Day 5
Day five started with a modified golden circle route. We went from Hella straight up to Gullfoss. We parked at the lower lot and hiked in to the main lower viewing area (something we skipped last time having seen it from the top in 2016). It’s a VERY impressive falls from up close and well worth the hike in (with a lot of tourists).
From Gullfoss we skipped Geysir and went to Bruarfoss. Bruarfoss had easy access via a bridge last year if you knew where you were going (it’s not an easy place to find). This year the bridge has a no trespassing sign on it. We parked in the same place as last year (near the bridge) but instead of trespassing, we headed down the small side stream to an easy place to cross on foot. I piggybacked the entire family across! Bruarfoss is still one of my favorites. The color of that water is just amazing! The kids loved it as well.
From there we headed to Oxararfoss in Pinvellir National Park. We stopped in Laugarvatn for lunch on the way. This is where the continental plates are dividing and the falls fall off one plate into the gap between the two plates! We got to see some other near cracks filled with the cleanest water I’ve ever seen as we drove in on a different road this time. The kids enjoyed playing in the water around the rocks at the base of Oxararfoss while Nikki and I relaxed on the deck.
We then headed off to Borgarnes which had one of the better pools of the trip! To get there we had a great drive through some fiords and on a lot of dirt roads as well as gravel and paved. We could have taken a tunnel but opted for the longer/scenic route (of course!). The kids LOVED the slides (and I won’t lie, I did too) and they had some great hot tubs as well in all temps. From there we headed off to Laugargerðisskóli. Not sure where/how it was recommended to us but DO NOT go there!? It was super creepy and the owners of the hotel/restaurant/??? (it looks like an abandoned school?) weren’t even there… We cooked our food in a subterranean kitchen! It wasn’t anything fun but you went down the stairs outside into a kitchen… Bathrooms were very basic and tiny here as well and I don’t think there were even showers (we showered after our pool visits each night).
