We climbed a Volacano!

Today started out normal enough.  We got ready and went upstairs to have breakfast.  This was a traditional Icelandic breakfast of meats, cheeses, eggs, breads (one freshly baked, yum!), skyr, fruits, and cereals.  About the eggs:  I like eggs as long as they are scrambled or in an omelette (which is really scrambled, I know).  There were several apparently hard-boiled eggs sitting in helpful individual egg cups.  For those of you playing at home, you probably know these were not hard-boiled, but soft-boiled rather, to be topped, then scooped out with an egg-spoon.  Carrie and Les each got their "hard-boiled" eggs, and began peeling.  Those familiar with the situation probably know how easy it isn't to peel soft-boiled eggs - particularly when you start exposing the yolk, which is runny.  I enjoyed the humor of watching them struggle with the peeling process.  Carrie passed hers to Les, who was nonplussed by the predicament, and he ate theirs both.  Did I mention that there was freshly baked bread?  Yum!When we had our fill, we loaded up the car in the driving wind and left for the north coast of Iceland.  While driving, we saw a parking area that seemed to provide good shots of a large waterfall.  We saw a path leading up, so we took our first hike of the day.  Carrie didn't bring her phone, and with her new addiction to FaceBook Live, we had to use mine, though she was the star of the show.  We saw a sheep huddling with 2 lambs on the way back to the car, so of course, Carrie had to practice her Icelandic sheep dialect, so she sauntered over to baaaah at them.Back in the warm car we continued on.  We stopped at a small church built in the not-to distant past.  I am careful with my phrasing, because it was built the same year that Pat was born.  I promised I wouldn't refer to it as an "ancient" church.  We took some pictures, and even found a couple of friendly farm-dogs that came up to say Hi.  And, then we were back on the road.  We passed through the massive ash and lava field left over from the 1980 volcanic eruption, and it was like we had been transported to another world.  We had definitely entered an active geologic zone.We embarked on a tour around lake Myvatin, which houses many different volcanic features.  First, was a subterranean hot spring.  I was the only one that braved the downward climb to the spring.  Next up was the hike up a volcanic cone.  Carrie was a little uncertain about the climb, because from a distance, the cone was so imposing, she wasn't sure she was up for it.  I didn't let her quit, though taking a few breathers along the way was the key.  Eventually, we made it to the rim of the cone.  The views of the area were spectacular.  We hiked around the rim for a while to see if we could locate our next stop.  We got some great shots, and even helped out a solo traveler with a picture of her on the rim.  We descended, and got in the car to go to some unique lava formations.Dimmuborgir, or "Dark Fortress" is a massive field of collapsed lava tubes.  It is also the mythological home of the Icelandic Yule Lads.  You should really check out that link for a taste of unique Icelandic Christmas tradition.  After taking yet another hike, we went up to the cafe at the visitor center.  They had a soup buffet, with 3 different soups.  With the cold weather, it was a perfect choice.  After we were warmed up, we decided to head on directly to our destination, Husavik.Husavik is considered the whale watching capital of Iceland, and we are going to do just that tomorrow night.  There's that night word again - night.  We got to the apartment we are staying at for the next 2 nights, and unloaded.  It is a great place, and will be nice to stretch out and not be sharing a location with other people.  Since we ate such a late lunch, we went to the grocery store to get breakfast supplies for the next 2 days, and a little light food for dinner tonight.  Everyone else is eating while I finish up these notes.  I suspect a game of Phase 10 or Mexican Train is in order for the evening.  We got to do laundry, so we are glad to have some clean clothes.  I think we will all sleep well tonight with all the hiking and, oh, did I mention that we climbed a volcano?  :)