Golden Circle

Gullfoss, the Golden waterfall giving the route the name the "Golden" Circle

Our subtle shifted preference to choice guided tours appear to continue as we commence a whole series of them with Hidden Iceland. Our reasoning for this leg was our lack of experience driving in snow, wind and ice. And so it was that we found ourselves being the last 5 out of a small group tour of 12 to be picked up for the Golden Circle Platinum Tour. At 0845, it was still pitch black and we were off with our geologist guide Holly to our first stop The Secret Lagoon, dubbed Iceland’s oldest swimming pool.

Dotted with seemingly endless geothermal areas, The Secret Lagoon is one of many pools in Iceland.  Without the silica, it didn't have the "blue" of the Blue Lagoon but instead had crystal clear water. It was also much smaller. We were the first to arrive, and after the mad dash through the -11 degree open air it was bliss to soak in the hot water. Whatever was not in the water hurt! It was definitely a great way to wake up. The sun had finally popped up into the sky just as we got out at around 11am.

We saw an orange glow at around 930. This would hang around for a long time before the sun finally came out just after 11!

The first ones there

Crystal clear water. The boys hair were hard from the frozen water and Lara's hair...

was given a special style!

You can see the popping sun just as we got out

With bodies now warm it was time to fill the belly at Friðheimar Tomato Farm Greenhouse. Geothermal greenhouses are big thing in Iceland and it was incredible that anything could even be grown in such a harsh environment. Lots of figures were given to us about the volumes of tomato produced here but we were mostly hungry and impatiently waiting for the famed tomato soup...it didn't disappoint but what was even better was the bread! Lash generous amounts of butter on top, add on some amazing cucumber pickles, add some tomato soup on the side with fresh basil and you've got yourself and incredible carb loaded meal. Everyone went back for multiple helpings, thank goodness it was a buffet. Conveniently for us, the farm also had Icelandic Horses which they breed and train to compete, it was a short chilly stroll to go say hello before hopping back onto the warm and wifi-enabled van.

Greenhouses growing tomatoes. 4 different varieties

Supersweet tomatoes

On the vine. Everything had a sickly yellow hue because of the artificial light

The tomato soup and bread buffet. Seriously one of the best breads ever

Non hangry kids are good kids

Tomato ice-cream anyone?

Icelandic Horse, never call them a pony...

Gullfoss Waterfall was spectacularly frozen. It was a sight to behold but by this time, complaints of the cold were starting to surface. Geysir was next, apparently where the word geyser originated. The OG of all geysers. Waiting for it to erupt resulted in freezing fingers!! But we completed the challenge of obtaining a Geysir selfie.

A closer look at Gullfoss and the Glacial river water feeding into it

Don't be fooled by the soft orange light. It was cold!

Stokkur the most active geyser in Geysir

Selfie. Tick.

The highest point of the sun for the day. Geysir

Our final stop of the day was Þingvellir National Park, important for 2 main reasons The first being the site of the first Viking parliament, the second being where the American and Eurasian tectonic plates separate. Here's where a geologist guide came in handy! We got the low down on all things geothermal, volcanic and tectonic. By this point though, the wimpy Australians were always the first to get back onto the bus! We made our way back to Reykjavik in the dark and was dropped off at our hotel where we indulged in our lounge food and drinks. Better add on an extra layer for our adventures to come!

 

Freezing at the end of the Eurasian tectonic plate

Oxarafoss Falls

The last photo they would pose for me. Right at the edge of the American plate