Restless Viking

5 days ago

🎄👹 The Yule Lads’ Cave – Dimmuborgir, Iceland

If you know Poppins, you know this is her season. Every Christmas, without fail, she posts about the Yule Lads — Iceland’s 13 mischievous trolls who show up one by one in December, causing trouble and leaving gifts (or potatoes) in children’s shoes. So when we rolled into Dimmuborgir, the lava field said to be their home, it wasn’t just another stop on the tour — it was a pilgrimage.

The place itself looks like another planet. Towering black lava formations twist and spike out of the ground like some kind of stone forest. It’s easy to see why legends took root here — shadows move strangely, echoes bounce in unexpected ways, and the whole place feels like it’s keeping secrets. Tucked into this strange landscape is the cave where the Yule Lads are said to live, along with their terrifying mother, Grýla, who was rumored to snatch up naughty children and toss them in her stew pot. (Makes coal in the stocking sound downright cheerful, doesn’t it?)

The 13 Lads each have their quirks. There’s Spoon-Licker, Door-Slammer, Skyr-Gobbler, and my personal favorite, Sausage-Swiper. One by one, they come down from the cave starting December 12th, each taking a turn in Icelandic homes until Christmas. Mischief-makers, yes, but not entirely cruel — over time they mellowed into something closer to pranksters than monsters.

For Poppins, standing in the Yule Lads’ cave was like meeting old friends she’d been introducing to the world for years. For me, it was another reminder that Iceland’s landscapes and legends go hand in hand — rugged, strange, and unforgettable.

So this Christmas, when you see her posts about those 13 oddball trolls, know this: we’ve been to their cave. And yes — it’s just as weird and wonderful as the legends promised.

And for the record. . . Yes, we already know that Chuck looks like a Yule Lad. ... See MoreSee Less

Restless Viking

5 days ago

If you're just joining us. . . here’s what we’ve been up to for the past week or so: dragging poor Poppins — who, for reasons still beyond modern science, has put up with me for 37 years (30 of those married) — across the wilds of Iceland, my ancestral homeland. I keep hoping this trip might somehow justify my personality. (So far, results are inconclusive.)

Somewhere between lava fields and sheep crossings, I handed her a six-chapter book I wrote about us, marched her out to a lighthouse that looks like it’s teetering on the edge of the earth, and gave her a ring along with a speech I probably rehearsed too many times in my head. Now, Poppins and I both think rings are a little “much,” so what I really meant to give her was a “really cool story.” The kind of tale you can’t buy at a jewelry store.

She accepted graciously — and then, in true Poppins fashion, immediately turned her attention back to photographing moss and interrogating the landscape like a Viking detective. That’s why we work: I go for grand gestures, she goes for the good shots.

We’ve still got a few days left out here in this land of fire and ice, so hopefully, you enjoy watching this weird wandering continue. Who knows — she might even keep putting up with me. ... See MoreSee Less

Restless Viking

6 days ago

💦 Goðafoss – The Waterfall of the Gods

Around the year 1000, Iceland faced a choice: stay with the old Norse gods or embrace Christianity. The decision fell to Lawspeaker Þorgeir (Thor - gear), who after a day and night of contemplation declared the nation Christian. Then, to seal it, he hurled his pagan idols into this very waterfall — giving it the name Goðafoss, “Waterfall of the Gods.”

Standing here today, mist on your face, it’s easy to imagine those wooden figures vanishing into the spray — and with them, an old world giving way to the new. Still, looking at the roar of Goðafoss, you get the sense it’s a fine place to toss in your troubles and let the river carry them away. ... See MoreSee Less

Restless Viking

6 days ago

🌊🐋 Húsavík – The Whale Capital of Iceland

We set out from Húsavík on a traditional oak fishing boat, the kind that looks like it’s seen a thousand storms. The rain hung heavy, steady and unrelenting, and the swells rolled at five to six feet. In other words: a perfect day for Chuck.

Out there, the ocean came alive — dolphins cutting across the bow, humpbacks heaving out of the gray water, and a whole pod of bottlenose whales surfacing in unison like some perfectly choreographed sea ballet. Meanwhile, a few unlucky “sea-sickers” leaned over the rails making their breakfast offerings to Ægir, the old sea-giant.

Poppins? Full-on Viking, laughing in the spray, loving every second, peeking out from under her hood. Now we are relaxing in an old fishing shed that has been converted to a restaurant - having Icelandic Seafood Stew.
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📜 A little history of Húsavík & the whales we met:

Húsavík, settled in the late 9th century, is often called the birthplace of Iceland. A Swedish Viking named Garðar Svavarsson overwintered here in 870 AD, making it one of the earliest inhabited places on the island. For centuries the town’s lifeblood was fishing, but in modern times it has become famous for something else — whales. Known today as the Whale Watching Capital of Iceland, more species are spotted off its coast than anywhere else in the country.

The giants we saw that day each carried their own story. Humpback whales, the acrobats of the sea, can reach up to fifty feet long and forty tons, yet they live almost entirely on krill and small fish. Northern bottlenose whales, by contrast, are deep divers — plunging thousands of feet below the surface in pursuit of squid, among the deepest diving mammals on earth. And then there were the white-beaked dolphins, quick and playful, darting across the bow like old friends eager to race. Together, they turned a gray, wet morning into a spectacle of life that made the cold and spray worth every moment.
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Cold, wet, unforgettable. Húsavík didn’t just give us whales — it gave us a reminder that some adventures are better when the weather is raw and the sea is alive. ... See MoreSee Less