Iceland

I spent two weeks in Iceland. Not for beaches, comfort, or experiences of the epicurean variety – but for a breath-taking, life-affirming, and soul-enriching escape. To feel small in this huge world and to leave behind the things that keep us distracted back at home.

There are some places our imagination can never construct for us. That’s Iceland.

Hallgrímskirkja is a lutheran church in the center of downtown Reykjavík. Its architecture is insane to witness first-hand. The entire structure is made of poured concrete and took about forty years to build. It’s one of the tallest, and definitely most recognizable structures in Reykjavík, and as a result, became a dependable landmark while  learning my way around the city.

Roasting and crafting coffee has been a passion of mine for years. It was only fitting that time was spent searching for the best coffee I could find. After a few misses, I finally stumbled upon Reykjavík Roasters. Outfitted and equipped with a proper roaster, truly genuine baristas, and a vinyl of Bon Iver, this place won me over and became my main hangout for the handful of days I stayed in the city.

This little guy became my hiking companion for an afternoon. I’m not sure where he came from or where he left to, but I sure was thankful for the time he spent with us.
I heart dogs.

It was dark, raining, and I just finished driving through some of the most blizzard-like conditions imaginable by the time I pulled into the small fishing town of Reyðarfjörður. Up until this point, I camped wherever I found open space. That included camping on snow for two days. Apirits were high, but my body was spent. I decided to splurge on a hostel, and because of the friendship started with Günter (the hotelkeeper) during my stay, it ended up becoming the best money spent of the entire trip.

Jökulsárlón was almost other worldy in its appearance. We did our best to capture it, but it’s simply too big and epic to be constrained in a 2D world. We camped on the shores that night and were oft awakened by the splitting, churning, cracking, and flipping of massive icebergs. It was an incredible experience. It was also cold. Coffee kept us warm.

Two of our best buds, Josh and Zach, went to Iceland a few years ago and brought back with them photos and tales of an old plane wreck. We made it our quest to hunt down the same wreck and photograph it ourselves. Many hours in the months leading up to the trip were spent on Google Earth looking for the wreck. It was finally found and we had our bearings. After a few hours walking on these lonely black sand beaches, we could see the faint image of an aluminum tube.