A Trip to Iceland and Greenland
If you’re planning your next vacation and want to include different, interesting sights and experiences on your itinerary, consider a trip to Iceland and Greenland. The two countries are between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans separated by the Denmark Strait and filled with gorgeous, dramatic views, excellent food, and the most welcoming residents.
If you follow my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48, you may have seen some of my photos from this recent trip. Among the highlights - I visited an inactive volcano just outside the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik, relaxed at the Sky Lagoon geothermal spa, toured the Vaxa Impact Nutrition hydroponics facility, traveled aboard the Swan Hellenic Vega expedition ship and viewed up close, some beautiful glaciers, icebergs, fjords, and landscapes. I visited small villages, met with local artisans, enjoyed dinner at the secluded Camp Kiattua, and of course, caught glimpses of the famous Northern Lights. It was a most memorable excursion with good friends.
Here are some of my photos, enjoy.
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- One of the first things we did once we arrived in Iceland was to take a helicopter ride to see one of the inactive volcanos. Iceland is home to around 130 volcanoes in 30 different volcanic systems. Thankfully, only 18 have erupted since 871 AD, when the country was first inhabited by humans.
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- We were all able to descend deep into one of the inactive volcano’s craters. A volcanic crater is an approximately circular depression in the ground caused by volcanic activity.
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- Here is our group descending into the crater of the Þríhnúkagígur volcano, the only volcano in the world where it is safe to enter its magna chamber.
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- This volcano is dormant and hasn’t erupted in more four thousand years. What we saw was amazing.
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- The magma chamber is often referred to as the heart of a volcano. Here are some of the various colors on the surrounding walls.
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- Iceland is one of the most active volcanic regions in the world, with eruptions occurring every few years. However, the volcano we visited shows no signs of activity in the near future.
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- On our first night, we stayed at the Reykjavik Edition Hotel (@editionreykjavik) and dined at the Tide Restaurant @tidesreykjavik. The meats were perfectly cooked and so flavorful.
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- This is the Miso Cod with glazed carrot purée, oyster mushrooms, coriander-toasted almond salsa.
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- And the homemade feykir & asparagus ravioli with lobster sauce, lemon, and Icelandic chervil. If you’ve never had feykir cheese, it is a rich sheep’s milk Icelandic cheese. Everything was delicious.
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- Here’s my dear friend Terre Blair in front of the Sky Lagoon geothermal spa in southwestern Iceland.
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- These are the steps in and out of the lagoon. One can take as much time as desired in the lagoon’s warm waters.
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- The waters of Sky Lagoon contain minerals that can detoxify and can help remedy skin ailments. We all were so excited to take a dip. It was the best place to be on a cold, dreary day.
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- Here I am under the thermal waterfalls – so invigorating.
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- I visited the team at Vaxa, a hydroponic vegetable grower in Iceland.
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- VAXA Impact Nutrition produces microalgae in their state-of-the-art facility for aquaculture fish feed and as nutritional supplements for people. VAXA Technologies converts clean energy into food, producing sustainable crops rich in Omega-3 and protein.
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- We also tasted Omnom, Iceland’s leading chocolate maker.
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- Our trip across the Denmark Strait from Iceland to Greenland was on the Swan Hellenic Cruise Ship, SH Vega. WE saw some of the most amazing views from this expedition ship and learned all about the largest island in the world, Greenland.
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- Do you know… the difference between a glacier and an iceberg? Glaciers are located in the Arctic and Antarctica. They are bodies of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight and formed by the accumulation of snow over many centuries. Icebergs are smaller pieces of ice that have broken off, or calved, from glaciers and now drift with the ocean currents.
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- We saw many icebergs during our journey.
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- Just a decade ago, these mountains were covered in snow.
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- Remember this photo that I posted on Instagram? It got lots of attention. We were in a beautiful fjord on the east coast of Greenland where we captured a small iceberg for our drinks. I used some of the ice in this drink.
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- The cold East Greenland Current passes through the Strait and carries icebergs south into the North Atlantic Ocean.
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- The Denmark Strait was formed roughly during the last ice age. When the ice sheets advanced and then retreated over the North Atlantic, they created a landscape with a depression that gradually became the Denmark Strait over the course of thousands of years.
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- We visited a small Inuit village on Prince Christian Sound. The Prince Christian Sound is a waterway in Southern Greenland.
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- The tiny village is called Aappilattoq, which means “sea anemone” in the local Greenlandic Inuit language.
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- The cluster of colorful houses is home to just under 100 people.
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- Near the southern tip of Greenland is an old mining town of Ivittuut, now a collection of uninhabited houses and sheds. Ivittuut was once the world’s largest source of cryolite, an extremely rare mineral that was historically used in the extraction of aluminium from bauxite ore.
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- We spotted some cryolite on this step.
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- Here we are on the ship at night – taking some fun photos.
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- And here I am on the ship’s bridge with the captain.
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- We also visited Camp Kiattua, a secluded and exclusive camping retreat. The Inuit-inspired tents and grounds are surrounded by nature and magnificent views.
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- The fire pit is surrounded by comfortable, big chairs – it’s true “glamping” style.
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- Here I am with the proprietor of Camp Kiattua, Anika Krogh, and her young daughter. We had such a nice evening here.
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- I caught this beautiful view from my room on the ship.
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- And here they are – the Northern Lights, the natural light display in Earth’s sky seen in high-latitude regions. Also called auroras, it is a vivid demonstration of the Earth’s magnetic field interacting with charged particles from the sun. The lights show as dynamic patterns that appear as curtains, rays, spirals, or flickers. I hope you think about visiting this part of the world someday – Iceland and Greenland and the Denmark Strait. You’ll love it.
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