Mushrooms

blende_eins_zwei_photography

#model#picture#photographer#photoshoot#fotoshooting#fotografie#fujifilm#fujifilm50r#Iceland#availablelight#icelandtravel#nude#bwphotography

Over to Iceland. What's hot? Or what not / too hot even.

Anyway the Reykjavik Grapevine (Aug. 7) gets us on the way. Supposedly bathing culture on Iceland is changing:

'The new generation of sleek, luxurious spas that have mushroomed around Iceland are something else again. A product of opportunism — both in taking advantage of the tourist boom, and putting Iceland’s plentiful geothermal water to use — they offer a different, fancier kind of bathing. They have warm rainfall showers with the herbaceous scent of Sóley toiletries hanging in the air, coal-fired saunas with widescreen windows, and powerful shoulder-massaging torrents to work out muscle knots. They’re quieter, and pricier — more like going for a tasting menu than popping into your local diner.

“For a town of 2,000 people to suddenly have a luxury spa on their doorstep is surely a good thing.”

These spas are a lurch away from the down-to-earth nature of Iceland’s pool culture — but they aren’t enjoyed by tourists exclusively. At the lush, wooded Forest Lagoon in Akureyri, I heard more Icelandic voices than English, or Chinese, or German. By the same measure, GeoSea in Húsavík — with its saline water and undulating infinity edge looking out over the ever-changing weather of the Skjálfandi bay — seems as much of a hit with locals as visitors. For a town of 2,000 people to suddenly have a luxury spa on their doorstep is surely a good thing — and it’s not like the town pool is going anywhere.

...

The wave of new spas — and particularly those with a more rustic edge, like Flúðir’s Gamla Lauginn — also come after a period of increased interest in wild bathing. That is, the classic experience of following questionable directions to an obscure, barely-there parking spot, and hiking towards a promising plume of steam a kilometre or two away; testing the water with a toe, hanging your clothes on a tree branch, and just hopping in.

Natural hot pots have a very special kind of charm, but the vast increase in tourist traffic over the last decade has kinda killed the vibe. The last thing you wanna see when you get to a prospective hot pot is a row of five gleaming rental cars'.

A Facebook follower of Reykjavik, Iceland Travel & Vacation asks (Jun. 17) if there are any hot springs where you can go au naturel, which I'll regard as question to local bathing culture. 

Seventy six responses, anything worthwhile between them? 

• Topless is allowed everywhere
• Maybe
• Used to
• Why?
• You need to shower naked? (31 answers ...)
• Not in public facilities?
• Japan

This fits in neatly here. 

MBL.is (Aug. 20) draws attention to the fact that sauna visitors in the town Gufunes walk around the villages pier naked. Some translation:

'According to her [Hafdís Hrundur Gísladóttir owner of Rjúkandi gufu] people try to be careful when it comes to the situation and do not intentionally show their nudity, even though they do wander naked outside the steam room.
"These are just adults trying to be polite if others are there and covering up when necessary. This is not sexual and there is no dogmatism involved," says Hafdís'.

Ohm

magda.moerli

natural spa day - Iceland edition

#hotsprings #iceland #coldweather #steamyviews #toohottohandle #toogoodtobetrue #natureiceland #naturaljacuzzi #icelandtravel #icelandroadtrip #visiticeland #hotandcold #souljourney #bodymindsoul #wellness #ohhmvibes #holisticheaven #recharging #beautifuldestinations #spaday #hiddengemsiceland #hiddengems

We over to the section, list your favourites or not.

Rachandlaurexplore posts (Aug. 8) a reel on instagram with the following info:

'✨ Rapid ranking all the hot springs I went to in Iceland ✨

There are SO many hot springs to choose from in Iceland. We definitely recommend visiting a few on your visit there! Here’s how they stacked up. We mostly drove around the south so these are all from the south!

disclaimer* this is just our opinion, if you felt differently about one of these that’s okay!

Hrunalaug: SO peaceful!! Situated in a cool secluded spot. You do have to pay an entry fee.

Reykjadalur: a hot spring in a stream??! Iconic. It’s an hour hike to get here but that doesn’t stop crowds from coming. Still, it’s worth a visit! There’s a few for parking in the lot below.

Seljavallalaug: favorite hot spring in Iceland! A short hike from the parking lot, it’s secluded and surrounded by beautiful mountains…. And it’s donation based!

Sky lagoon: the “alternative” to blue lagoon. In our opinion, it’s almost the same price and lacks the iconic blue color so we’d opt to just do blue lagoon. It’s a more luxury experience so it’s $$$

Secret lagoon: the oldest hot spring in Iceland! It is a stop on a lot of tours so it can be very crowded. It was around $34 usd for our visit

Blue lagoon: it’s famous for a reason and you should go, but just know it’s going to be touristy and that’s okay! Definitely the most expensive spot on this list'.

UK' s Express (Jun. 22) notes how enjoying a soak or two, need not to cost you much / anything?

'If you're willing to go off the beaten path a bit or to places that are maybe not as glamorous as some of the more luxurious options available, you can have a great experience while still saving your hard-earned. Not only is there the prospect of saving money but you will also go through something that many other tourists miss as they travel with the herd and sacrifice their cash for convenience'.

Icelandia (Aug. 19) on other secret hot springs; other than the Blue Lagoon that is. Of the 12 mentioned, only one or two are non-commercial; so much for secretive. Important:

'Lastly, either within a complex or out in the countryside, it’s important to conserve the surrounding nature. Be careful to stick to marked paths or trails where applicable, and always take any rubbish with you when it’s time to go'.

E(n)dge 

lorncache

At the edge of the world, there's a pretty epic geothermal swimming pool. Few people make the crazy drive out here which means we got it all to ourselves. .

.

#iceland #wanderlust #westfjords #strandir #strandircoast #krossneslaug #nordurfjördur #edgeoftheworld

Some visit reports. 

The Reykjavik Grapevine (Aug. 4) reports on a visit to the Westfjords and enjoying the Krossnes soak.

'Driving through this beautiful, untouched landscape, it’s hard to imagine what could make the day better. But there’s one thing that can: a visit to a pool. And not just any pool — this one has been on my list since 2022, when I interviewed Jón Karl Helgason, director of Sundlaugasögur (Swimming Pool Stories), a documentary about Iceland’s bathing culture.

For the film, Jón travelled around the country multiple times, visiting every single pool. When I asked him which one stood out, he didn’t hesitate: “Krossnes is beautiful. When you’re in there, you can see the horizon, the ocean — and feel like you’re alone in the world.”

Krossneslaug lies at the very end of the road. If you want to continue north from here, you’ll need to either walk, drive a jeep, which will only take you a couple of fjords more north, or go back and take a boat from Norðurfjörður — the last place nearby where you can stock up on food or grab a bite at the small restaurant, now run by Hotel Djúpavík. Last year, I almost reached the goal of visiting this pool — only to find that the pool was drained when I arrived. (A quick note: there’s a mud football championship in the area every Verslunarmannahelgi (always the first weekend of August), and after the matches, muddy footballers head straight to the pool to relax. This usually means a day or two of closure for cleaning and maintenance.)

This time, luck is on my side. The pool is open, and a friendly Kristín greets me at the cash register. She spent the last few winters in Austria, but Strandir somehow pulled her back. “I heard there are young farmers who recently moved to the area. Do you happen to know them?” I ask. Kristín laughs, “Oh yeah, those are my parents.”

Krossneslaug turned 70 years old last year. For decades, it has been a vital part of the region — a place where local children learned to swim. These days, two hot tubs warmer than the pool have been added. But it’s really the view that steals the show: a dramatic cliff on one side, and an endless stretch of ocean on the other.

There are a few people in the pool, and we exchange some small talk. One of them teases another, saying that only crazy people live here. I’m not sure about that. But if “crazy” means soaking in the pool with this view every day, they’re not mad at all'.

Tophotsprings on Hrunalaug (Jul. 7):

'A hidden gem in the Icelandic countryside – Hrunalaug

A private little hot spring tucked away in a charming rural setting. Quiet, peaceful, and full of character.

The water? A couple of degrees too cool for our taste, but still a magical experience.

Perfect for a short soak surrounded by nature'.

Finally in related affairs, the Reykjavik's Grapevine (Apr. 28) reports:

'Icelanders’ love for hot tubs shows no signs of cooling, with sales seeing a significant jump this year. According to RÚV, sales have risen by 10% year over year, while some manufacturers report even sharper increases.

At Heitirpottar.is, managing director Ari Steinn Kristjánsson says the company experienced a record-breaking Easter Sunday. “We sold nearly 200 hot tubs in one day. There was incredible traffic, the most high-energy day I’ve ever experienced — total rush,” he said.

Trefjar, another major hot tub producer, reports a 35% year-on-year increase. A company sales manager notes that, “We Icelanders are big hot tub lovers, and we feel great in our hot water. But I think the recent increase might also be due to the good weather and our optimism for a great summer.”

hovor.jirka

West Iceland