Bittersweet Goodbyes from Iceland!
July 29, 2024
Hello family and friends! Our final “hallo from Iceland” is upon us, as are all the bittersweet emotions that can only mean we made the most of our time together in the land of fire and ice. We can’t wait to tell you all about the remainder of our time together here in Iceland, but we know stories and laughs of all kinds await you as your kiddos return home and regale the tales of our escapades in the coolest place on earth (not that we’re biased or anything).
The morning of day 12 passed blissfully as we leaned into a well-deserved and much-needed luxury – sleeping in! Our bodies and minds relished in the extra time to rest after completing such an astounding feat on the trail the past couple of days, and the change of pace restored our energy as we feasted on a prolonged brunch. Smith kicked off the group’s collective day of rest, selflessly helping out to set up breakfast and keeping us laughing from the moment we opened our eyes. Rankin, on the other hand, took the cake in terms of working hard, playing hard, and resting hard, boasting an impressive 12:50 PM wake-up time. The weather in Basar seemed to follow our lead in the mellow mood as the fog settled over every peak, valley, and glacier, and rain misted peacefully onto the tents and the van. The group made the executive decision to take a 0-day at camp, and we soon settled under the comfort of our beloved blue kitchen tent to seek refuge from the rain and kick off a day full of games. As it turns out, we have some truly talented poker players in the mix. Gray ran the table as the dealer for our marathon of Texas Hold ‘Em with colored teabags serving as our chips. Despite being new to the game, Grace showed a real knack for it and boasted two full houses and a three-of-a-kind, running the table and making her coach, Clay, immensely proud. Robert and Luke, on the other hand, developed a real love for going all in whenever it was possible, sometimes with nothing but a high card to show for it. Needless to say, our poker table was more entertaining than anything you could find in Vegas. Camille grilled everyone cheese quesadillas as we played and laughed, and everyone enjoyed the taste of home as we reminisced on our favorite moments from the trek. For all those cheese quesadilla connoisseurs out there, the key is plenty of butter in the pan. McCall gets it!! As the afternoon went on, we transitioned to playing other fan-favorite games, like BS and spoons (also played with tea bags). Between the poker and the BS, we got to see Summit’s spunk and willingness to take risks which had us all thoroughly entertained. As the rain halted and the evening dawned, everyone ran outside for some fresh air and to climb a rock seen in the distance from our campsite. Violet, Liv, and Nora waved wildly from the top of their perch while those of us on the bottom laughed and snapped photos. Soon enough, our guide, Karl, was grilling what would be our favorite meal from the trip, three legs of lamb, as we also prepared boiled fingerling potatoes and sweet corn. The group sat outside to break bread together and feasted on the amazing dinner before heading across camp to the weekly Saturday bonfire hosted by the Basar campsite. Jack snapped some photos of the fire, and members of the group even joined together to sing “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” delighting the other attendees. We enjoyed meeting local Icelandic children, listening to local music, and just taking in the scene of a truly special tradition before we headed back to camp for dessert and Moonup. The sky began to surprisingly darken as we readied for bed, and the group had an impromptu dance party under the kitchen tent as we soaked up all of our last night sleeping outside in Iceland and hit the hay ready for the shower and warm beds to come.
After packing up camp and saying our forlorn goodbyes to the Icelandic highlands, the group piled into the van and headed back to town for our final full day together! On the way back to Reykjavik, we stopped at the Selfoss food hall where the group enjoyed chicken wings, burgers, pad thai, noodles, pizza, and pasta of all kinds. We then headed back to Thingvellir National Park to take on our final activity: snorkeling the Silfra Fissure! Our amazing guides, Chris and Isa, got us geared up in our drysuits (it was the best we’ve ever looked) and explained to us the history behind the fissure before we dipped into the chilly water and paddled down the current, the North American tectonic plate on our right and the Eurasian plate on our left. Bright green moss that can only be compared to silly string was in all directions, and we were thankful for our gear that kept us so warm as we took in the unbelievable sights of this once-in-a-lifetime visit. At the end of the tour, the group paddled around the lagoon to look at baby SIlfra, a smaller fissure next to the main one, and the Icelandic Bahamas, a white sand section of the water, before hopping out and quickly returning our gear to down some hot chocolate in the chilly rain. Our next stop was our banquet, a special time for us to celebrate each member of the group and all the time we shared over the past two weeks on our unforgettable trip! The group talked about their favorite moments from the trip over dinner at Bryggjan Brugghus, a local burger joint, and we found ourselves re-remembering so many amazing moments from the last 13 days. Joy and love were in the air as we all appreciated the opportunity to be in each other’s presence for a little longer. Before walking back to the hostel for the night, the group stopped at an ice cream parlor for a final treat. Ice cream is always made sweeter when you know a hot shower is the next thing on the agenda! Soon enough, back at the hostel, all clean and packed, we all gathered for our final Moonup as a group, fittingly in the same room where we had our first Moonup on the first day all together. Laughs and tears were shared around our final circle, and as we closed our final Moonup, despite the late hour and our busy day, we felt alive with the knowledge that we had embarked on something wonderful together. Everyone was hesitant to go to bed knowing the next time we woke up would be to begin our journey home, but we soon drifted to sleep, dreaming of the highlands, fields of wildflowers, and much-appreciated sunshine.
By now, for all those reading, all your kiddos are on their way back home to you in some way or another! Clay is with Smith and Jack, and Camille is with the rest of the group. We cannot express our heartfelt gratitude to you all plainly enough. It has been nothing short of the opportunity of a lifetime to adventure alongside your kiddos, to learn new things by their side, and to love and be loved by them. So thank you all. We wholeheartedly believe in the fact that every single member of this group was meant to be here, and it would not have been the same without a single person. Our trip officially ends today, but know that we are in your kids’ corners forever and a day, and we are always just a phone call or a text away.
Here’s to it ICE 3A! We LOVE you all. Y’all rock our socks off. Cheers to Tripod, Jona, and every moment in between. You’ve made us prouder than proud, and we can’t wait to see where you all are headed next. Until the next adventure! <3
Back from the Icelandic Highlands: Epic Treks and Unforgettable Views!
July 28, 2024
AND WE’RE BACK!!
Out in the Icelandic Highlands at last! At this point, we have made it through our 4 days of trekking, and boy, has it been beautiful. We walked across deserts, stomped our way through glacial rivers, and stood, jaw-dropped, upon mind-bending views as we trekked 37 miles down one of Europe’s most famous trails. Stopping at little red huts to refuel and rest along the way, everyone has high spirits and can’t believe what they’ve accomplished over such a short amount of time. It is truly inspirational to see this group grow. Clay and Camille are extremely proud of these kids and how they’ve persevered through challenges.
We landed at base camp, Landmannlaugar, to do a short 4 mile warm up hike across a lava field, soon to find out the entire area we had been exploring was a collapsed volcano, or a caldera. Karl was so helpful in explaining how this came to be and it blew everyone’s mind as we sat in awe above a hot spring checking out the rim of what used to be a volcano in the distance. After we arrived back at camp, everyone went to dip into the natural hot spring within the campground. It was an incredible way to relax our bodies before the more challenging days ahead. Constant conversation of how unique Iceland is kept erupting within the group and the stoke was indeed contagious. Colors of red, green, purple, yellow, black, white, and more green filled the landscape. We then feasted on salmon pasta, a definite fan favorite for Liv and Nora, and got a good night’s sleep for the largest day of trekking.
THE big day was upon us! We started our day with oatmeal and packing sandwiches for the venture ahead. The first half of the trek was our biggest challenge with high winds and occasional rain. Our LOD’s, Jack and Grace, kept everyone assured that they got this! The weather was harsh, but our attitudes were positively warm. We stopped at the top of our first big peak halfway through the 16 miles at a hut for lunch and a good break. Robert ate 3 sandwiches! Snacks consisted of granola bars, protein cookies, and our very famous homemade trail mix; peanuts, chocolate covered raisins, pretzels. Gray even met a viking! Back on trail, we sang and danced our way across orange sulfur creeks, threw snowballs when crossing glacier slivers, and looked across intense landscapes that seemed to be out of a movie. Before we knew it, we crested the top of our last ascent and were overlooking Alftavatn, our campsite for the evening and one of the most ethereal views any of us have ever seen. It felt as though we were walking from above the clouds back onto earth as we neared the red-roofed huts and whooped in exultation over finishing the most physically challenging day of our trip so far. When we reached camp, we set up our tents on the lake with the most insane views of the mountain range that seemed to stretch for days, and we devoured meatballs and mashed potatoes for dinner before absolutely conking out for some well-deserved rest. We think Smith ate half the meatballs.
The morning in Alftavatn greeted us with some fog over the mountains, but the group awoke clear-headed and excited for another day on the trail. After packing up camp and hitting the road, the group championed a series of rolling hills on our way to our lunch stop, a hut and former horse stable called Hvanngil. After refueling, the group was back on trail to soak up the miles in the Icelandic desert. Conversation of how otherworldly the landscape was bounced from person to person, and we even had the privilege of shedding some layers and spending some time without rain jackets on as the sun made some intermittent appearances. With about 3 miles left, the group broke out the speaker and positively jammed our way to the end of the day. Rankin showed us her best Tik Tok dances. Spirits were high and hearts were full as we descended into Emstrur, our campsite nestled in the valley with a beautiful view of green, rolling hills. We enjoyed seeing familiar faces from the trail and the day before at camp, and we all downed some traditional Icelandic lamb soup (think chicken noodle soup, but 100 times better for the soul after hiking 12 miles) before a special Moonup led by Summit and McCall where we shared when in our lives we’ve felt most ourselves. Every Moonup with this group has been a treat – it’s such a gift to watch everyone embrace the spirit of vulnerability, and the combination of trekking and sharing with authenticity truly brings us closer together every day.
Upon awaking for our final day of trekking in Emstrur, we opened our tents and were greeted by a pleasant surprise – direct sunshine! Eating breakfast and packing camp was a boisterous and joyful affair, all parties geared up for our final day on the trail. As we hit the road, trail games such as wavelength filled the air and we crossed some pretty epic rivers and valleys. Before we knew it, we were ascending to our final ridge where we ate lunch overlooking the amazing Unicorn Mountain. The last bit of our trek consisted of reacquainting ourselves with the trees and Arctic lupin seen in other areas of the Icelandic landscape, and we crushed our last river crossing before coming out of the forest and into Thorsmork, Clay’s favorite. After breaking in Thorsmork to catch a respite from the rain, we geared up for our last 2 miles to Basar – but much to our surprise, our amazing guide, Karl, had retrieved our van and picked us up! We were truly a thankful bunch rolling into camp at Basar, where we quickly set up camp for the last time and got started on dinner, a delicious concoction of grilled chicken and steamed vegetables that we enjoyed sitting outside. Luke and Violet led another awesome Moonup. We went to bed in Basar feeling accomplished and grateful to be in the same place for more than one night.
We cannot wait to finish up the trip with this group! We are so proud of each one of them and their grit as we hiked almost 40 miles in 3 days – 14 Moondancers in and 14 Moondancers out, and crushing it, and that, is something to celebrate! Until next time! We are soaking in every moment and can’t wait to wrap up telling you all about it!
Thank you: Smith- Thank you so much dad for letting me go to Iceland! I hope you get to come here at some point! See you soon
Jack- Hello family, thank you so much for letting me go to this awesome place! It has been a great trip and I am incredibly grateful I could go here. Love you and see you soon!
Gray- Hello family, thank you for sending me on this amazing trip to Iceland. I have made lots of memories and have gotten to do a lot of cool things. See you soon!
Summit- Hi Mom and Dad I’m having a great time here thank you for getting me here and I will see you soon love you and tell Nana and Dada thank you for getting me to Iceland and helping me pack Love you guys see you soon
Luke- Thank you guys so much for letting me go to such an amazing place! It’s been really fun here lately and got to do a lot of fun things lately. Can’t wait to see you guys!
Robert- thank y’all so much for sending me on this trip. It’s been really fun and I’m thankful for the opportunity to go on this trip.
Nora- Thank you guys so much for letting me go on this amazing trip to Iceland. I am having the time of my life and I have gotten to do tons of fun things i never thought i would do. Can’t wait to see you guys!
Liv- Thanks so much for sending me to Iceland for this trip. It’s been such an amazing experience and I’ve literally had the best time ever. I’ve tried so many new things and made so many amazing friends. Can’t wait to see you guys soon!
Grace- Thank you so much Leigh and dad for this amazing opportunity I’m so so grateful to be here! Love and miss you mom and Max. HAPPY 13th BIRTHDAY CAMY!!! I wish I could be there to celebrate with you but I know you’ll have a great day! Love y’all!
Rankin- Thank you so much mom and dad for sending me to Iceland it is so cool and Happy 10th Birthday Charlotte and Dottie!!!!
McCall- Thank you so much mom and dad for sending me to Iceland. It has been an incredible experience and I can’t wait to tell y’all all about it! I’ve been having so much fun!!
Violet- Thank you sooooo much for sending me here mom and dad. It has been so fun i can’t wait to tell y’all about it. Love y’all.
Thrills 'n' Chills
July 23, 2024
HELLO FROM ICELAND!
What a first half of the trip it’s been! We have discovered countless waterfalls, rafteddown a glacier river, rode Icelandic horses across rivers and valleys, explored a lava tunnel,walked through downtown Reykjavik experiencing Icelandic culture, and so much more! We stillhave plenty on the agenda and everyone is enjoying our newfound friends.
We started off our journey with a relaxing day in the Sky Lagoon. Everyone benefited from thehot tub and cold plunge after the long day of travel. Jack lasted the longest in the cold plunge,boasting an impressive 25 minutes (so he claims)! After the refreshing stop, we settled into ourhostel to plan for the big trip ahead and feasted on pizza for the first dinner.
Day 2 started off hot, or cold, with whitewater rafting along the Hvítá river! We were greetedwith fresh burgers from the outfitter and then suited up for the adventure. After the guides gaveus the safety briefing, each group was assigned boats. The boys’ boat ended up being named“USS Cold Feet”, while the girls settled on “Iceland Slayers”. The water was indeed cold, but thelaughter and bonding kept us warm. We all stopped for the main event about halfway down theriver: cliff jumping! The entire group made the heroic leap into the river and Grace even jumpedtwice! Summit and Smith battled it out with raft games near the end of the float which was quitethe show for the rest of us. Once we got off the river and out of the wet suits we hopped in thehot tub and sauna to take a good break. It was a great venture to start the trip!
The next day consisted of a beautiful drive across the southern coast. Our two stops were thefamous geyser and mind-blowing lava tunnel. The whole group got to see the geyser go offmultiple times, and we even did the short hike up the mountain to view the huge valley with ourcampsite in the distance. We then set off to the lava tunnel tour where we had a very passionateguide named Jona. She gave us the tour through the tunnel where we learned about the geologyof the cave and how it formed 5000 years ago. Gray was the most intrigued out of the group andasked questions the whole way.
We had an unexpected storm roll in yesterday and had to skip whale watching because of thehigh winds. So instead, we went to a gorgeous horseback riding ranch on the west coast and hadan absolute blast galloping through the valley. The valley echoed with laughter as we traversedthrough green pastures and shallow rivers. Nora and her horse especially took a liking tosplashing around in the water. We even saw their private hot spring along the beautiful river thatran underneath the mountain where they would cook homemade bread in the ground using thehot spring as the oven! One group of 7 rode while the other went to see one of Iceland’s mostpicturesque waterfalls with our guide, Karl. Luke spearheaded a highly scientific experiment tomeasure the height of the bridge over the river, and our group delighted in watching rocks splashinto the rapids and flow downstream. To finish, we got hot chocolate with some homemadebread and butter. What a day!
After our adventure on horseback, our group transferred closer to the Icelandic Highlands,passing through Selfoss and stopping at Groovi’s, a local favorite for ice cream. McCall andRankin led the charge to get cotton candy on their ice cream cones, and we all savored our treatstogether, even in the gusty weather outside. Then, we had the privilege of embarking on an earlytown day in Reykjavik, gallivanting down Rainbow Street and stocking up on souvenirs andsnacks. Liv captured every moment on her beloved pink point-and-shoot camera as we enjoyedperformances by street musicians and sampled truffles that were homemade in Latvia! Beforemaking our way to our lodging for the night, we stopped at an ethereal valley that was truly offthe beaten path and had a ball waterfall chasing. Violet was ecstatically pointing out the greenmoss that would hide under the water which made everyone pay a little more attention. Thegroup heel-clicked and skipped through the luscious meadow, smelling wildflowers and findingsecluded caves to explore. Summit made the entire group double over in laughter as he embracedthe adventurous spirit of the afternoon and went all in on river crossings. Finally, we stumbledupon the most epic waterfall yet, and we frolicked up the hill to dip under the water and taste itsglacial flavor. Robert completed the group’s pilgrimage under the falls, and the group hooted andhollered off the hill in excitement as we relished in doing something so spontaneous together.
Shoutouts!
Smith: Hello father, I am having fun! Iceland is very beautiful and you would love it! Love yousee you when I get back!
Jack: Hi family, I am having a great time in Iceland! It is very cold here. I miss you all alot but Iam not homesick at all like I was in the airport. Mom, thank you for your letter and please tellMrs. Linda I am grateful for hers too. Iceland is very expensive… I will pay you back.
Gray: Hello family, I have made it to Iceland very cold and very rainy. I am having a great timewith my new friend Cooperf, yes Cooperf we go very fast and horse lady do not like it.
Summit Traxler Dempsey: Hallo family, I am alive it is very cold here and I am cold but I amhaving a very very good time yes yes yes. The water is very cold and I miss surfing but I did getover my fear of horses because we went horseback riding. I love you. I am having fun and I amstill alive. I will see you in a week goodbye now.
Luke: Hi mom and dad, I’m having a lot of fun in Iceland and enjoying this cool weather. Icelandis such a cool place and we just explored the city. Can’t wait to see you guys.
Robert: Hi family, I’m having fun in Iceland and I’ve been enjoying my time so far. I miss y’alland the dogs, and I’m excited to see everyone when I get back.
Nora: Hi family, I miss you guys so much but I am having so much fun. It is very cold and rainybut Iceland is a very cool place. We have done a lot of exploring! I can’t wait to see you guys.
Olivia: Hey family! Iceland is so cool and fun! It’s pretty rainy and cloudy but the views areamazing! We went horseback riding but my horse was on a leash the whole time. It’s been somuch fun and I can’t wait to see you guys in a week!
Grace: Hey y’all! Iceland is so cool but also cold and wet. I’ve met so many people from all overthe world so far. Can’t wait to see y’all when I get home.
Violet: Hey Mom, Dad, Riley, and whoever is reading this. I miss y’all sooo much but I amhaving so much fun I love it. It is very cold and rainy sometimes. It’s so unreal here and pretty. I have realized what is important but I am going to keep this shorter. I haveabout a week left so see y’all soon!!!!!!
Rankin: Hey Mom, Dad, Bubba, and the twins I miss yall and love yall so much! Iceland is socool, Dad you would seriously love to bike here. Also heyy finley and marlowe I know you’reprobably stalking. finley you better have paid dottie back. Can’t wait to tell yall everything!!!!
McCall: Hey Mom, Dad, and Alexander I miss yall but I am having a lot of fun! Mom- it isdefinitely too cold for you. It rains a lot but everytime we see the sun its amazing. The views wehave seen are so pretty and almost unreal. Love yall and see yall soon!
Safe Arrival in Iceland!
July 17, 2024
Hello Iceland Families!
We heard from our leaders this morning that the group has landed safely in Reykjavik! The trip is off to a great start, and we cannot wait to hear more stories from their adventure.
Please remember our leaders and students will be unplugged during their trips but we will be posting trip updates throughout the next week! This will allow you to follow along with the trip. You can also follow us on Instagram, @moondanceadventures, to see more of what we are up to!
-Moondance HQ
