Nellie Huang Wild Junket in Iceland!

Nellie Huang broke her recent travel embargo and set out on an Icelandic adventure with Discover the World. Well known for her blog ‘Wild Junket’ she’s travelling all over Iceland and writing about everything along the way.

Flying into Keflavik international airport she collected her hire car and rested in Reykjavik the capital for her first nights stay. To read her first blog click here.

The next day she set off on a Blue Ice Adventure excursion at Sólheimajökull, passing the stunning Skogafoss waterfall along the way. The Solheimajokull glacier tongue extends from the great Myrdalsjokull glacier, down to the sandy plains of the Icelandic south coast. An experienced guide supported her first glacier climb and although she found the ice-cliff challenging she gave it a go. Finally she explored the giant cauldrons, ridges, waterways and deep crevasses scattered along the slopes of the glacier. To read her second blog click here.

The third day was spent hiking Eyjafjallajokull Volcano, having set out for the day with a Superjeep. From her third blog she had this to day:

“It certainly felt like we’d made a journey to the centre of the Earth. Although we never made it to the top of the volcano, we did experience its sheer power and ferocity.”

On the second half of the trip her journey takes in the west and northern part of the country around the Snaefellsnes Peninsula and Myvatn. Finally visiting the legendary Blue Lagoon and taking a dip, before her homeward journey to Spain.

You can follow her tweets here

Scenery, seals and sea kayaks

One of our energetic Nordic team members, Alex, tries his hand at kayaking in West Sweden

Kayaking is a popular request from our clients so I was thrilled to give it a go and see what it’s all about, in the stunning region of West Sweden…

I had kayaked once before in California and something I found notably different between the two was how experienced our Swedish guides were; from equipping us with everything we needed to wear to their expert instruction in using a kayak - how to hold the oars and paddle the right way (use your back not your arms!) and how to deal with the possible incident of your kayak rolling over ("I would be very impressed if you managed to do this" smiled our instructor - not an invitation to try but an additional sense of safety before we set off).

The kayaks are mainly two man - the person in front are the eyes, the person behind assisting with steering. Getting used to this is fun and slightly manic as everyone gets over excited and paddles in all directions getting to grips with the steering and trying not bounce into one another, much to the amusement of the guides, but before you know it everyone is happily facing the right way and paddling in sync with faint mumblings of “left right, left right”.

Feeling confident we set off along the channels, surrounded by lush green jaw-dropping scenery, birdlife and a seal who popped up to say hello. Being so close to the water we felt very much at one with nature. A couple of hours, and a good test of my fitness later, we arrived on the beach - an huge sense of achievement as we headed for a warm shower and a well deserved beer!

There is a whole range of kayaking options, suitable for all standards and available through all seasons – how about husky sledging followed by kayaking for a real thrill?!

I highly recommend kayaking to anyone who wants to see how beautiful Sweden is from a different perspective. To experience it for yourself check out our Secret Archipelago itinerary and start planning your own amazing trip.

On the road in Iceland

One of DTW’s Nordic specialists, Laura, highlights the adventures she encountered on her first driving trip in Iceland.

My first experience of driving in Iceland was up and over a mountain! Although I felt confident enough having had some practice driving from the airport to our hotel, little did I know I was going to be driving up one of the most steep and winding roads I have ever driven on - the only thing to do was take a deep breath and go for it!

And it was well worth it - there were fantastic views! Throughout our trip the sights were amazing  - lava fields, sandy beaches, glaciers, waterfalls and geysers; you experience them all in Iceland. Two of the places that stood out for me were the amazing Gullfoss waterfall and the Geysir area in the south west.

There was virtually no traffic, we rarely saw another car, and when we did see three or four cars at the same time we laughed that it was a major traffic jam!              

The roads are well signposted so it's very easy to find your way around. Along the way there are lots of places to stop off and take pictures.

Iceland really is one of the most interesting places I have ever been to for its scenery. A self-drive holiday is a great option with plenty of flexibility and you can see so much – a good thing as you don’t want to miss out on anything!

There's a lot going on in Queensland!

The scientists in Australia have just found a skeleton of a ‘giant wombat’, which would have been the size of a four-wheel drive car. The bones were found on a farm in north-eastern Queensland. The find is one of Australia’s most significant pre-historic discoveries as the skeleton is complete. Professor Mike Archer described the discovery as extraordinary as the animal roamed Australia about 50,000 years ago before the first indigenous people arrived. To take a look at the computerized picture, click here.

  

On another note, the “world's best job” competition winner, Ben Southall is out in Queensland for his next adventure…“the best expedition in the world”. This expedition really is one that only some can dream of - Ben will be kayaking and sailing the Great Barrier Reef over four months!

To follow his progress, check out his blog here.

Polar Bears International - Research & Conservation

Polar Bears International is a fascinating website for all you polar bear enthusiasts out there!  The website has links to a Polar Bear Tracker providing invaluable information as to the movements of collared bears in the Beaufort Sea, north of Alaska, and also features a Churchill webcam (which will be live in October - in the meantime the 'highlights' are well worth a look!).  As well as spying on what the bears are up to, the website offers comprehensive information regarding research into and the science of these majestic animals, as well as  outreach through an educational programme.  If you're considering taking one of our Polar Bear land-based tours to Churchill, then why not visit the above website for some background reading and a sneak preview of the fantastic polar bear sightings that you can anticipate on the Arctic tundra.