Day 9 Stykkishólmur to Hellissandur

We experienced a huge amount of rain overnight in Stykkishólmur … it was not letting up so we decided there was no point in rushing anywhere. We had an extremely leisurely start to the day with breakfast in PJs and board games in Wendy. As the incessant rain rhythmically hammered on the roof we distracted ourselves with Rummikub, Century Spice Road and Bananagrams whilst we rebutted any thoughts of being stuck in the evolving flood plain around us aka our camping site! However eventually we lost our nerve and thought if we didn’t leave soon then we’d need a tractor to tow us out! Wendy did us proud and and didnt even wheel spin!!

We travelled towards the Snaefellsnes peninsula. The area is known as "Iceland in Miniature" because of its diverse landscapes, and it's named after its crowning Snaefellsjokull glacier and volcano. .. so we thought the perfect place to end our road trip on. Our first stop was Ólafsvík as we had heard you can see Orcas here!!! The weather was so abysmal that sadly even the whale watching was cancelled. We were gutted! What an opportunity! Oh well… next time!

From there we headed towards Hellissandur which is located directly beside the Snaefellsjokull National Park and is thus within view of the famous volcano and glacier, Snaefellsjokull itself. There was a lovely visitor centre there which told us about the area including an unusual boast of the Hellissandur Longwave Radio Mast, which is one of the tallest structures in Europe! We also learnt that “Locals like to call Hellissandur "the Street Art Capital of Iceland," as you'll find many colourful and interesting murals painted on the walls of various buildings. This makes a stroll through the village especially charming, as you can admire the different art work”… so in the driving rain , donning all our wet gear we trudged through the village… I think we needed a nicer day to appreciate it fully!😉

Sadly the day was just a bit of a right off with not much sightseeing or being outside due to the wet weather so we appreciated even more being inside Wendy as opposed to a tent ! More games and chat with dinner completed our night as we hoped for better weather tomorrow .Read more