Hello! Let me introduce myself, I'm Felip, a content creator, surfer, skater, skier... Well, a bit of everything. But what brought me here was my passion for adventure and discovering hidden corners of the world surrounded by nature.
I've accompanied this crazy gang from Blue Banana on a couple of expeditions, and this was my third campaign with the team. Iceland, a fucking natural paradise, a no-man's-land, with a mix of ice, fire, and green... It feels like another world.
Speaking technically, Iceland is the second largest island in Europe and the third largest in the Atlantic. It covers an area of 103,000 km² and is located in the North Atlantic Ocean, between Greenland, Norway, and Scotland.
I was accompanied on this trip by incredible people, which made it even more magical. Suzie, Hildur, Gon, Charlie, Axel, Pascal, Nacho, and Jhonny are responsible for making my time so good.
Our trip to Iceland lasted about 11 days, and we traveled along the entire south coast from Reykjavik, the capital, to Höfn, a small fishing village on the eastern tip of the island. We traveled in late August/early September, and it still rained and the sky was cloudy most days. I see very few hours of sunshine in this country.
Day 1
The trip begins. We all arrive at Reykjavik airport and have our first team meeting, as the group includes people from Spain, Sweden, and Germany. To make things even better, we decide to go to a restaurant in the capital and start talking about the entire trip. We end up at a burger joint, and once we're ready, we start the journey to our first accommodation.
To make the trip more comfortable, we decided to sleep in different hotels/apartments and spend two nights in each to get the most out of each area. We spent the first night near the first spot (Skógar).
Day 2
One of the most intense days of the trip is about to begin, or so I think. We woke up at 5 a.m. to head to Skógafoss, an incredibly beautiful waterfall surrounded by green meadows and with a massive drop. I'm loving it so far!
We go early in the morning because we want to avoid the crowds, as it's a very accessible waterfall (you only have to walk about 50 meters to reach the base). First, we film at the base, where the entire waterfall falls, and then we climb some stairs on one side of the waterfall to see everything from above. It's worth the climb.
Of course, we have to accept that the weather isn't exactly cooperating at the moment. It's been raining all morning, and between the rain and the waterfall, we're all soaked. But there's still the day ahead.
We return to the hotel, have breakfast (how I love the all-you-can-eat buffet... 😋), and get ready to head to the next spot. This spot wasn't on the agenda, but it happens to be my favorite of the day: Kvernufoss. We take a very easy hike, a maximum of 20 minutes, to reach this waterfall, located in an incredible, almost perfect location! You can enter behind the waterfall, and there's a whole canyon leading up to it.
We finish shooting and head to another area where there's a huge cliff with a couple of waterfalls inside that are well worth visiting. Plus, access to the site is very easy: Gljúfrabúi and Seljalandsfoss. As you can see, the names are very easy to pronounce.
We finished the shoot by almost swimming in Seljalandsfoss (you can find everything on the Iceland blog, in Part 1). Already soaked, we returned to the hotel to eat pizza, dry our clothes, and rest. It was an intense day, with more than 15 hours of shooting between waterfalls, cameras, and drones. More tomorrow.
Day 3
We woke up at 5:00 a.m. We like to get up early to enjoy the empty spots. This morning's mission was to go to the Plane Wreck. We left the car in a parking lot next to the road and started hiking along a flat but long path. After an hour of walking, we arrived at this incredible place that looks like something from another planet. Complete with black sand and a wrecked plane in the middle of nowhere. Of course, the rain is a must! We're getting used to it.
After shooting, we return to the hotel for breakfast, collect all our bags, and head to Reynisfjara Viewpoint, which overlooks an incredible beach. We're at the top of the cliffs, but I decide to head down to try some shots; I almost kill myself trying, but the location is worth it!
Next spot: Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon. This spot joins the list of surreal landscapes. I think it's in the top three of the entire trip; it's so beautiful! We shoot through the entire canyon, but the fog eventually takes us over, and we have to give up for today. Our accommodation for the day is an Airbnb nestled between rivers and waterfalls.
Day 4
We woke up early, although we slept a little more today, made some sandwiches, and set off on our adventure. First stop: the Skaftafell Glacier. We visited the entire glacier from the lake where all the icebergs reside and shot there. Gon, flying the drone in search of patterns, ran out of battery and lost connection between the controller and the drone. Luckily, I managed to see him, but we were on the verge of losing him.
Next idea: climb to Kristínartindar summit, but fog and bad weather prevent us from doing so, since the goal is to see the entire glacier from the mountains on the sides and with the fog it is impossible.
After capturing some epic shots, we eat and head off-road to another glacier exit (since it's a huge glacier): Svínafellsjökull. This spot has incredible views, and Pascal manages to capture the most epic shots by diving into the ice crevices with the FPV drone.
When we decided to leave, a loud noise started, which scared us all, and suddenly we saw a piece of glacier fall into the water. We were amazed!
Flying the drone from there, we discovered another spot on the other side of the glacier where there's a lot of ice. Access is easy, so we decided to go and investigate. The views, once again, are breathtaking, and the expedition above the ice... Advice: don't do it. I'll say no more.
We go to dinner at a restaurant in the nearest town and return home to rest, recharge our batteries, and dry our clothes.
Day 5
Good morning! Time to wake up, tidy up the house, and get ready for the next leg of the trip.
First stop: Diamond Beach. This beach is one of Iceland's most typical beaches, thanks to all the small icebergs that remain on the beach as the tide rises and falls, as it's located right at the mouth of a river that flows from the glacier. They really look like diamonds on the black sand.
We take some amazing shots running through the sea and the ice cubes and end up a little soaked, again... We love it! We also see seals for the first time on this beach. The photos, the textures emerging from the ice cubes, are incredible... Everything is great!
We finished and our intention is to go to Jokularsson, although it is so cloudy we decided to leave it for another day.
In the afternoon, we go in search of a movie spot. It ends up being the best hike I've ever done: the Múlagljúfur Canyon. I never would have imagined something as beautiful as this canyon could exist. The hike lasts just under an hour. At the end, you reach a river with cliffs on both sides, waterfalls cascading down… Surreal!
After making the most of the site, we head to the next accommodation in the eastern part of Iceland, in the village of Höfn.
Day 6
We got up at 4:30 because we wanted to see the sunrise. Mission failed; the clouds changed our plans again.
We go to Stockness Beach, an incredible beach with black sand and tall, green grass on the small hills, with mountains all around, seals bathing in the sea... The only problem is the wind. I start flying my drone to go and film some mountains, and when I bring it back, there's such a headwind that it can't move forward and, to top it all off, it runs out of battery in a place inaccessible by car, several kilometers from where we are. Nacho and I go in search of the lost drone, which appears even further away than it should, but luckily everything is fine.
We stopped for lunch at a restaurant on the way to Jokularsson, and when we reached the glacier, we were incredibly lucky. Thanks to the wind, everything had cleared up, and it was even sunny. It was the first day of the trip that we managed to shoot in the sun!
We flew the drone normally. Suddenly, while flying the FPV drone, Pascal loses connection with the drone as it passes behind an iceberg, and the FPV goes straight to the bottom of the glacier lake. This time, there's no way to recover it...
On the way back to Höfn, to make the day even better, we got a flat tire. Once the tire was replaced, we could finally go eat and rest.
Day 7
Today we have about an eight-hour drive ahead of us. We're heading to the Highlands, a route comprised largely of off-road vehicles.
We make our first stop at Jokularsson, basically to go skinny dipping in the frozen lake (yes, that's right, you can check it out in blog 8). We'll take some drone shots of the icebergs near the sand, then continue.
Along the way, we found a meadow with a very steep slope and decided to skate around it, like crazy! The landscapes here have me amazed.
Once you leave the South Iceland Highway and head towards the Highlands, it's all off-road roads and you'll cross rivers of varying sizes. We're traveling in a 4x4 and a van, and at one of these rivers, the van stalled, although everything seemed fine afterwards (Spoiler: it wasn't).
The last spot of the day is Bláhyur, a lake surrounded by green and black mountains. We climbed the highest mountain to watch the sunset, which once again lingered between clouds and more clouds. Even so, it was an incredible experience, given the views of this natural park.
Today we're sleeping in a hostel in the middle of nowhere. We're exhausted, and we're looking forward to a pretty poor dinner because our schedule isn't typical in this country. Tip: Eat dinner early and stick to your schedule, otherwise you'll end up eating at the most expensive places.
Day 8
We woke up at 6 a.m. ready to explore the Highlands, but the van wouldn't start and decided not to work. Between one story and another, we managed to make progress at 10 a.m. with the 4x4 and the Land Rover. This time we were truly prepared for every river we encountered!
We head towards Landmannalaugar, where a landscape that seems like it's from another planet awaits us (sorry for repeating myself, but this place has me amazed and I can't find any more adjectives to define these landscapes that have no possible normal description).
We left the car in a sandy parking lot where people were camping and began the hike. Suddenly, we found ourselves in a place that looked like the center of a giant crater, with volcanic rocks and moss on top, colorful mountains all around, geysers everywhere, and a wide variety of unimaginable landscapes.
We explored a bit and ended up at some colorful mountains, arranged as if painted, and we got THE shot of the trip. After this excursion, we hopped back in the car and headed back to the hotel.
Day 9
Today we woke up and set out to explore the surroundings of Landmannalaugar. We started with a shoot on the roads between volcanoes and got some epic shots out of the Landy's windows. We ended on a road that goes over the lakes and managed to capture some brutal shots with the FPV at full speed.
Then, heading to the next spot, we stopped to shoot at another spot lost in the Highlands that had a river with incredible textures right next to it. Gon worked his magic and took the best drone shots of the entire trip. By the way, don't ask me the name because I have no idea.
Next, we climbed the crater of the Stutur volcano, which was spectacular. The views were out of this world, and the landscape was a thousand colors.
Hungry as hell, we go to a spectacular place in the middle of the Highlands for lunch: some buses away from everything that have a small shop selling basic groceries. We buy some sandwiches and something to drink. It's great for continuing shooting into the afternoon, since that's all there is around. Getting in and out of there requires crossing several very deep rivers. It's true what they say about not being able to travel around here without a well-equipped and equipped 4x4 because there are always so many rivers to cross.
To end the day, on the way to our next hotel, we do an express photo op at the Maelifell volcano. A stunning landscape, filled with black sand surrounding an incredible green mountain, with glaciers and mountains in the distance. We take the opportunity to take some photos and some FPV shots of the tent and the Land Rover.
After the shoot, we continued on our way to the last hotel of the trip—well, more than a hotel, a campsite with bungalows in the middle of nowhere: Básar Hut & Campsite. To get there, we absolutely had to use the Land Rover 4x4, otherwise crossing the rivers would be impossible. It's also prohibited without a fully equipped 4x4. At two of the rivers we crossed, the car sank above the hood, and since it was nighttime, we were left blind. In fact, a property manager had to come and find us to find out which route to take so we could cross the rivers correctly.
Day 10
We woke up surrounded by nature and took the morning a little more leisurely. We had breakfast and went exploring the area. We took the opportunity to record footage of the Land Rover crossing the rivers during the day and ended up in the Stakkholtsgjá Canyon, a beautiful place, different from the canyons we'd seen so far, wider and with higher walls. And on top of that, we were alone, flying the FPV and exploring the caves. We ended up at a more enclosed spot where there was a waterfall with a huge drop that bounced between the moss walls, where only a trickle of light entered—unbelievable!
To finish the last full day of the trip, after lunch, we'll hike from our accommodation to Thórsmörk Mountain. The views from the top are breathtaking: a glacier, various rivers, mountains, and more mountains with spectacular shapes. For a change, the sun hasn't risen yet, nor have we seen the last sunset of the trip.
After the last supper, we had a celebratory beer and went to sleep.
Day 11
We woke up and started the route back to Reykjavik.
We stop at the Flói Nature Reserve, at some geysers, but we're short on time and can only record a couple of shots before starting the return journey. It's time to go to the airport, return the cars, and catch a flight home.
See you soon, Iceland!
|
Author ProfileFelip Vives is a young man from Barcelona who loves surfing, skateboarding, photography, and traveling. He's joined us on every crazy adventure we've suggested; he's a jack-of-all-trades. He's accompanied us on many trips, including to Iceland, Panama, and Fuerteventura. He acts as an action man, a model, a filmmaker; he does whatever it takes to get THAT shot (he even climbs wherever necessary!). He's already part of the Blue Banana family, and we share our way of enjoying life and our desire to seek adventures around the world. |
