Hiked on a glacier to an ice cave and saw calving icebergs on a black sand beach
We woke up early to drive the hour and a half along the coastal road from Klauster to Glacier Lagoon, where we met our guide from Glaciertrips.is. We got into a “super jeep” to go up the access road, past old moraines and to the parking lot. This used to be where the glacier ended, but due to climate change it’s now about a mile hike. We got our harnesses and helmets on, and carried crampons up to the ice. Some companies only give their clients microspikes, but I was glad we had real ones for security. I did slip getting into mine, falling into a shallow puddle and totally soaking my boots. Good thing I had wool socks on, and it wasn’t much colder than 40 degrees F.
The surface of the glacier is flecked with volcanic ash so it’s not a pristine white, but once you’re inside the cave the color is an otherworldly blue. I was glad I brought a tripod and light, so we could get the color balance and exposure right. We tried a few wide-angle selfies, but I liked these more abstract shots better.
Coming back down, we attempted to cross over a meltwater river by hopping over the rocks instead of the narrow bridge we’d taken on the way up. Our guide was being cheeky, and forgot that my moms aren’t always as spry as they look. Lou slipped and fell in, getting her legs soaked and ego bruised, but luckily no worse for the wear. I already had wet feet from my earlier adventure, so we were happy to get back to the car and change before we got lunch at the food trucks in the parking lot.
After the hike, we walked on the Diamond Beach to get photos of the bergy bits. The trick to this shot was a slower shutter speed to blur the water, and a neutral density filter to maintain the highlights. After several attempts, and a few clueless tourists walking in front of me and putting footsteps in my shot, I got on I was happy with.
We did a quick hike up to the foot of another big glacier as the sun was getting low and the wind was picking up. Got a nice panorama, but was glad to get back in the car and head back to the hotel.
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