Vatnajökull National Park is a must visit destination for any tourist to Iceland. It's also one of the most inaccessable. The main reason for this inaccessability is that much of the National Park is taken up by the enormous Vatnajökull glacier. So you can't just drive in and walk around. To see the interior of the park (the glacier) you need to make special arrangements - like taking a tour in a Superjeep.
We booked a Superjeep tour for our first day at the park which was cancelled due to the inclement weather...
However the next day we were definitely ready to see as much as we could and fortunately the tour was back on. Our tour guide was Hungarian but very well informed and we learned a lot about Icelandic culture as well as glaciers and volcanoes.
The Jeep we were in had been made by the driver (and some friends) and consisted of part of a Chrysler with another van's back end bolted on and modified engine and gears. It had 54 inch wheels which could have their pressure increased and decreased while driving. It was not so comfy on the main road but good in the rough. It was also licensed for F roads on which we are forbidden to drive on in our hire car.
Our journey started on the land beside the tongue of the Vantnajokull glacier called Skalafellsjokull so we could drive onto the glacier at a high point. On the way we saw a canyon with waterfall and views to the Atlantic. Apparently this area has been used for filming of various block busters including Game of Thrones however this information was lost on our family. I learned however, that moss here takes ages to grow, 1 millimetre a year, that is why Icelanders are so touchy about people stepping on it.
Driving onto the glacial ice, I was a little scared. There are cracks and crevices even at the high point we entered. But the driver was good and slow and the Jeep felt large and safe. The cloud was coming in but we still saw far enough. It kind of didn’t feel like a glacier but a large expanse of snow. Where we drove on, it felt firm and didn’t make much noise. On the edges we could hear the rush of water as of glacier melt, and we could even hear it at times on the areas we got out for a look.
The way down also afforded a stop to see the impacts of the glacier during the last ice age such as the carving of the moraine.
Upon our return we explored the dairy which was the base for the tour. Samuel loved the dairy’s guard.
We booked a Superjeep tour for our first day at the park which was cancelled due to the inclement weather...
However the next day we were definitely ready to see as much as we could and fortunately the tour was back on. Our tour guide was Hungarian but very well informed and we learned a lot about Icelandic culture as well as glaciers and volcanoes.
The Jeep we were in had been made by the driver (and some friends) and consisted of part of a Chrysler with another van's back end bolted on and modified engine and gears. It had 54 inch wheels which could have their pressure increased and decreased while driving. It was not so comfy on the main road but good in the rough. It was also licensed for F roads on which we are forbidden to drive on in our hire car.
Our journey started on the land beside the tongue of the Vantnajokull glacier called Skalafellsjokull so we could drive onto the glacier at a high point. On the way we saw a canyon with waterfall and views to the Atlantic. Apparently this area has been used for filming of various block busters including Game of Thrones however this information was lost on our family. I learned however, that moss here takes ages to grow, 1 millimetre a year, that is why Icelanders are so touchy about people stepping on it.
Driving onto the glacial ice, I was a little scared. There are cracks and crevices even at the high point we entered. But the driver was good and slow and the Jeep felt large and safe. The cloud was coming in but we still saw far enough. It kind of didn’t feel like a glacier but a large expanse of snow. Where we drove on, it felt firm and didn’t make much noise. On the edges we could hear the rush of water as of glacier melt, and we could even hear it at times on the areas we got out for a look.
Samuel and Eric enjoyed playing snow ball fights.
The way down also afforded a stop to see the impacts of the glacier during the last ice age such as the carving of the moraine.
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| This rock was scraped by the weight of the glacier |
Upon our return we explored the dairy which was the base for the tour. Samuel loved the dairy’s guard.
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