Springing back to Iceland to see it in the green! COMPLETED 6/29 - Page 23 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
Sunday 30 April – part two: I’m starting to regret coming out here
When we were out of the other end of the tunnel, we had more spectacular scenery around us…
It was funny how you’d drive for literally miles, and see no sign of life, then there’d be some industry. All very weird.
Soon we were heading towards snow topped mountains again…
Yet despite these sights, it was relatively warm today. I saw relatively, as it was in the mid 40s, which was high, compared to the temperatures we’d experienced when we landed a couple of days ago.
Soon we were on the causeway out to Borgannes, which I remembered from our Northern Lights trip, as I knew they’d taken us out here. I didn’t think there was too much to see out here, but then again, what the heck did I know? The last time we’d come out here, of course it was pitch darkness!
The town didn’t have much to commend it, in fairness, and we picked up a coach as we passed through it, which we thought would be a real pain, but good grief, we’d obviously forgotten how coach drivers drive out here. All I’ll say is Mark was never in danger of catching that guy up, and Mark was driving at the speed limit. Oh well, I guess at least he didn’t slow us down…
Then we were into what we suspected were lava fields. It was hard to tell, given they weren’t as fertile as the ones we’d seen previously in Hawai’i, but then again, that could just indicate they were newer, as the older they are, the more fertile they become. In the distance were the mountains covered in cloud, and that’s pretty much all we saw for a significant amount of time. It became a bit dull after a while, seeing the same things. At this point, I was starting to regret coming out here. I had said to Mark that we could have an easier day and just stay in Reykjavik, as I knew there was plenty I could find to do, but he had said he’d be fine coming out here. I was also worried how tiring the driving would be for him, given he’d already done a lot since we’d been here, but he insisted.
Eventually, we started to head into more fertile land, and just as had happened yesterday, I once again had vivid memories of that troll scene in Frozen. I can see why Icelanders are so obsessed by these things, and trust me, they are. Various road projects have had to be re-programmed to ensure they don’t go through land belonging to trolls or fairies. Sounds reasonable to me!
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
I think if you'd stayed in the city, you might have more regret for not adventuring out. Even if it's somewhat desolate, it's sights and scenes you would otherwise never see! The little towns are cute, if not a little spooky.
__________________
Tanya
Every click helps feed .6 bowls of food to rescued animals. Give a quick click every day and help animals in shelters! www.theanimalrescuesite.com
I think if you'd stayed in the city, you might have more regret for not adventuring out.
True.
Quote:
Even if it's somewhat desolate, it's sights and scenes you would otherwise never see!
Definitely.
Quote:
The little towns are cute, if not a little spooky.
They are definitely spooky - mind you, a bit like some of the "towns" we came across in Wyoming now I think about it. I say "towns" as some only had signs saying population: 300!
Some great scenery once again even though not much around and quite barren. I think you can appreciate this more on this trip than last year as everything isn't snow covered and can see the lay of the land much better!
__________________
October 6, 2017-Enjoying an amazing dinner at Victoria & Albert's with PP's Dot and Drew
My TR from my most recent trip is now underway. Includes: Universal Studios Florida, Disney World and Sea World Orlando Trifecta TR -Updated December 10th! TR is now COMPLETED!
Some great scenery once again even though not much around and quite barren. I think you can appreciate this more on this trip than last year as everything isn't snow covered and can see the lay of the land much better!
Oh completely and of course that's one of the reasons we wanted to go back to see it without the snow everywhere.
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
The land does seem so desolate at times, and then you have a photo of a village with the church spire rising up.
And that's where I struggled to wrap my head around living in the middle of nowhere, having a few facilities, but really nothing much. To get to a big town with shops is quite a trek from some of those places!
Sunday 30 April – part three: this is how you do it without stopping…
We didn’t do very well, and actually managed to miss our first stop of the dayYtri-Tunga, a beach with a seal colony. Mark offered to turn round, and go back to it, but I figured it wasn’t meant to be. Instead, we continued to make our way over to Hellnar.
Now at this point…
… we ended up re-overtaking the car that had overtaken us not long before, as they’d slowed right down and opened up the windows of their car to take photos of the waterfalls. No guys, this is how you do it without stopping…
Suddenly our journey took us into what looked like a massive plain just in front of the sea, with a small beach, and the waves breaking beyond. This isn’t exactly what you expect from Iceland. We stopped to take some photos, but had to wait for the idiots in front, who’d managed to park taking up the whole parking lot to move. Mark asked if I was going to get out and go and photograph the sign, but I declined the offer, given there was already a woman down there puffing on a cigarette. No thank you!
We continued to make our way along, in awe of the variety of scenery that we were once again seeing here. Honestly, is there any type of countryside and scenery that Iceland doesn’t have?
At one point, Mark had to slow right down, as somehow this one Icelandic horse had managed to escape where the rest of his herd were happily grazing. How the heck he managed to get out to be right along the road, I have no idea.
The landscape soon became exceptionally lush and green, and we were moving more into the cloud. Although so far, the rain had stayed away, we figured it couldn’t be long before we finally drove into it. tell you, there is something very freaky about driving through a lava field, no matter if you know it’s been inactive for goodness knows how many years. It’s just a weird sensation.
Soon we were arriving in Hellnar, which was a tiny place. I had read that the café here was supposed to be pretty good, which was in the visitor centre. However, we were to be out of luck as there was no sign it was open.
We pulled up and got a few shots of where the lava had met the sea. Even today, you could stand there and imagine the lava being stopped by something as mighty as it was – the sea. I bet that was quite a sight when that happened.
Next: we’re not doing well with our choices of places to stop
I hope that horse made it home okay!! Those lava fields are impressive and I know what you mean about having an eerie sort of feeling. We walked on some in Hawaii and I also had that weird sensation. I love your selfie by the sea!!
About This Page: 
PassPorter Guide Author
All I’ll say is Mark was never in danger of catching that guy up, and Mark was driving at the speed limit. Oh well, I guess at least he didn’t slow us down… 
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
We stopped to take some photos, but had to wait for the idiots in front, who’d managed to park taking up the whole parking lot 
to move. Mark asked if I was going to get out and go and photograph the sign, but I declined the offer, given there was already a woman down there puffing on a cigarette. No thank you! 
Linear Mode
