A Taste of Iceland (pt2) ~ Hitchhiking the Southern Coast ~ from Vík to Jökulsárlón

On our recent journey to enchanted Iceland over the Spring equinox, fellow explorer @glamdoll and I set out to hitchhike the Southern coast and see what adventures we could find. The Southern coast of Iceland is a rugged and majestic land, with vast expanses of lava fields and waterfalls gushing from nearly every cliff edge you pass. It's a pretty spectacular journey.

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Hitchhiking in Iceland

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We heard that hitchhiking in Iceland wasn't such a bad way to get around. While in some ways this is true, and I enjoyed the adventure, I think next time I'll rent a car.

For the most part, it was pretty easy to get a ride, and as Iceland is the safest country in the world there's really not much cause for concern as regards personal safety apart from the hazards inherent in driving itself.

Pros:
We met a wonderful cast of characters along the way and discovered things we probably wouldn't have otherwise. We didn't have to do the driving ourselves so we were free to gaze out the windows at the vast countryside lost in amazement, although I usually ended up riding shotgun and had to keep up the conversation with one travel buddy or another.

Cons:
When you do finally get stranded on the side of the road in Iceland (although it may improve your capacity for random beats and rhymes) you get STRANDED. I mean, Iceland doesn't seem big on a map, but there are some VAST expanses of not much at all... be sure you are prepared for the elements. The WIND, in Iceland is a force to be reckoned with. It can come out of nowhere, and strip all your heat away in a matter of seconds... you need to be prepared, any time of year, or you could literally die of exposure. The other thing is TIME... You probably aren't coming to Iceland with endless amounts of time, so you want to spend it wisely. Standing on the side of the road, while charming at times, is probably not the best way to spend your time in Iceland.

That being said, this is our adventure from Vík, the Southernmost village in Iceland, to Jökulsárlón, the glacier lagoon of the Southeast. It was an incredible ride with some of the most beautiful country you will see anywhere.

One of our many rides and the most substantial was with one fellow out to see as much as possible in what little time he had. We were fortunate to cover the final stretch to Jökulsárlón and zoom all the way back to a campground in Reykjavík before morning.

One of the seemingly infinite number of waterfalls. Sometimes it seems as though everyone in the country has one in their back yard.

I don't know what the deal is, but there were rusty trailers seemingly everywhere in Iceland, and @glamdoll will tell you I developed an unhealthy obsession with noticing them, I just couldn't help it. Rusty trailer! ;)

I'm not joking... waterfalls everywhere.

This is two sides...

...of the same plateau. I'm pretty confident this is one of the Elf Queen's Southern hideouts.

One tiny portion of the massive 8,100 km2 (3,100 sq mi) Vatnajökull glacier.

Here it is again.... It covers more than 8 percent of the country!

Fields of lupine turn the hillsides a beautiful shade of purple.

Rivers rushing, everywhere you turn there's just more of this stunning landscape.

Cool old livestock shed, we had to stop and have a look.

If you lived in that livestock shed, this would be your front yard... :)

This would be your roommate, the iconic Icelandic sheep. ;)

We arrive at Jökulsárlón!

You won't believe these colors are real until you go see for yourself!

All this thousand-year-old ice was making us thirsty, so naturally, it was time to go get some and make tea! =)

I hope you enjoyed the journey.
Cheers! @lovejoy

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All photos are original
*map courtesy of Google