Dyrhólaey is another free-standing block of tuff, connected to the mainland by a causway. It doesn’t have the Unesco status of yesterday’s, nor the Viking history, but it does have a road up to the top, and up there is a lighthouse and several magnificent views. Also close proximity to what seemed to be a Fumar roost on the clif: they were playing in the breeze, just hovering and wheeling. Very nice to just stand and watch them. Below us to the west stretched another enormous black-sand beach, with some four wheel drive tracks along it. Proper sized beach. Out to the south, in the water, were a collection of quite striking rock spurs, and a rock arch bridge. One of the spurs looked remarkably like an elephant, I thought. Out to the east stretched the famous black-sand beach of Reynisfjara, that we would visit up close a little later. Behind, to the north, there were glimpses of the great snow-capped mountain Myrdalsjokull.
Back on the road, it was a few minutes drive around to Reyinsfjara Beach. It’s on all of the tourist brochures, so it shouldn’t have been a surprise that it’s where all the tourists were. The car park was amazing. The beach had a sea of colourful parkas to throw the stark beauty of the black sands and wild surf into relief. Still, you walk out onto the beach, look left and can’t help but have your jaw drop in amazement. The swirls of columnar bassalt that form the caves is just architectural, for want of a better adjective. The sea stacks off shore at the end of the beach were quite striking too.
Had a snooze in the afternoon, and went out to a nice restaurant to celebrate Cath’s birthday. Very nice day.
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