Hello again, Blogonauts!

On my last day traversing Iceland's Ring Road, the sights were dominated by Vatnajökull (VAHT-nah-YUR-kut) or the Lakes Glacier.

This giant popsicle holds all sorts of superlatives. It covers more acreage than does the state of Delaware. It is the second largest glacier in Europe (surpassed only by a glacier on an obscure arctic Russian island). As recently as 1996, volcanoes beneath Vatnajökull have contributed to significant natural disasters, with impacts far beyond Iceland.

One of the most striking elements of Vatnajökull are lagoons containing its ersatz "children": icebergs. These chunks of centuries-old glacial ice drop off of the glacier's many "tongues" that extend into mountain valleys. Their grotesque shapes and pale blue color help transform the surface of Jökullsárlón (glacial lagoon) into an ever changing 3-D kaleidoscope.

Near where Jökullsárlón empties into the ocean, there is a beach strewn with escaped icebergs. Known as Diamond Beach, the ice chunks (as much as the waves and the black sand) help to define shoreline's appearance.

Several seabirds were hanging out in Jökullsárlón. In addition to the seemingly ubiquitous gulls and terns, a pair of Common Eiders seem to have made the lagoon their home. I snapped a few photos.

And as I was standing some distance from the rest of the crowd (there were probably 50 tourists there today), a harbor seal poked his head up, looked around for a couple of minutes, then dove down to head back out to sea. When I looked around to point him out to others, no one else was there to catch a glimpse of him. You can find some of his photos, too.

Because the day by this point had turned drizzly and foggy, I decided it was time to book it back to Reykjavik. The trek around Iceland's perimeter has been one of the great road trips of my life; thanks to you readers for letting me share some of the sights and stories.

Tomorrow, I have to undergo a Covid test in preparation for my return flight on Saturday. Then there are still some day trips left in the Reykjavik area.

Blog to you later!