Jokulsarlon is a glacial lake created by the Breidamerkurjokull Glacier that flowis down from Vatnajukull ice fielnd, at 8100 square kilometr Europe's largest glacier outside of the Arctic. The lake started forming 70 years ago as the glacier retreated. The retreat continues to this day and the lake is now 5 miles long. Icebergs calve into it and accumulate at the lake outlet before they melt enough to float out through a shallow outlet, under the Route 1 bridge, into the ocean, Pieces of varying size often litter the shoreline of the lake and many also wash up on the nearby black beaches. It is a surreal sight the likes of which are rare to find.

I arrived in Iceland on a red-eye flight, hardly slept the first three nights because of my road trip to the Westfjords, and finally got the the first restful night after relaxing in the Blue Lagoon. So it was time for another sleepless night. I got up at 2am to catch the sunrise. It was more cloudy than I would have liked, windy and very cold, but I had the lagoon practically to myself and that alone was worth it.

Fragment in BW	Ice at dawn	Jukulsarlon lizard	Whale	Icy dawn	My piece of ice
So icy		... and cold			Pebbles and bubbles
Icy littering	Mini iceberg	Cold landscape		Iceberg and clouds	Southern shore
Jokulsarlon and Breidamerkurjokull		Jokulsarlon

It was a grey morning. Clouds thickened even more during periods of light showers as we explored the beach covered with small icebergs. Before embarking on a ride on Jokulsarlon, we drove to a lookout over Fjallsarlon Glacier Lagoon, just west and a bit smaller but hardly any less impressive than Jokulsarlon.

Jokulsarlon outlet		Ice turtle	Ice turtle	On the rocks	Icy ear
Bridge	Icy beach		Irina on an iceberg	Jokulsarlon outlet	Photographing photographers
Cyclist above Fjallsarlon Lagoon		Cyclists above Fjallsarlon Lagoon

The Zodiac tour takes visitors on a small boat across Jokulsarlon, almost all the way to the head of the glacier, or at least as close as is safe. We were given floatation suits making everyone look twice as big. As we walked to the boat, we looked a bit like astronauts in space suits. The otherwordly arctic landscape was there to match. It was a cold rainy day and the proximity of icebergs around us and the icefield above made it seem even colder than it was. Even if one did not intend to jump overboard, One positive about the suits was that they kept us warm. As we made our way across the lagoon, the guide fished a piece of ice out of the lake for us to handle. It was thousands of years ago when the water frozen in it fell as snow onto the ice cap. I could not discern any stone age microbes in it, but the feeling of time scale was there anyway.

The weather remained miserable after the ride. Our attempt to try to drive up to the icefield was rejected by a road closure. It was too early in the season...

March of the icenauts	Boarding	Iceberg	Returning tour	Amphibian boat	Blue and grey
Sister boat		Blue iceberg	Blue iceberg	Blue iceberg	Engine view
Glacial ice	Irina and glacial ice	Race from the glacier		Amphibious boat	Geese formation in transition
Back on firm ground	Jokulsarlon	Looking toward Hofn

I came out for the sunset. It was much warmer and peaceful. Most of the icebergs on the shores have melted, and the sun was shining through an opening in the clouds above Vatnajukull, reflecting og the remaining icebergs. As the sun set, low clouds rolled in, putting an end to the glimmering spectacle.

Horse	Profile	Langostini	Lamb for dinner	View from Hali	Find your own seal
Layer of dirt and ice	Bridge across Jokulsarlon outlet	Bridge
		Ducks
					Rocks
Still ice

After the last sun rays disappeared over the lagoon, I took a few more twilight shots and moved across the road to the beach. Some icebergs washed up by the waves remained. Some have melted into bizzare shapes and I played with long exposure shots for anoher hour or so before being overcome by the lack of sleep and heading back.

Racing ice				Alone against the ice	Couple on an iceberg
Romance on ice	Slip into my arms	Keyhole		Trio
				Melting beauty	Stemming the tide
Window to the soul		Eye on the sea

The sun was shining in the morning and we made a brief stop by the lake and on the beach one last time before turning back toward Reykjavik.

Racing the sheep				Reflection of me	Romance on the beach
Chunk	Chunk in BW			Ice handle
Suspended	Bus above the icebergs		Jokulsarlon outlet