Iceland

August 5, 2026 Flying Home

Happily we had a uneventful trip home arriving in Toronto about 40 minutes early ---- when does that ever happen. We arrived at the "in-field terminal" which required a bus trip to Terminal 3. The bus dropped us off close to immigration so no what feels like a mile long walk to get to immigration. Everything went quickly and we were outside waiting for our ride about 5 minutes after our expected arrival time. 

Home Sweet Home

August 4, 2026 Back to Reykjavik

Today we finish the route around the island ending in Reykjavik. 

There's a hot spring down this road. 

Deildartunguhver hot spring is recognized as the highest-flowing hot spring in all Europe. The hot spring surges with an average constant flow rate of 180 litres per second and the water temperature reaches 97C. A major portion of this boing water is captured and pumped via long pipelines to heat homes and businesses. I wonder why there are a lot of green houses in the area,

Lemon cucumber tomato at least that's what a box of this fruit indicated. 

Hraunfossar (Lava Falls), a series of rivulets streaming from the Hallmundarhraun lava field into the Hvita River. 

Ed spotted this barn and the "girls" heading in for milking. Our guide told us that most of the dairy operations around Iceland use automated milking machines. 

It never fails to amaze me when I see a sight like this --- a couple of hot springs on the farm. Are they off the grid and get their power from the hot spring, do they have a nice little "spa" spot? You'd never have to worry about running out of hot water. 

We stopped at the Settlement Centre and visited both of their exhibits. One of the exhibits recreates Iceland's earliest days, and the other exhibit introduces you to one of the best known heroes of Icelandic Sagas, Egill Skalla-Grimsson.

A view from the bus.

Earlier in the trip we drove through a 5 kilometre tunnel that went through a mountain, today we drove through an almost 6 kilometre tunnel under a fjord. 

Another great view from the bus.

We made it back to Rekjavik. As far as capital cities go it's not that big but it feels really large after spending more than a week staying in various small towns around the island. 

August 3, 2026 Snaefellnes Peninsula

Today we explore the Snaefellnes Peninsula, circling from the north coast to the western tip and along the southern shore. Legend holds it that Christopher Columbus spent a winter at Ingjaldsholl, where he heart stories of lands to the west ---- possibly influencing his later Atlantic voyage.  

The first stop of the day was at the Bjarnarhofn Shark Museum, a family owned museum. This family has been involved with sharks for the past four centuries with the only change being they don't fish for sharks anymore, now it's only bycatch (accidentally caught in a net while fishing for another species). To prepare the shark for human consumption, it needs to be fermented then dried. The families fermentation process is that they put the meat into open cold storage boxes for around 6 - 9 weeks to ferment the shark, and then the meat is hung outside for months to fully dry out. 

This photo was taken from the front of the museum.

Just behind the museum was a field with an Icelandic Horse and it's baby. 

The grandfather of the current owner use to fish for shark. This was the boat he used. 

We tasted the shark and washed it down with a shot of Brennivin, which sometimes is called Black Death (a strong Icelandic alcohol). Such a touristy thing to do. 😁

Kirkjufell mountain and Kirkjufellsfoss waterfall, one of the most photographed places in Iceland. 

Stapafell Mountain, a volcanic peak rising approximately 526 metres. This is near the small fishing village of Arnarstapi.

The harbour of Arnastapi. 

Our guide took us for a walk along the coast. Kittiwakes were busy nesting on some of the rocks.

A bridge.

Interesting holes in the rocks. 

Barour Snaefellsas statue, the structure is made entirely of stacked stones and depicts a figure described as half-man, half-giant. 

At the Vatnshellir Lava Cave, we're getting ready to go underground.  Vatnshellir is an 8,000 year-old lava tube with vivid mineral wall colors and a 35-metre subterranean depth. 

Going to the 2nd level down. There were a few stalagmites and stalactites. Some of the rocks looked like they were covered in chocolate sauce. 

To get to the lowest level you walked down a circular staircase. Here people are climbing back up with their flashlights turned on. 

Interesting rocks, some people saw a ship but definitely not from this angle.  

A view from the bus

About a kilometre from our hotel our 2 craters. Looking at the smaller crater from the rim of the larger crater. 

Looking across the crater from the highest point on the rim. The faint line that looks like a road are wooden steps.

A better view of the centre of the crater.

August 2, 2026 Sod Houses, Vikings and Horses

Today we drive through Skagafjordur, one of Iceland's most prosperous agricultural regions. One quarter of the regions population live on farms and the number of horses outnumber people. This is Iceland's horse-breeding heartland. We have a couple of stops today and a lot of time on the bus. Below are a few shots of the scenery we passed through.

The first stop today is Glaumbaer, a historical homestead in the Skagafjordur area. Today it houses the Skagafjordur Folk Museum, which showcases traditional Icelandic rural life. The homestead complex consists of thirteen buildings made of stone, turf, and wood, together forming a typical turf house. 

The first building was a smithy and the next two were sheds. The forth one is the house that has 14 rooms. If you look at the previous photo, all the turf bumps on the left hand side are rooms in the house. 

Maintenance of a turf house is a little different ....apparently, you have to water the roof. 

The view from the turf house.

A couple of "modern" houses at the museum. These two houses reminded Ed and I of the old farmhouse he grew up in. 

Today's surprise, well just luck today. A heard of Icelandic horses were been moved. It took the wranglers a bit of work to get the horses off the road and to one side. 

What beautiful creatures.

Violmyrarkirkja, a turf church which was built in 1834.

The wrap for hay comes in multiple colours. We've seen white, green, and black. Our guide thinks that the wrap indicates the quality of the hay. Google thinks the different colours are for temperature control. I think it's just interesting to see the different colours in the fields. Below are a couple of more views from the bus.

Our second stop of the day is at Eiriksstaoir, home of Eirik the Red. The house has been reconstructed but a short distance away you can see the original foundation. The young man from the museum told us about Viking life in Iceland. Leif "the lucky" Eiriksson, who is famous for landing at L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, grew up in this home. 

Another great view from the bus.

A volcanic crater near the hotel we are staying at. 

August 1, 2026 Another Waterfalls and a Geothermal Hot Spring

Today's weather is starting out better than yesterday's weather, though there is still rain in the forecast. 

As we head out on today's adventure we stopped to look back at Akureyri.

A lake we drove past. I love how the clouds are hanging over the mountain.  

Godafoss, the "Waterfalls of the Gods". The Skjalfandafljot River plunges 12 metres across a 30-metre-wide arc. 

Leaving the waterfalls we drove to the Myvatn Nature Baths where we were given 3 hours to soak in the 100 to 104 F temperature water. Originally, we were only allotted 1 hour at the baths but with the change in the schedule the allotted was increased to 3 hours. The pool has a very natural look. There is also a natural steam room where you can get warm enough that the 100F degree water feels like a "cool" plunge. The photo was taken by our tour leader. 

Photo stop

Another waterfall. I count on google image search to identify places in my photos but it's not doing well today.

Right by our hotel in Akureyri is the botanical gardens. We wandered around and enjoyed the flowers. This is an Alpine Delphinium. 

Brook Thistle

Akureyrakirkja. This church was designed by the architect who designed the big church in Reykjavik.

The view from the front.

July 31, 2026 Rainy Days don't stop us

Today's itinerary started with whale watching and then a couple of stops as we moved on to the next town. Winds and rain had our tour leader hopping as he changed the itinerary for today and tomorrow. The whale watching was moved with crossed fingers to late in the afternoon in town we were headed to. A few of tomorrow's stops were added to today. In the end there was a silver living but you'll find out what is was in tomorrow's blog. It was a dreary, rainy day so some of the photos look a little dreary. The destination for today is Akureyri.

First stop of the day was the Husavik Whale museum  The museum has an extensive collection of exhibits, including 13 real whale skeletons, and some fascinating videos. This is the skeleton of a Baleen whale.

Next stop was the Namaskard Pass. There were several bubbling mud pools, several steam vents, lots of colourful ground, and a strong sulfur smell. The following three photos where taken at the geothermal area. 

Dimmuborgir is a large area of unusually shaped lava fields. About 2300 years ago the lava pooled over a small lake at Dimmuborgir. As the water flowed across the wet sod, the water of the marsh started to boil, the vapour rising through the lava forming lava pillars from drainpipe size up to several metres in diameter. As the lava continued flowing towards lower ground, the top crust collasped, but the hollow pillars of solidified lava remained. The laval lake must have been at least 10 metres deep, as estimated by the tallest structures still standing. 

Ed and I saw a lot of "things" in the rocks. We thought this one looked like Foghorn Leghorn, the rooster from Looney Tunes.

Looking over the lava field. 

One of the lakes we drove by (a shot from the bus window).

The pseudo craters at Skutustadir were formed when lava flowed over wet ground, causing explosive steam eruptions that created crater-like formations without any actual volcanic vents beneath. These differ from true craters, which connect to magma chambers below.

A good view of one of the pseudo craters. 

Another interesting view from the bus window. So far today we managed to only get mildly wet. The water proof shoes weren't keeping up to their claim of being water proof but the rest of the clothes were doing a pretty good job. 

Just north of Akureyri along the fiord was a small marina where we would get on a boat to go whale watching. We were given insulated overalls, the bottom of the legs were wet but the overalls were warm. We were also give a long rain coat.  I had on a t-shirt, long sleeve shirt, down vest, sweater weight down jacket and a rain jacket. I also had on a pair on long johns, hiking pants and rain pants. I would have been freezing if I didn't have the overalls and extra rain coat. After about an hour sailing on about 2 metre high waves, 2 hump back whales were spotted. The whales were feeding so they surfaced a lot. Between the rain, the overcast and the waves Ed didn't get the best photos but he did get some.  

This was a photo I took with my cell phone. It gives you an idea of how everyone was dressed. 

The whales open mouth. On the way back to the marina, we saw a pod of dolphins playing around the boat and some puffins and other birds. Unfortunately, the camera had been put away and we didn't pull out our cell phones so no photos.

July 30, 2026 Waterfalls and More

There were only 2 things on the itinerary for today, so tour leaderr and guide found a couple of surprises for us. We ended the day in Husavik, a cute seaside town.

Rjukandafoss waterfall, this was one of the surprise stops.

We've seen lots of sheep and finally we were able to get a good photo.

Very different countryside today then yesterday. 

Did you know Iceland has a desert? It does, at it's quite large and the sand is black. Some areas are being reclaimed by planting Alaskan Lupin. This was another surprise stop.

Moorudaslskirkja, a historic white chapel with a distinctive red roof located on the highest inhabited farm in Iceland. The farm called Moorudalur, sits at 469 metres above sea level. The have sheep, cattle, goats, have a shop and restaurant for tourists and have a few camping spots. This was also a surprise stop. 

A replica of an Icelandic turf house.

They also have a 2 year old reindeer, who desperately wants in the restaurant. The reindeer was found when it was about 3 days old, it's mother had died so it was given to the farm owner. 

The goat had to see all of the tourists as well.

More beautiful scenery shot through he bus window. 

The Dettifoss waterfalls. It is reputed to be the 2nd largest waterfall in Europe. The falls are 100 metres wide with a drop of 44 metres down to the canyon. This was one of the planned stops.

The Dettifoss Waterfalls from another view point. 

Not far from Dettifoss waterfalls is the Selfoss waterfalls.  The next two photos were taken at the Selfoss waterfalls.

Botnstjorn, a small tranquil lake located at the head of Asbyrigi Canyon. The canyon is famous for its unique horseshoe shape, which Islandic forklore attributes to a hoofprint from Odin's eight-legged horse, Sleipnir. This was also a planned stop.

The harbour at Husavik.

July 29, 2026 Rocks and Driving

We left Hofn this morning with a 2 to 2.5 hour drive ahead of us. We drove through jagged coastal mountains, deep ocean fjords, high inland passes. Our destination for today is Egilsstdir. 

The view outside the hotel in Hofn was amazing. Who ever chose this hotel for us should be commended. Btw the hotel was very nice.

Interesting mountain shapes. 

The coastal landscape known as "Road Through an Angled Land." It features steep, rocky cliffs sloping directly down to the ocean floor.

This building is Langabud, a historic warehouse turned into a cultural center and cafe located in Djuplvogur, Iceland. Dating back to 1790, it is one of the oldest commercial buildings in Iceland. 

The harbor in Djuplvogur.

Eggin i Gleoivik ---The  Eggs in Merry Bay, a famous outdoor art installation in Djuplvogur. The sculpture consists of 34 large granite replicas of eggs. Each egg represents a specific bird species that nests in the local area. 

There are a lot of fish farms in the area. Our guide told us that a lot of the fish farms are moving to land to control parasites, lower mortality, and manage the waste. The fish farms on land take advantage of the natural geothermal resources.

It's not a great picture but it's proof that we saw reindeer in Iceland. 

Petra's Stone Collection features thousand of local stones, a garden and personal items collected by Ljosbjorg Petra Maria Sveindsottir.  The stones include a vast collection of zeolites, jasper, quartz and agates gathered from the local mountains. 

Spiniest Thistle

Astrantia major commonly know as great masterwort. The garden was full of flowers, many of them I didn't recognise. 

Across from Petra's Stone collection is a marina with an interesting mountain behind it. 

Icelandic horse have 5 gaits: the walk, trot, canter/gallop, tolt and flying pass. Here it is doing the totl 

Our tour leader and tour guide told us that they had a "surprise" for us today. The surprise was going to see the puffins. The puffins were on a hill overlooking the water at a marina about a half hour drive past our destination. A viewing platform had been built so it was like walking through the puffin nesting area. The puffins were plentiful and close. It was much better viewing than what we saw on our excursion the 2nd day we were in Reykjavik. 

July 28, 2026 Icebergs and Jeeps

Today was "fun" day. We drove for a couple of hours then stopped for a boat ride. 

We drove past lava fields, sand fields, some beautiful farmland and the tallest peak in Iceland. There it is peaking out through the clouds.  

Svinafellsjokull glacier

The boat!

Icebergs!!! The boat drove into the water and we boated around this inlet that was full of icebergs. 

The black is volcanic ash that was pressed into the ice over the centuries.

The crew brought a piece of ice on board for us to look at it. That's Leslie holding the ice. 

Leaving the inlet area we walked down to the beach to see the "diamonds", pieces of ice that floated ashore. 

One brave sole went into the water. That's ice at front of the photo. We also saw a family walking around in bare feet, expect for the mother.... she had some sense. 

One of the little diamonds

Arctic Terns nest in rocky areas on the beach. Someone walked by and disturbed them. 

T

Great view of the inlet was we walked back to the bus. 

I'm sure you're asking what is this a photo of. After we had our fill of looking at icebergs we drove down the road to catch a ride to the glacier. We piled into three jeeps and drove to the glacier. As we drove onto the glacier we also drove into fog. The photo is what Ed saw from the front seat of the jeep. 

Can you see the snowball? It's just above my head.

The jeeps and the gang.

The sun trying to break through the clouds.

The highest point where we stopped.

The Hofn Fisherman Memorial. btw, we spent the night in a cute little hotel in Hofn.

This sculpture made of weathered wooden posts is set in a concrete base outside of our hotel. I'm guessing the H is for Hofn.

Hofn is a fishing town. There were a number of  boats in the harbour.

July 27, 2026 Waterfalls, Glaciers and more

Today would be described as action packed and long.  We drove a lot and saw a lot of interesting things. We started the morning in Reykjavik and ended in the small town of Vik. 

First stop was Thingvellir National Park where the world's first democratic parliament convened in 930 CE.  This is a view of Iceland's largest lake Thingvallavatn.

This park also holds a geological significance. The North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet here. The North American plate is on the left. 

Looking back up the road. Vehicles use to be able to drive this road until a park ranger noticed a hole and hit it with a hammer. Below the road was a big crack. The road was closed a walking path was created. 

One of many spectacular views we saw from the bus. 

There are a lot of Icelandic horses in Island. 

We also stopped at a Geothermal area that featured Strokkur, a geyser that erupts every 5 to 10 minutes. The photos aren't the best because you don't having any warning when the eruption is going to occur. It's hope your camera is aimed correctly and push the shutter button.  I managed to get the start of the eruption, and 

the main eruption. I missed the top but I'm sure you get the idea.

The Gullfoss waterfalls. It is a two-tiered waterfalls, with a combined drop of 32 meters into a deep canyon. The falls are part of the Hvita River which is fed by meltwater from the Langjokull glacier. 

The lower part of the Gullfoss waterfalls.

Three Icelandic horses hung out by the road waiting for treats. We stopped to say hello. This mare is about 25 years old. 

One of these is a 15 year old male and the other a 23 year old female. An interesting fact about Icelandic horses is they come in many different colours. 

Last Friday, on the way to see the puffins we stopped at the Seljalandsfoss waterfalls. Today, we stopped there as well. The weather was much nicer and there were fewer people.  

There were fewer people here today than on Friday, and the wind speed was much lower so there was a less chance of getting wet. People walking the path to get behind the falls. 

Behind the falls. 

One of several glaciers we passed today. The tour guide told us the name but there's no way I could pronounce the name let alone remember the name.

Another great view we saw from the bus. 

The Skogafoss waterfall situated on the Skoga River. I has a height of 60 meters and a width of 25 meters. 

The Oraefajokull glacier (see what I mean out the names, google search found this one). You can see an ice cap spur reaching down toward a wide rocky valley. Obviously, the water is coming from the glacier. 

The town of Vik has a black sand beach called Reynisfjara Beach. Looking west you can see the Vestmannaeyjar Archipelago. The large one is the where we saw the puffins. We also saw puffins flying around the beach. 

Basalt Columns on the beach

Sea Stacks just off of the beach.

Viewing the sea stacks, Reynisdrangarm, from Vikurfjara Black Sand Beach from the town of Vik. 

July 26, 2026 A Day in Reykjavik with the Tour Group

Today was a bit of a repeat of the two days we spent wandering around Reykjavik but this time we had a guide explaining things to us. First stop was Hallgrimskirkja. 

The inside of Hallgrimskirkja. The organ has 4 keyboards, and a footstool, 72 stops and 5275 pipes. 

A repeat photo of the outside of the church. 

Another look at the pond Tjornin,

and a closeup of the birds.

A refresher on what Harpa Concert Hall looks like.

Looking at the outer wall and the ceiling from inside Harpa.

I really liked the look of the silhouettes as members of our group looked out of the window. 

The view the group was looking at. 

We had a short day, so we had several hours to do our own thing. Ed and I continued our wandering around the city starting with the seashore. The section we walked today had several beaches. 

The are an incredible number of sculptures in the city. This cut out was the perfect place for someone to pose. 

Another beach and at this one there were people in the water. I don't know how long they had been in the water but they got out a couple of minutes after I took this photo. They stood around outside in their bathing suits for 5 minutes or so then they disappeared into the building. There was smoke coming out of the chimney so we assume it was a sauna. 

I have no idea what this building is but I really liked the look.

The path we followed to get back to the hotel took us through this blog. The water from this wet lands flows into the pond we walked around.

July 25, 2026 Another Day in Reykjavik

We meet up with our tour later this afternoon, so most of today is free. As it is sunny today !!!!! we decide to walk around Reykjavik and see things we haven't seen and of course, do a few more geocaches. By the way, Ed chose today's photos.

It's a sunny day, so a bright photo to match. We overheard a tour guide telling a group that people in Iceland keep there Christmas lights up to April to brighten the long nights. 

The Hofdi Lighthouse. It's relatively new, being activated in June 2019.

The Partnership sculpture was unveiled in 1991. It was created to commemorate 50 years of diplomatic relations between Iceland and the US. Iceland was neutral during WWI, so in 1941 the US put troops on Iceland to protect them from the Germans. 

The building on left is covered in volcanic basalt stone. 

Photos around the small lake, Tjornin, in Reykjavik. 

At the end of the Food Walk we did the other day, we each received a coupon for free a Reykjavik hot dog. The hot dog stand ... this was the line at 2pm.

Here I am with 2 partially eaten hot dogs. Yes, I gave back his hot dog. Yes, they were very good. The main ingredient of the hot dog is lamb. 

I didn't think I'd see a mosaic in Iceland. If you look closely in the dark areas you can see that they are made up of little stones. This is only a small portion of the piece that covers the side of a building. 

Rocks with Horns. 

We walked past this area when we were on the Food Walk and there wasn't a single person there. Our guide commented that on a sunny day, the area would be full. She was right.

July 24, 2026 Vestmannaeyjar Day Tour

One of things I really wanted to see while we are in Island are Puffins. The tour we are taking doesn't have a specific stop to see puffins so Ed and I decided to add a couple of days onto the beginning of the trip. We used one of the extra days to book a day trip that included seeing puffins. Today was a long day as we were picked up at 7:30am and dropped off at 8:30pm. Our bus stop was the first of the pick up spots in Reykjavik, which meant we spent about an hour driving around to the other bus stops and in some cases returning to a bus stop to get people who had been missed the first time around.

Leaving the city, we drove east for about two hours. Along the way we spot steam (geothermal activity) coming up from the ground. We also saw a lot of Icelandic horses in the fields. Fun fact about Islandic horses. The only horses in Iceland are Islandic horses. Islandic horses are free from a lot of horse diseases and to keep it than way, no horse that has lived outside of Iceland can enter Iceland including Icelandic horses that have left the country. 

Due to a mix up we missed the ferry and had time to use before the next ferry, so the driver/guide took us to the nearby Seljalandsfoss, a 60 meter high waterfall. If you look closely at the photo you can see people lined up to go behind the waterfalls.

A smaller waterfalls. 

Finally on the ferry heading for the island. The ferry is a hybrid, electric and diesel. When it lands, a power connector pushes out and connects, charging the ferry's battery. 

Several uninhabited islands were passed, though we did see a house or two on the islands. I'm guessing the houses currently don't have any occupants. 

Entering the harbour. This area with the Black Church was very quiet, but the rest of the harbour was bustling. 

Can you see the Elephant? The straight face on the right hand rock is the forehead and trunk of the elephant. About a third of the way up is an indentation that is the eye. 

Finally, the puffins. Though there are thousands of puffins around a lot of them go fishing during the day. The chicks are beginning to fly so it's getting close to the time when the puffins leave land and head back to ocean. 

Standing near the puffins we look out over the water. The clouds and mist have been hanging around all day. 

An interesting building near the parking lot. It has the look of an abandoned building.

This is definitely an abandoned building. On July 23, 1973, the Eldfell volcano unexpectedly erupted on Heimaey, the only inhabited island in Iceland's Vestmannaeyjar archipelago. The 5,300 residents were evacuated. Over a five-month period, lava flows destroyed nearly 400 homes. The Eldheimar Museum opened in 2014. It is built around one of the houses that had been buried in ash. By the end of 1975 the population of the island returned to roughly 85% of the pre-eruption level.

We hiked to the top of the volcano. You can see some of the lava fields in the background. 

Looking in the other direction.

Some of the interesting rock and lava left by the volcano.

We drove down to the water to get a better view of cave across the way and lava fields.

On the drive back to Reykjavik, the sun came out. Ed couldn't resist taking a few photos from the bus window.

July 23, 2026 Reykjavik

Our first view of Iceland

After breakfast and a 2 hour nap, Ed and I started to walk around Reykjavik. Anyone who knows Ed, knows the first thing he'll want to do is find a geocache so that's what we did. In the process of finding a few geocaches we also some some interesting things. 

On the door to the stairs in the hotel. It's an interesting way to get people to use the stairs. 

Our search for geocaches took us to the Einar Jonsson Sculpture Garden and the Hallgrimskirkja (a beautiful church). This is one of the beautiful sculptures. 

Another geocache was by Solfar (The Sun Voyager). We've noticed that kids are allowed to climb on, around, under artwork in Reykjavik.

My favourite Geocache of all time ---- no searching required. The cache slips in and out from the top of the cache. 

The Harpa Concert Hall is an interesting building . This is where we met up with the Reykjavik Food Walk. 

There were 4 restaurant stops on the Food Walk. One was for an appetizer, one for a fish course, one a lamb course and the last one was dessert. We were also given a coupon for a Icelandic hot dog. Can't wait to try that! The above photo was one of the 2 fish dishes. All of the food was delicious ☺☺☺. Our guide sent us the list of everything we ate and there is at least dish I want to try to make. 

One of the streets we walked up. 

The food tour brought us back to the Hallgrimskirkja. The sun was out so the photos of the church were much better than the ones we took in the morning. 

We went into a restaurant across from the church and enjoyed a dish of ice cream and not ordinary ice cream. It was rye bread ice cream with whipped cream and caramelized rhubarb syrup. It doesn't sound very appetizing but it was actually really good. I'd recommend the food tour .... but you need to like fish. The food was great and as a bonus we met a lot of really nice people. 

July 22, 2026 Getting on a Jet Plane

Today we experienced something different at the airport. After we went through security we were sent to a gate where you were loaded on a bus and driven to the "infield concourse". This building has 5 or 6 gates and is used when the airport is busy. It was enlightening to see the airport from the taxi ways and other internal roads. Other than having to take a bus, the infield concourse was pretty quiet so it was a nice place to wait for a flight. 

Toronto during take off. 

July 21, 2026 Getting Ready

The count down has begun. Tomorrow we board an airplane to Iceland. It's feels weird to be heading somewhere that requires warm clothes. Weather wise the highs will be between 13 C and 15 C and lows around 10 C.