center. Papa inserted his ear-plugs, pulled down his sleep mask and went to sleep!!

Tour Description - Summer Holiday Family With Teenagers

The tour was designed for families with teenagers so that the tour included activities that appealed to the teens and sightseeing that appealed to the entire group; it was more adventurous than I anticipated.

The tour started in Reykjavik, three days traveling throughout the southern part of Iceland and returning to Reykjavik for the last two days.  During the three day road trip we would be visiting various Viking historical sites, view waterfalls, walk on black volcanic sand beaches, get up close with Europe's largest glacier as we traversed its landscape, white water raft a frigid Iceland river and see the beauty of Iceland's landscape. Thursday was a free day so we planned on snorkeling in the frigid waters of the Silfra Riff; the place where the North American and European tectonic plates meet. Friday, our last day, would be a visit to Iceland's famous Blue Lagoon where we would enjoy the warm waters of the country's hot springs, treat our faces with silica beauty mud and relax before heading to the airport.

Iceland is an expensive place to visit and we were cautioned about the high cost of meals. We brought along packages of beef jerky, power bars and candy packets which were devoured/shared with our tour companions. Breakfast was included with the tour price so that we were only responsible for lunch and dinner. What our tour guide recommended was that we stop at local food markets to purchase pre-made sandwiches/chips/drinks for lunch which we were able to consume on the van or at picnic locations. For dinner, our accommodations for two of three nights were at remote locations so our only choice was the hotel which provided good meals that were expensive compared to USA prices. 

Day 1 - Welcome to Iceland - Reykjavik - group meets at 6 PM.

Day 2 - Follow route of "Golden Circle". Visit Parliament Plains, Geyser geothermal area, Gullfoss   (the double golden waterfall) and lastly, white water rafting in the frigid Hvita river. Overnight in Hvolsvollur.

Day 3 - Visit the unique Eyjafjallajökull Volcano Visitor Center, drive through the lava field of the 1972 Laki volcano eruption as we head towards Skattafell National Park, drive onto the Glacier Lagoon, formed by Europe's largest iceberg, Valnajokull, for a boat tour between floating icebergs. Overnight is at a nearby hotel.

Day 4 - Begin the day with a 2 hour "glacier walk" of Valnajokull, rest as we retrace our route to the town of Vik where we will spend the night.

Day 5 - Visit beautiful "black sand beach" before heading back towards Reykjavik. On the return trip, travel through some of Iceland's small towns/villages, visit a hot springs geothermal area and explore Marie caves before arriving back in Reykjavik. Final group dinner.

Day 6 - Free day to explore - we spent the morning exploring Reykjavik and snorkeled the Silfra Riff in the afternoon. Dinner on our own. Pack for the return home.

Day 7 - Depart the hotel at 8 AM and arrive at the Blue Lagoon for three hours of thermal ecstasy. Depart for the airport at noon.

Day 1 - We Have Arrived - Saturday July 14

After a restful five hour flight, we landed at Keflavik, Iceland which is located about 30 miles/ about one hour drive from the capital city, Reykjavik. After picking up our bags and getting a bite to eat, we boarded the bus into town which dropped us off in front of our hotel. Notice the background; misty, temperature around 55 F.

Since we were not meeting our tour group until 6 PM, we had made reservations for a whale tour combined with a Puffin Island tour. We dropped off our luggage and proceeded to catch a bus to the waterfront to meet our tour boat. My two companions, having watched the in-flight entertainment system during the flight were tired. We made it to the waterfront, explored the area and ate lunch until the first tour began.

Old Town Waterfront

Our first tour, lasted about an hour, was to Puffin Island to view these lovely birds' nesting area. Iceland is home to approximately 8 - 10 million puffin. Notice the excitement on the boys' face (NOT), they were tired.

It was difficult to get pictures...below puffin with fish and on-island nesting rookery:

The whale trip was uneventful and we spent an hour tracking a pair of minke whales....the boys took the opportunity to relax.....

Heading back to Hotel

It was approaching 4 PM so we walked back to the hotel to freshen up and have our first meet/greet with our tour group. We had to walk; I had to keep them awake!!

Intrepid's Tour Group - Saturday Evening

Having traveled with Intrepid Travel previously, I was aware of what was needed at our first meeting - passports and  proof of insurance. Our tour guide was Thor, an appropriate Viking name, who had been with Intrepid for four months. We introduced ourselves and headed off to dinner where the teens ate at one table while the trusting adults ate at another table. Things went swimmingly since the teens seemed to get along with one another.

Day 2 - Walking, viewing and rafting

After the previous busy day, the boys were raring to get on the road!!

We departed Reykjavík @ 9 AM by van.  Stopped at a grocery store outside of town to purchase lunch...Jack and Sam each got a sandwich and I got a couple of yogurts. 

Our first stop was Thingvellir National Park to visit Parliament Plains which is where the Vikings established their governing principles in the 800's AD. Absolutely gorgeous scenery....saw where the 2 tectonic plates are separating...large earth fissures...notice the swirl in the lava formed rock.

Our next stop was the Geysir Geothermal fields with its expansive plain of "geysirs"; a name which originated in Iceland and is used as "geyser" throughout the world. The Strokker geyser erupts every 5 - 15 minutes and shoots into the air approximately 80 - 100 feet. 

Lunch was in the van as we headed for white water rafting in the ice cold, glacier fed, Hvita river. We took off everything but undergarments and wool socks....donned a wet suit, jacket, rubber hotties, life preserver, helmet and paddle. 

The river trip lasted for about 1 1/2 hours and included jumping off a 25 ft. rock into the freezing river, floating outside the raft as it traversed the waves and silly water games....it was a memorable experience for all....I didn’t jump off the rock!!! This would be better appreciated when the boys tell their story...the trip was safe and lots of fun. The pictures below were copied from the Internet but accurately convey the experience!!

After changing back into warm clothing, we headed off to see Gullifos waterfalls .... spectacular. .multiple rainbows....multi-tiered drops....stretching long distances.

After a day filled with a variety of experiences, our final destination was a farm B&B. We unloaded the towed trailer which was being used to transport our luggage and headed off to our "hobbit" bungalow...bunk bed for the boys and double bed for me. The farm overlooked two of Iceland glaciers which we will visit tomorrow. Everyone is having a good time and behaving. Dinner, a little exercise as we explore the property and off to bed....it has been a busy day!! Notice that it is still light at 11 PM (2300).