Friday, 17-May-2024

My second stop on my last day of #van_life wasn’t planned originally. I noticed it on the drive in to the horse farm, and got curious… so, after my ride, I headed back to see what there was to see.

What there was to see, it turns out, was Deildartunguhver hot springs and the Krauma spa attached to it.

Now, Sturlureykirhorses may have the first geothermal heating system in Europe… but Deildartunguhver is the highest flow-rate. 180 liters per second, highest flow rate. The water flows so quickly that, not only does it feed the spa nearby, but it’s also piped 21 miles away to one town… and 40 miles away to another.

I’m kind of geeking out on hot springs, being in Iceland, if you couldn’t tell.

(Ed Note: If you also couldn’t tell, Ben has left out pronunciation guides for these two places. That’s because he has no idea how to pronounce them. Bet you didn’t notice that on the previous post about the horse farm, huh?)

It’s really cool.

What isn’t really cool is the spa. It was warm, and lovely, and lovely warm. I finally bought a bathing suit, and luxuriated in the various pools at various temperatures, reading my book and appreciating the warmth and minerals on my suddenly-tired legs. Horse riding is hard, it turns out.

You know what, though? Totally worth it. As I sank into the 108 degree mineral water, I was absolutely certain that it was totally worth it.

After soaking and completely melting most of what remained of my all-of-me, I stepped out, cooled down, and grabbed some food at the attached cafe.

That’s one of the really nice things about Iceland – it really is a tourism-focused country, and they’ve done a glorious job of making us annoying tourists feel welcome. Great spas, amazing food… There is no way I could complain. Frankly, even the prices were reasonable – at least in comparison to Oregon, that is.