ICELAND was the destination for 30 senior students and three members of staff from St Nicholas’ School in Church Crookham this Easter.

After flying into Reykjavik, they began their incredible six-day exploration of Iceland. The trip focused on the natural landscape and each day brought another spectacularly different environment.

The weather was very varied: spectacular snow storms, torrential rain and bright sunshine, and all accompanied by a very strong wind.

The party visited Thingvellir National Park, where the Eurasian and North American Plates are pulling apart, to see the rifting, and then made their way to the awesome Gullfoss waterfall and the natural geysers.

One of the many highlights was walking behind the Seljalandsfoss waterfall and getting thoroughly soaked by the spray.

At Fontana Spa, the students luxuriated in the steaming water pools and steam rooms. Another memorable sight was the icebergs floating in Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon and also washed up on the black sand beach.

Travelling along the flat coastal plain on the south of the island, the scenery was spectacular with the mountains, volcanoes and glaciers on the left and the stark black sand plains leading to the sea on the right.

The party saw the volcano Eyjafjallajökull, and learnt from the family on the farm how they had survived the eruption.

Their guide also told them about the traditional trolls and elves, and explained how the incredible features at Gunnuvher are attributed to the wrath of Gunna whose cooking pot was confiscated and so she blasts steam out of the ground at a ferocious rate.

Undoubtedly, the highlight of the trip was the glacier walk. Kitted out with crampons, harnesses and ice axes before splitting into groups with their guides, the party walked up the Sólheimajökull glacier. Everyone marvelled at the views and clambered down into a gully to see the beautiful blue ice.

“It was an incredible trip with such diversity of experiences – geographic, scientific and cultural,” said head of geography Jan Coombe, who organised the visit.