I’ve traveled to Iceland twice so far:
19 days in September 2018
8 days in December 2019/January 2020
Iceland 8-Day Winter Itinerary
In December 2019 I traveled to Iceland for the second time. Though I’ve blogged each day separately, I’ve decided to compile more of the practical details (stops, restaurants, accommodations, tours, etc) into one post to share with anyone else who is planning a winter (specifically, New Year’s Day-centered) trip to Iceland! Blog posts were the…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure Day 8: Riding Off Into The Sunrise
Day 8 – January 3, 2020 All good things eventually come to the end, and so the end began for my week in Iceland. Though sad, I wasn’t devastated like I was during my first trip to be heading home. A severe storm was rolling in the next day, and “do not travel” advisories were…
The 50th Earth Day
Today is the 50th Earth Day, and what a wonderful place Earth is! But my heart aches for the suffering our planet – our home – is enduring. As anthropogenic climate change warms our oceans, melts our glaciers, endangers countless habitats, and brings more severe weather, it can make me feel helpless. The contiguous U.S.…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure: Day 7 Hanging Out On Sólheimajökull
Day 7 – January 2, 2020 Ever been somewhere so windy that if someone opens the front door to the guesthouse, your ears pop from the pressure difference? No? Well, that’s too bad! 😉 Needless to say, the weather got a little crazy overnight, and the brown landscape was blanketed with new snow and hurricane…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure: Day 6 South Coast Adventuring
Day 6 – January 1, 2020 8am alarm wasn’t as painful as I thought it would be after a 2am bedtime. I had a big day planned that I was super excited for helped, though I did have some tinges of sadness that I didn’t stay out and party in true NYE Icelandic style. Shower,…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure Day 5: A Reykjavík New Year’s Eve
Day 5 – December 31st. The alarm went off, and I had a decision to make. Would I go run six miles in the rain and wind, or would I have a day of exploring a city I only briefly touched on my first visit? My weather app made the decision for me. Rain and…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure Day 4: Filling My Heart in the Lava Fields
Day 4 – December 30th I did it! I slept in! It only took me three mornings to figure out how to do it! This was a day I quite didn’t know what to do really. I had looked into venturing to the western edge of Snæfellsnes, but then realized that would be a lot…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure Day 3: Living My Best Life on Snæfellsnes
December 29th – Day 3… The wind was whipping when I awoke, still way before anyone else in the guesthouse (still hadn’t figured out to just sleep in). The appeal of Iceland is it’s natural beauty, which is hard to see when it’s COMPLETELY DARK, so I knew I didn’t want to get too early…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure Day 2: Silfra Snorkeling, Wintry Waterfalls, and Snowy Streets of Borgarnes
December 28th – Day 2… because I was still very new to this whole “darkness until midday” concept that is winter in Iceland, my alarm went off at a bright and cheery 6:30am. I’m use to hotels in the U.S., which are bustling at such an hour, but it was dead quiet at Efstidalur. I…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure Day 1: Reykjanes & Golden Circle
December 26th – The day was here. Suitcases had been packed and repacked with care, in hopes that Iceland would soon be near… The 9:30am departure from Laramie was smooth sailing under sunny Wyoming skies (and then polluted Colorado skies) and a blanket of snow. Apart from crushing a fairly new pair of sunglasses with…
Finding Myself at 65°N – The Solo Icelandic Winter Adventure: Backstory
My second trip to Iceland was not intended to be a solo affair. But life has a funny way of working out when you have nonrefundable international airfare and two suddenly becomes one (and not in that sexy Spice Girls song sort of way). I’ve driven across the United States and back by myself, and…
Iceland in September – A round up of all the things you’re probably wondering, and a few you haven’t thought of
Probably one of the most asked questions in travel groups is “When should I go to Iceland?” And like with most subjects, everyone has their opinion… so here’s mine about September! September in Iceland is often referred to as a “shoulder season,” meaning that the peak of tourists has waned, prices have dropped, but it’s…
Guide to Iceland’s Hot Pots & Swimming Pools
In the Land of Fire & Ice, geothermal water is in abundance. While much of it is boiling, or at least way too hot for humans to enter, there’s also a fair share of it that is perfect for a nice, relaxing soak, often with an otherworldly view to boot. Hot pots, as they’re called…
Traveling Around Iceland in a Camper Van
In September 2018, my boyfriend, Kubo, and I spent nineteen days traveling 2,300 miles through Iceland in a camper van we affectionately named Carl from KúKú Campers. Because #vanlife is an absolutely amazing way to see and experience Iceland, below follows my comprehensive guide to all things camper van in Iceland… from why you should…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 19: Bless bless, Iceland!
September 19, 2018 The day I never wanted to come, even though I’ll admit I had became pretty homesick. Kubo and I sat at a table in the dining area at the Reykjavík campground, not really saying much, with blank stares on our face. Months ago it was easy to pack the itinerary for our…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 18: Reykjavík
September 18, 2018 Time to leave the wild. Our last full day in Iceland marked us completing our very large circle around the entire country as we would head towards Iceland’s biggest city (and the world’s northernmost capital), Reykjavík. We would be traveling on some familiar roads as wayyyyyy at the beginning of our trip…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 17: Reynisfjara, a taste of Fimmvörðuháls, and all the waterfalls!
September 17, 2018 With all the rain the night before, I was scared to open my eyes in the morning in Vík, as I didn’t want rain on our final day in the wilds of Iceland. Once I pried them open, I realized I didn’t hear rain, and that there was blue sky! Today had…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 16: Hiking in Skaftafell, Fjaðrárgljúfur, and Vík
September 16, 2018 Somehow I appeased the elves, and we awoke to drier weather after dealing with rain most of the previous day. Woohoo, we could finally see the scenery around us! We ate and packed up and headed out of Svínafell with Skaftafell in Vatnajökull National Park as our destination for the morning to…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 15: Chasing glaciers on the southeast coast
Iceland Day 15 – September 15, 2018 And so begins our final big stretch along the popular south coast of Iceland! The south coast. It’s busy, it’s crowded, and it’s where all the tourists want to go. For people like myself that prefer solitude and getting off the beaten path, sometimes the initial instinct is…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 14: The Incredible Eastfjords
Iceland Day 14 – September 14, 2018 1°C (about 34°F) weather and freshly fallen snow on the mountains greeted us in the morning in Seydisfjörður. Our coldest night in Iceland, and a good reminder that winter is rapidly on its way when you’re at 65°N. After breakfast and piling on the clothes, we headed back up…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 13: Northeast Coast & Seydisfjörður
Iceland Day 13 – September 13, 2018 The weather luck ran out. My good favors I put into the elves must’ve expired, and we awoke to rain that would stay constant nearly all day during our 260km of driving. Raufarhöfn was just as quiet and empty in the morning as it was the evening before,…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 12: Into the Northeast aka The End of the World
Iceland Day 12 – September 12, 2018 If the evening of Day 6 was dedicated to going “into the wild” in the very much wild Westfjords, than Day 12 can be summarized as going “to the end of the world” as we’d travel from the Mývatn area to the tippy top of Iceland in the…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 11: From trolls to midges (Tröllaskagi to Mývatn)
September 11, 2018 Well friends, day 11 reminded us that indeed our rain-free luck of the start of our clockwise journey around Iceland had indeed run dry (ha!) as rain and clouds greeted us in Hofsós when we peered out the windows of Carl. Foregoing breakfast, we headed to the Hofsós town swimming pool, which…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 10: Westfjords to Tröllaskagi, and all the churches in between
Iceland Day 10 – September 10, 2018 Our late bedtime the night before did us no favors when the alarm went off bright and early in the morning. Day 10 would be our longest driving day of the trip as we would leave the Westfjords and jaunt across northern Iceland, spending over six hours driving…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 9: Soaking up the last of the Westfjords
Iceland Day 9 – September 9, 2018 Day 9 marked the near halfway point to our grand Icelandic adventure, and one of our first days to really “sleep in,” which was a nice treat. There wasn’t a lot on our itinerary for our last full day in the Westfjords aside from a couple of cafes…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 8: Dynjandi, Ísafjörður, and everything in between
Iceland Day 8 – September 8, 2018 Dynjandi, Dynjandi, Dynjandi day!!! I announced when the alarm awoke us in sleepy little Bíldudalur. Proving that I was never sick of seeing waterfalls, enthusiasm was high for today’s plans, which included a hot pot soak for breakfast, one giant waterfall, and some relaxing in the first “major…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 7: To the edge of the world at Látrabjarg & the horsemeat tale
Iceland Day 7 – September 7, 2018 A gorgeous pink and red sky greeted us when the alarm went off, and we got ready to set out on our first full day in the Westfjords, eager to see what all these “scary” roads and remote sights had in store for us. However… had to start…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 6: Chasing more waterfalls, petting dogs, chilling on a ferry, and hello, Westfjords!
Iceland Day 6 – September 6, 2018 Every day waking up in Iceland was the best day ever, but some days were more “best” than others, and day 6 was shaping up to be one of these days! You know why? One word: Westfjords! (And to be technical, Vestfirðir, which is the Icelandic word.) The Westfjords…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 5: Sunny Snæfellsnes
Iceland Day 5 – September 5, 2018 We awoke early from our slumber, knowing a big day was up ahead. After scooping up our now dry clothes from the bathroom (see yesterday’s post about laundry…), we quickly ate breakfast and hit the road under cloudy skies, destination: the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. Snæfellsnes is often referred to…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland: Day 4 – Chasing Waterfalls in Hvalfjörður & Beyond
Iceland Day 4 – September 4, 2018 Day 4 is when the true adventure began. It was time to hit the road for the next fifteen days and go into the wild, and by that I mean circumnavigate Iceland in a clockwise manner! Though our first three days in Iceland were amazing, I knew deep down…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland: Day 3 – Landmannalaugar
Iceland Day 3 – September 3, 2018 aka The Day of My Dreams It’s really hard for me to put into words Landmannalaugar and the highlands of Iceland. Even now that its been four months since I was there, I still can’t figure out how to express how that little corner of the world felt…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland: Day 2 – The Golden Circle
Iceland Day 2 – September 2, 2018 The sound of hard rain on the camper van roof greeted me when the alarm went off in the morning. This wasn’t any sort of pleasant rain from the sounds of it, and I tried to remind myself not to panic as the weather in Iceland changes so…
Heidi and Kubo Do Iceland – Day 1: Arrival, Reykjanes, Reykjadalur, & More!
Iceland Day 1 – August 31, 2018/September 1, 2018 The four years of planning, the countless hours spent planning, packing, and dreaming were all becoming reality. I literally ran out of work on Thursday, August 30th, bouncing off the walls in anticipation that in 24 mere hours I would be aboard a 757 taking me…
The Dream 19 Day 2300 Mile Iceland Road Trip Itinerary
I’ve been everywhere, man I’ve been everywhere, man Crossed the deserts bare, man I’ve breathed the mountain air, man Travel, I’ve had my share, man I’ve been everywhere … or so it seemed after 19 days in a camper van traveling all over Iceland! When planning my Iceland road trip I read countless blogs…
Of Iceland and Grocery Stores
One of the things I was honestly most excited to do when we got off the airplane in Keflavík was go grocery shopping. Weird, right? I don’t know, I guess it would just seem like the ultimate adventure! Background ~ We rented a Kuku Campers van for our 19 day road trip around Iceland, and…
The Iceland Restaurant Adventures & Reviews
During our 19 day road trip around every corner of Iceland we chose to primarily eat meals prepared in our Kuku Campers van, which drastically reduced cost (I’ll eventually write a post about Icelandic grocery store shenanigans…). Eating out in Iceland is EXPENSIVE. However, there were a few places I put on the itinerary to…
Guide to Iceland Campgrounds
After 19 days of driving around every corner of Iceland in a rented Kuku Campers van, I got to experience the best and not-so-great of Iceland’s campground offerings. First things first: If staying in a camper van, car, RV, whatever – you MUST stay in an established campground. Kuku Campers was good about educating on…
Heidi Goes to Iceland: 2 month countdown
Though this summer has quickly morphed into a “I can cram a winter’s worth of training into a few weeks in June to get ready for race season, right?” frenzy, I have something else looming on the horizon: my 19-day trip through Iceland. Oh, yes. Iceland. The trendy hotspot. In my defense, I’m not going…
The Adventuring Heidi 