Snaffles

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Today we set off to explore the Snaefells Peninsular, starting with the first point of interest which is clearly visible from our campsite, the Kirkufell Mountain. The waterfall is also supposed to be of interest though it looks a bit pathetic to us as we pass by. We do not stop as Ian has spotted the evil pay cameras - at least they are not on the public highway today!

We arrive in Olafsvik, the only other town with a supermarket. We need some bread. I’m not going to moan about UK food prices when I return home…£4.40 for a very small loaf of sliced bread…ouch!

And now for something a little different…Helllisandur, a town that claims to have an astonishing art walk comprising over thirty painted murals from worldwide artists. It looks like the graffiti artists have been there to me…and ouch the wind is really icy this morning!

We stop briefly at the maritime museum, it’s closed but you can see it all from outside!

Now we have entered the National park boundaries proper. We make our way down a very bumpy road through crunchy lava fields. It’s probably the worse road for potholes that we have encountered yet and worried that we might take the bottom of the van out if we are not careful! We’ve had enough so we return to the main road to continue our loop.

We have reached Saxholl crater. It’s easy to climb as they have put a winding metal stairway up the side. They have rusted beautifully to blend in with the rusty colour of the crater and won the Rosa Barba Landscape prize. The views from the top are great but the wind is still slicing through us. From up top we see a steam of nineteen huge motorhomes pass by…it looks like we have bumped into the Italian convoy again although they are not stopping here.

We make our way to Djupalonssandur where we are promised all sorts of interesting sights. Unfortunately the convoy beat us to it so the car park is full, but we manage to get a spot on the road. We drop down through lava formations to a black pearl beach which is strewn with the rusting remains if an English shipwreck. There are also a series of stones which men used to lift to test their strength in bygone days. Fully strong - 154kg, half strong - 100kg, weakling - 54kg and Bungler - 23kg. Apparently Weakling was tge frontier of wimphood and those who could not lift it were nit deemed fit to become fishermen.

We are tempted to take a lava field walk to see an ancient settlement. The sun is now very strong and we are in danger of becoming sunburnt. It’s very hard to identify the settlement (when we eventually reach it) and it’s a bit disappointing although the scenery along the way has been quite nice. Back at the car park the convoy has gone, but it’s still very busy. We decide to drive back to the main road to find a parking place for our lunch.

Our last main stop is at Hellnar, a pretty little fishing port.

Now we decide to take a slow amble to our next campsite. Last nigh5 there were no showers at the site and the other site on Snaefells is another basic one. We decide that we are early enough in the day to move on to Varmaland which is close to our next planned activity and offers a kitchen and showers.

It’s 4.30pm and we have arrived at our campsite. It’s very disappointing…no kitchen, no showers and very basic loos. Hmmm, it definitely contravenes advertising standards. We enquire in the nearby swimming pool. The campsite is nothing to do with them they tell us but we can buy two swim tickets for £12 if we’d like to use their shower!

Now to top it all, I try to book tickets for tomorrows tour into the glacier from Husafell, only to find they are fully booked. There were plenty of tickets an hour ago! It’s in the central highlands and a place that only an idiot would try to visit on their own. For once that’s not us! We can’t stay here for two nights so a rethink is required!

OK, it’s only another hours drive, we are going to move on to Akranes camp which we should have been at two days hence. We will just have to shift the schedule around and return here later.

Akranes turns out to be a great campsite - no kitchen but a room with kettles and a microwave as well as lovely hot showers. We have dinner and consult the weather forecast. Friday would be best for the Husafell tour but the forecast is snow. Hmmm, we decide to opt for the slightly more inconvenient tour time of 9.30am on Thursday and the slightly better weather forecast! It will mean returning to the Varmaland campsite tomorrow…but only for one night. Ian is now reading all the terrible reviews of that site…‘nothing here but mud’ and ‘don’t come here’!

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