away has taken on new meaning

When I travel I often say “now this is really away”, because it is very much away, off the beaten track. This night finds me on a new level of away. 

Tucked up in the hills of middle Iceland, abutting a glacier, I am away. 

So how did I get here?  After my morning pastoral time, we took off to drive around the Vatnsnes Peninsula. One of the shorter distance around peninsula, it might have taken a couple of hours to circle around. But as usual it took us twice that. 

So many vistas to pull over to marvel at and to photograph. 

The M indicates a layby for pulling over on the narrow road so oncoming cars can pass. We took it to mean a photo pull off spot as well. 

This was a day to get out of the car and walk. A dirt path from the road led to a beautiful cove. 

Using found materials near the cove, I created an impermanent art installation. 

People flocked to view the piece. 

Continuing the drive we took a beautiful walk high above the coast. From this vantage point we had a good view of the 15 meter high haystack. 

Icelandic horses gathered at the end of the peninsula drive. 

Before we departed this area of Iceland we enjoyed a late lunch of nachos, a surprising find in Iceland, and actually pretty tasty. 

 Finally we were on our way to our next lodging destination. Along the way we found Iceland’s version of fall. 

Turning off the Ring Road we twisted and turned for 45 minutes until at last we arrived. Away indeed. 

A beautiful day from start to finish.