Iceland - October 2011

As 34 pupils and 4 teachers, we departed school on the Thursday before half term. We had our first view of Iceland from the plane that night as we came into land at a very wet  and windy Keflavík airport. From there we travelled to Reykjavík, the capital of this fascinating island. With an early start the next day (and a very late finish to the first), we had a busy schedule which included visits to both the Seljelandfoss and Skógarfoss waterfalls. We were able to go under and over the waterfalls, and watch the water plummet down from heights of up to 62m. Staying dry was not an option!

Next up were the fantastic basalt formations on Reynishverfi beach, close to Vík. Formed into a hexagonal shape, they provided excellent footholds for climbing. The beach also produced huge waves which rolled up the shore surprisingly fast – Mr Marshall and Mr Pike ended up getting drenched whilst trying to keep everyone else dry. We also visited the Sólheimajökull glacier which looks quite dirty because of the ash which now sits on top of the ice. It was very slippery and a lot of people ended up on their bums.

Our accommodation for the next two nights was at Hellishólar farm, only a few miles away from the now infamous volcano Eyjafjallajökull (pronounce with care!), which caused all the problems in April 2010. Our adventure continued on the third day with a visit to the Golden Triangle, three superb attractions: Gullfoss, Geysír and Þingvellir. It was a definite highlight of our trip – in particular Strokkur, one of the large geysers, which erupted roughly every 5 minutes with water expelled to heights of 35m. Þingvellir, the site of the ancient Icelandic parliament, is where the Alþingi (the first tribes which settled in Iceland) met, contained a wife-drowing pool and a huge rift valley which marks the position of the mid-Atlantic Ridge.

After a 30 minute ferry journey the next day, we arrived on Heimaey, the only inhabited island in the Westman islands archipelago. The newest of these islands is Surtsey, which was formed in 1963 and is now an ecological reserve. After a tiring trek up the Eldfell volcano, we arrived at the summit and were greeted by spectacular views all round. Although the volcano is now dormant (it last erupted in 1973), the ground is still warm enough to put paper in small cracks and crevices and watch it burst into flames.

We spent the penultimate day was spent having a look around the capital city Reykjavík and a visit to the amazing Blue Lagoon. Iceland’s top spa is 100% geo-thermally heated, and the water, which had a strong sulphur smell, was wonderfully refreshing.

Overall, the School’s second visit to Iceland was a great success with both beautiful weather and breathtaking views. Although we did not see the Northern Lights (despite promising conditions), our excellent tour guides managed to show us Iceland at its pure best. Thanks to Mr Marshall, Mr Pike, Miss Robin and Miss Vincent for all their effort in organising this trip.

Dominic Balcombe (4H)