On our 4th day in Iceland, we visited the popular Diamond Beach. Chunks of ice from the Breiðamerkurjokull glacier fall into the Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon, and later washed up into a strip of black volcanic sand beach that is the Diamond Beach. So, sorry, no real diamonds. In the afternoon, we went hiking for Svartifoss, located in Skaftafell nature reserve. The waterfall at 20 meters tall, looks elegantly framed in perfectly formed basalt columns. The roadtrip was amazing, although we encountered lots of foggy/zero visibility areas, rain and drizzle.
Here’s our entire roadtrip in Iceland last April, c/o Google Maps:
It felt amazing to wake up in Hotel Skaftafell. We were surrounded by beautiful snowcapped mountains, the air was fresh and cool, and the breakfast good. I recommend for a romantic stay in Iceland. We planned to check it out before leaving, but for now, here’s a glimpse of the place:
I love toast!
The weather was not very cooperative, but we were still grateful that the roads were open, no traffic jams, and we safely arrived in our destination. The trip started nicely, and then, it drizzled. Later on, it was super foggy, no visibility in some areas, so we practice extra caution, especially when crossing bridges.
Initially, I wanted to book some activities in the lagoon, but even 2 months in advance, the activities were already fully booked. I guess it was okay, since we didn’t really see anything in the lagoon but fog. The Diamond beach is separated by a river flowing from the lagoon. We first checked out the west side. The beach was there, we could here it loudly gushing into the beach, but we couldn’t see it. Some diamonds were opaque, while some were see-through.
To reach the eastern side, we crossed a bridge, and then a pebbly ground. Larger chunks of ice, but not as much as on photos I saw online in advance.
We managed to see the “diamonds” and the front beach up close, but I’ll forever wonder how it feels to be there when the weather is clear.
Driving back to the hotel, we saw the glaciers in Skaftafell and all its glory from afar. There’s the Skaftafellsjökull and the Svinafellsjökull. The next day, we managed to see the glaciers a bit more up close. But on this day, seriously, the cold was draining, so we napped at noon time before going out again in the afternoon.
As mentioned, Svartifoss is a scenic waterfall located in Skaftafell national park. We parked next to a camping ground, then, started the 2 km hike. It says 2 kms on Google, but it felt longer due to the altitude! There are smaller waterfalls preceeding Svartifoss – the Magnúsarfoss, Hundafoss, and Þjófafoss. Before we reach Hundafoss, my husband did not feel well, so I decided to brave the hike on my own. Some parts of the path was covered in rubber net. There were moments when I wanted to turn back because the drizzle was annoying, but two female hikers sort of inspired me to continue.
Many moments later, I finally heard the sound of the cascading water coming from Svartifoss. Hurray! However, my knees shook when I saw that I had to walk past a cliff, along a single-line trail, to actually go down the waterfall bed. I needed encouragement from my husband in situations like this, but there was no phone signal on top! That’s when I decided to just admire the beauty of the 20-meter tall Svartifoss from afar. Det er ingen skam å snu, as we say it in Norway. I wasn’t alone. There was an Asian tourist who also decided to stay in the viewing platform and wait there for his friends.
“Svart” is norwegian for “black”, by the way. It can also mean “big”, powerful, or “very” in danish and norwegian (svært).
Some live action:
The views were astounding, also on the way down. I made it in time before it rained for real.
The day was amazing, all in all. The Diamond Beach was the farthest southeast we went in Iceland. We planned just halfway the Ring Road because it was April and the roads might still be tricky. Nevertheless, we enjoyed it – Iceland is another planet!
We called it a day after enjoying dinner from the kiosk across the road.
This was Day 4. #spreadloveandpositivevibes. ALL PHOTOS AND VIDEOS ON THIS BLOG ENTRY ARE MINE. 🙂 Cheers!
PinayOdyssey 
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