gently in the tide, and we gathered in our hands the cocktail-size ice
cubes that had washed up on shore and flung them back to the sea.
On the final day around the Ring, we steered our rental car up the
steep switchbacks near the coastal town of Vik. We wanted to reach the
top of the seaside cliffs, overlooking a jumble of rock towers jutting
from the sea, and then find a trail down to a beach. But the little
car was scraping bottom before the first turn, so we left it on the
shoulder and continued on foot.
The rain clouds had passed, and as we topped out on the bluff, the sun
was dazzling and the wind was fierce. The grass spread out far beyond
a radio tower toward an abandoned building on the promontory. We
walked along the cliff, leaning away from the edge, feeling that the
wind could chuck you over. After an hour of forging against the
headwind, we realized that there was no trail to the beach. We were
treed, here on this towering bluff.
And that’s when we saw the birds. Dozens, hundreds of little white
gulls’ heads poked out of the rock wall below. We belly-crawled to
the edge and peer over.
The gulls danced in the wind. They banked off a howling gust, almost
bowled over backward, then straightened their wings and dived forward.
They surfed back and forth, now and then catching an updraft and
careening a hundred yards over the sea. The sun glistened on the
whitecaps and waves surged in slow motion around the rock towers. A
pair of puffins emerged from the rookery and braved the winds, looking
a bit unsure of their skills, their goofy legs dangling below like
parts of a puppet. We clutched the grass where we lay. The wind was
going to blow like this all day long. I could have stayed there
forever.
ICE AND STEAM
* At Reykjavik airport, an economy car rents for about US$530 a week,
and a small SUV is about US$1,005 a week (www.geysir.is).
* Reykjavik has plenty of guesthouses that are less expensive and more
charming than the hotels. Alfholl Guesthouse, the Friendly Elves
House, is centrally located; a double room with a shared bathroom is
9,000 Icelandic kronur, about US$127 (www.islandia.is/alf).
* The Vogar Guesthouse in the village of Vogar has rooms for US$183
(354-464-4344).
* The Blue Lagoon is 777km from the airport, and admission is US$17.3
(www.bluelagoon.com).
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