Iceland Day 5: Borðeyri to Húsavík

Borðeyri was a convenient place to stop for the night, but our final destination was Húsavík. So it was back on the road again early Saturday morning. In a major change from the West Fjords, the road was paved the entire way!

Movin' right along in search of good times and good news...

Around noon, we arrived in Akureyri. With a population of a little more than 18,000, Akureyri is Iceland's second-largest town. After the isolation and desolation of the West Fjords, it seemed like a booming metropolis. We scoped out the bookstore, stopped in to see the church (with stained glass windows saved from a London church at the start of WWII), walked up to the botanical gardens, then had lunch at a rooftop restaurant overlooking the harbor.

Stefan declared the sailboat the largest pleasure sailboat he'd ever seen

Akureyri is ~90 minutes from Húsavík. Before leaving, we took advantage of the Big City and stopped at the supermarket and liquor store. (Grocery stores sell beer, but wine and other alcohol are sold only at state-run liquor stores.)

Then it was back to the car and Route 1, a.k.a. the Ring Road, the main highway that runs the entire way around Iceland. We drove a smidge beyond the turnoff toward Húsavík in order to visit another waterfall, Goðafoss. 

Then, finally, Húsavík. We're spending four nights here, using it as a base for sightseeing in North-Central Iceland. Stefan and Elias quickly got to work to make it feel like home.

In the evening, Stefan and I drove up the hill that overlooks Húsavík to hike around a small lake, Botnsvatn. Our host recommended it as a good midnight hike, but we went on the early side at 8pm.