Rain on our shoulders, makes us…freezing (Day 7)

We woke up to the gusting of wind and splatter of rain against the sides of our van, and we were strongly avoiding having to venture out. The camp facilities (including hot showers) were only a couple hundred yards at most, but you would have thought they were miles away.After finally mustering the power to make it to the main building, we had our second proper shower in a week. It was great and got us back on track for the day. Next, we headed out for Husavik in search of libations that we had heard were worth the trip. What we found was a sleepy fishing town overlooking a fjord masked by rain and fog. It was very pretty even under the less than ideal weather conditions.We even found a small botanical garden…Our favorite part was the humble museum we found dedicated to the Apollo space missions, Viking history, volcanic features of Iceland, and females in history. The Apollo astronauts were required to complete geologic training using the rock surfaces in Iceland due to to wide array and freshness of the formations. This was intended to help them identify rock formations on the moon.Oh, and we also learned about lava tubes (caves) formed by magma movement to the surface.We worked up an appetite and decided it’s time for our first Icelandic dining experience. It was worth it. We had fish soup, lamb and lobster sandwiches, and local Saison beer with rhubarb and mint (awesome!!!).Feeling fat and happy, we continued to Akureyri, the capital of the north. Here we found a larger port town on the northern side of Iceland. They had a beautiful botanical garden, and this is also where television was first broadcasted in Iceland in the 1930’s. Most Icelanders had just gotten radio and had never heard of television at this point.We made it to our campsite in Olafsfjordur, loving called by locals “Olo Troll Town”. This town boasts about 800 people, and the only access points on either side are by 3-4 mile long tunnels through the mountains. It was cast in fog and rain, and it had a spooky vibe. Our local campsite ranger explained it’s believed there are trolls in the mountains. This belief is obviously manifested in the multiple town murals of trolls.After a short walk through town, we headed back to the car to sleep for the night. This is also when the rain picked up…