July 19, Golden Circle, N64°15' W21°7'
Today we started our exploration of the so-called Golden Circle, a tourist route in southern Iceland. We would not do the full circle - OAT's dedicated Iceland tour does that - but we did the southern part along the coast.
Our first stop was Thingvellir National Park, which sits on a rift between the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates. We started out at the visitor center, which was quite crowded, and walked through a gap that had opened up in recent years. This area had served as the location of Iceland's Parliament from 930-1798; a flagpole marks the former location. The park is adjacent to Iceland's largest natural lake, Thingvallavatn.
Next it was on to Geysir, from which we get the word "geyser". The geyser named "Geysir" hasn't erupted in more than a decade, but a nearby one called Strokkur erupts every 5-10 minutes.
Our last visit for the day was to the Guilfoss Nature Reserve, home to a spectacular waterfall.
On our way to our hotel in Vik, where we would spend the next few nights, our bus driver honked madly at a car that had stopped by the side of the road. Thor explained that this was illegal in Iceland, due to the limited sight lines.