5 Fascinating Facts about Iceland's Animals

Iceland is a wonderland of extremes and as such, Iceland's animals have to be very adaptable to survive. It is a country that must be experienced from the boiling hot mud pools to the frozen massive glaciers, from deafening waterfalls to silent and eerie lava fields.  I found the whole country fascinating including these fascinating facts about some of Iceland's animals.

Geese

Whenever I visit a new place, I like to get out and explore it on foot, to orientate myself and meet the local people.  Reykjavik was no exception except many of the locals I initially met were geese.  They seemed to be just wandering around on grass verges at the side of busy roads, so I commented on this to one of the locals, who wasn’t a goose, who said that they were quite common at this time of year, late August, because the shooting season has started and there is a law banning anyone shooting the geese within the city boundary.

Geese in Reykjavik Photo by Roman Gerasymenko

10 Free things to do in Keflavik & Reykjanes Peninsula

Iceland is expensive for UK visitors especially if you are not used to London prices so I've found 10 free things for you to do in Keflavik all year round, to help you save a few Icelandic Krona (ISK).

Hands up who wants 10 Free things to do in Keflavik?

You are most likely to arrive at Keflavik Airport if you are visiting Iceland.  Some people will arrive in Iceland and shoot off to Reykjavik on the shuttle bus and then perhaps spend the night in Keflavik the day before they return because they have a very early flight.   If you find you have a day or more to spare on your Iceland trip, it’s worth exploring the Reykjanes Peninsula and here are 10 free things for you to do in Keflavik, the main town in the Reykjanes Peninsula.

1. Gigant's Cave

Visit a giants cave.  Giganta’s cave at Gróf Marina is open every day from 10am to 5pm except in bad weather.  That’s because it sits right on the cliff edge exposed to the north Atlantic .

Giganta the Giant

Icelandic Museum of Rock’N’Roll

When you think of Iceland you probably imagine dramatic landscapes, powerful geysers, active volcanoes and ice blue glaciers.  What you may not realise is that Iceland also has an amazing and thriving music industry and has been hosting the 5 day Airwaves Festival in Reykjavik for the last 17 years.

Despite having a population of just over 300,000, this arctic country has produced a huge amount of musical talent, the most well known artists being the Sucarcubes, Björk, Sigur Rós, and Of Monsters and Men but as you walk round the displays at the Museum of Rock’N’Roll in Keflavik, you realise there has been musical acts coming out of Iceland for decades.

Rokksatn Islands or Rock'n'Roll Museum

Viking World

Before you even enter the impressive glass museum where the Viking longboat Íslendingur is housed, you will see the kneeling statue of Hrafna-Flóki and his raven, the first Norseman to travel to Iceland.  It is not known exactly when he settled in Iceland but it is likely that he sailed to Iceland on a boat similar to the Islendingur when he left western Norway stopping off at the Shetland Isles and the Faroe Islands where he picked up 3 ravens to help him navigate to Iceland, earning him the nickname Hrafna-Flóki, Hrafna meaning Raven. 

Hrafna-Flóki and his raven

Unearthing the Spirit of the Icelandic Horse

“And this is the tölt,” said Hrönn as Chloe elegantly glided past us in the arena, with Hrönn and Snorri’s youngest daughter, Signý sitting comfortably in the saddle as Chloe and Signý demonstrated the smoothness of the tölt gait, one of two gaits unique to Icelandic horses. 

Signý riding Chloe

A City Break in Reykjavik

Iceland is perhaps not the most obvious place to go for a city break but with a flight time of only 3 hours from London, less from Glasgow, you could find yourself exploring the world’s most northerly capital city, Reykjavik.

Reykjavik Harbour