Day 4 / The South Shore to Hella
Today the journey continues westward, driving along the South Shore where en-route you will see the impressive canyon Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon which runs through hyaloclastite (soft granular rock) with lava layers and intrusions, the entire formation dating from the Ice Age – about two million years ago. When the ice cap retreated during the last glacial period, a deep lake was formed in a valley above the present gorge, the water being retained behind a threshold of rock, with overflow water running down the slope now cut by the gorge.
You will also will visit the infamous Reynisfjara Beach and Dyrholaey promontory - some amazing coastal landscapes shaped by the ocean, before You continuing back to the Hotel Rangá, where you will spend your last three nights.
Hotel Rangá
Hotel Rangá is a luxury countryside hotel and the only four-star hotel in South Iceland. It offers all the facilities and services of a modern resort. Located about an hour from Reykjavík, it lies just off the main road right in middle of South Iceland’s panoramic scenery. It provides stunning picturesque surroundings, such as the famous volcano Mt. Hekla, several glaciers and the Westman Islands.
Day 5 / Landmannalaugar Geothermal Area, Central Highlands
After breakfast your guide will introduce you to a super jeep/SUV, perfectly suited to take you safely into the Central Highlands, and your destination for the day, Landmannalaugar, one of the gems of the Fjallabak Nature Reserve with all of the reserve’s most impressive features: stupendous ravines, steep rhyolite screes, rocky slopes, mountains with views, boiling hot springs, hot pools, cold and clear springs, contiguous vegetation, light-colored alluvial plains and miscellaneous hydrological conditions. On your way, you’ll pass by the Hekla volcano before arriving at the interior route, across lava fields, black ash and scoria deserts to photograph Landmannalaugar’s contrasting landscapes of black ridges and colorful mountains of green, red, yellow and orange.
Day 6 / Thorsmork Glacial Valley
Once again your day will start by driving in a super jeep/SUV. Thorsmork is one of the shiniest pearls in the country’s string of beautiful areas, surrounded by rugged and beautiful mountains, glaciers and glacial rivers, decorated with small birch woods and silver lined with humming brooks.
Often difficult to reach, except by mountain vehicles, there are a multitude of small gullies and valleys, clad with low birch-trees that create seemingly endless possibilities for the nature lover. The outlet glaciers tumble and crawl down into the gullies, some of them ending in spectacular glacial lagoons. The glacial melt-off forms rivers that have to be crossed on the way to Thorsmork, which some days can be quite a challenge! An innocent stream can change in a matter of hours into a thunderous torrent, but your skilled driver will be very experienced in these driving conditions and will get you safely across any river.
This lush region, once a fjord some 12,000 years ago, is home to over 170 species of plants, moss and lichen, and will provide a great spot for your barbeque lunch, as well as numerous photographic opportunities. Then, at day's end, your SUV will transfer you back to Hotel Rangá for your farewell dinner and the final opportunity to see the Northern Lights.