Iceland Adventure, Part 3: The Blue Lagoon

This morning, I woke up to several inches of snow on the ground. I was a bit surprised; I hadn't seen snow on the online weather forecast. Iceland has been so cold; I'm glad I borrowed Greg's fleece when he went back home. I'm not sure I could survive temperatures in the 30s and low 40s without that extra layer.

The sun was already out and melting the snow by the time I walked outside at 10 AM to the front of the hostel to await my ride. I was picked up by the Bus Travel company and taken to the Blue Lagoon (Bláa lónið in Icelandic), 45 minutes southwest of Reykjavik. One of the most popular tourist attractions in the country, the Blue Lagoon is a geothermal spa. I suspect the name comes from the color of the water which is a milky blue color.  Also popular with the locals, the Blue Lagoon features warm water high in minerals like silica and sulfur.

Because Iceland is situated at the juncture of 2 tectonic plates, the country has a lot of volcanic and geologic activity. Yesterday, the Golden Circle tour guide said that Iceland has more hot springs and geysers than any other country. Temperatures of the hot springs vary, but the Blue Lagoon is quite comfortable at about 100 degrees. A man-made lagoon, the Blue Lagoon is fed by a nearby geothermal power plant. Iceland boasts a large number of these geothermal power plants. Hot water from underneath the ground is pumped up to the geothermal power plants, used to heat water for household consumption, then pumped back into the ground. Interestingly, the hot groundwater cannot be used for household consumption because it contains a number of minerals that would destroy the plumbing pipes, so it is simply used as a heating source.

The bus arrived at the Blue Lagoon at about 11 AM. I had purchased my ticket online in advance, so I took the printout to the reception desk where I received my electronic bracelet. The blue bracelet gave me access to a locker in the locker room and allowed me to make purchases at the bar or café. I went back to the locker room area, changed, rinsed off, and shivered as I made my way through the bar area to the lagoon outside. I hung up my cover-up and towel and walked as quickly as possible to the edge of the steps into the water where I discarded my shoes. I descended those stairs as quickly as I could and sunk into the warm water.

The steam coming off of the water made it difficult to see my surroundings; when the wind was low I couldn't even see the other people lounging in the lagoon. I floated over to the far edge of the lagoon where buckets of silica mud sat. The mud was supposed to be good for your skin. I slathered some mud on my face and looked silly for fifteen minutes until I washed off the mask. I didn't notice a difference in my skin. I noticed others going overboard, slopping the mud all over their backs and chests. I saw one girl who looked like she had the stuff dripping off her nose. It turns out that she didn't; it was a nose ring between her nostrils.

I lounged and floated and lounged some more until my hands and feet were so pruny I couldn't take it anymore. I practically ran from the edge of the water inside the building. It was so cold! I rinsed off, changed back into my six layers of clothing, and left to meet the bus that would take me home. Of course, the second I exited the visitor's building, it started to sleet. Unfortunately, I couldn't have waited because I only had a few minutes until the bus arrived. By the time I arrived at the covered bus stop, I was soaked. I thought I was never going to get warm again.

The bus was packed with tourists going back to their hotels. I was the first to be dropped off at my hostel.

Aside from the extreme cold, today was great.