Day 12, June 27, 2005: Svínafellsjökull and Jökulsárlón again
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We went ice climbing this morning. It was still drizzling and we were worried about the cold,
but we went over to the Mountain Guides tent at Skaftafell and they packed us into the Volvo we
saw yesterday.
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The truck took us to the edge of the glacier and from there, it was a short hike.
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When the ground started getting hard and slippery, the crampons came out. They were quite fun to stomp around in.
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Tracy - our guide for the day - cut steps for us with her ice axe wherever there was a slope.
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When we came to the top of a small ravine,
Tracy set up some toprope anchors with icescrews.
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And then, we were all lowered to the bottom.
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It was possible to walk up quite a steep slope with the help of the crampons.
Once I got used to the ice axes, things got easier. I was mainly worried I might accidentally
cut the rope whenever I swung the axes. Ice climbing turned out to be quite similar to rock climbing
except you could make handholds and footholds anywhere you wanted.
See Ming tried to sit out the whole thing, but in the end,
she had to climb out of the ravine, just like the rest of us.
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When we were done climbing, we headed back to Höfn for lunch and to get more photos made into CDs.
On the drive back to Kirkjubćjarklaustur, we saw strange rock formations silhouetted against the distant
mountains. In Iceland, wherever a rock sticks out like this, the locals would say that it used to be a troll.
Trolls are believed to be cave creatures that cannot tolerate sunlight. They come out at night to do their
mischief. Some of them get carried away and forget to return to their caves before dawn and they turned into
rock pillars.
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We also came across some Icelandic horses. Horses were first brought to Iceland by the first Viking settlers,
during the years 874 - 930. Their boats were small, so only the best horses were brought along. Since then, the
import of farm animals has been forbidden and the Icelandic horse has remained purebred. Over the centuries, they
have evolved to become smaller and more suited to island life. They may be shorter than European horses but
they are friendly, sure-footed, and have great stamina.
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Along the way, we stopped at Jökulsárlón again and See Ming took these pictures. A lof of the ice had melted and
the lagoon looked quite different from yesterday. The weather was actually a lot warmer too, so we stayed there
for quite some time.
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Towards the end of the day, we saw the most amazing thing. The icebergs started melting and breaking off one by one.
Each time, a big chunk of ice fell into the water, it created a big splash.
Click here to watch (373 Kb WMV file)
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Near Jökulsárlón, we stopped by this sign that explains the eruptions and floods that happened in 1996.
Next to the sign is a bent piece of the original bridge that got destroyed. I couldn't climb that piece of metal,
so I climbed the sign.
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