14/02/2025
Iceland 2025 - Day 2
The day started with a prompt 6:45 wake up, ready for breakfast at 7am, as we endeavour to fit as much into the day as possible.
The group first stopped off at the LAVA centre; an interactive museum where students can learn about volcanology of Iceland, the impacts of the eruptions in the area and much more. This includes a talk with a volcanologist from around the globe, a cinematic experience and then the museum itself. Students remained in awe at the sites of the eruptions, and the engaged with the exhibits in the actual museum well.
Our second stop of the day was Skofagoss waterfall, this waterfall has experienced a lot of change over the past 3 trips I have made to the country, partially attributed to climate change and increased melt from the glaciers. We couldn’t get as close to the plunge pool as previous years, but it was still a site not to be reckoned with!
Unfortunately, our third activity - Glacier climbing, was cancelled due to the extreme winds thrashing the south of Iceland. We had originally moved it to the afternoon to try and help mitigate against this, but our Icelandic Mountain Guides felt that it was too dangerous to continue.
Nevertheless, students still visited the glacier in all of its might, realising the true mass of ice! Did you know, to be called a glacier, the ice always has to be moving?
We headed back to the black sand beach, with its infamous caves, stack, stumps, arches and basalt columns. The waves here batter against the coast, with “sneaker” waves that travel a lot further inland than expected (a big section of the RA was just on this stretch of coastline)! They were in awe at the power and furiousity of the waves, which were even stronger thanks to those long winds.
In place of the glacier climb, we made a short stop for some souvenir shopping, before watching the Lava Show - a first for the Geography department. The show included a talk about Iceland’s volcanology, before they created lava and spoke about its viscosity, properties etc. The heat emitted from this made everyone in the auditorium roast and students remained gripped at the presentation. At the end there was an opportunity for questions, with many discussions around the Icelandic volcano Katla, a volcano 10x the size of Eyjafjallajokull, that was due to erupt 50 years ago and is yet to come! 😬
Our final excursion of the day were visiting Seljalandsfoss and the Hidden waterfall - my personal favourite! We were very fortunate to be able to walk behind this behemoth and get some stunning photographs - with full waterproofs required! Pride of place however, goes to the Hidden Waterfall (a waterfall that my Year 11 class helped to discover using the power of social media). This gem was hidden and sheltered by a valley around it, offering some truly awesome photographs and cinematic views!
Upon returning to the hotel, students enjoyed some swim time in the geothermally heated pool, Icelandic meatballs and mash for dinner, and some downtime in the games/common room.
Upon settling for bed, Will, Callum and Fin realised that the northern lights were on show, dancing in the sky above. The Coopers Massive amassed outside the front of the hotel in their pyjamas, to take in the sight. What a way to finish our first full day in Iceland!
