Around the Glacier Lagoon
Day 8, 9th August 2023
We woke up to a beautiful blue sunny day and drove a few minutes back to the Glacier Lagoon for a scheduled boat ride. I'm not a great fan of boats but felt this was something I had to do. We were driven to the water's edge on a duckboat which when drove into the lagoon and functioned as a boat! There was little wind today so all was calm, and we had small inflatable safety boats nearby to guide us away from potentially dangerous icebergs. Since the melting of the glacier is increasing at speed, then one is made immediately aware of the impact of global warming. The black smoke oozing from the boat's engine is a bit of an embarrassment, so the intention is to make these vehicles electric as soon as possible.
The range of colours of the icebergs was unexpected and the bright crystal nature of the ice chunks was intense.
Look closely and you will see a seal swimming in the lagoon, accompanied by seabirds.
In the afternoon we drove inland into the Vatnajokull Glacier area and walked to the glacier face at Skaftafellsjokull. It was nice to have less driving today, so we enjoyed walking in the fresh air, without too many other people around. Afterwards we sat outside in the cafe area and had an ice cream while watching the clouds slowly reveal the snow-capped mountains in the distance.
