I took a 1-day trip from New York to Iceland just to watch lava erupt from a volcano. Here’s what it was like and why it should be on everyone’s bucket list.

I was only on the ground in Iceland for 23 hours, but it was the trip of a lifetime. Jordi Lippe-McGraw I took a last-minute, one-day trip to Iceland to watch an active volcano erupt.   Along with my guide, I hiked 10 miles to a nearby hill, where I watched lava spew from the volcano.

The 35-hour itinerary was exhausting and jam-packed, but it was a once-in-a-lifetime trip. After Iearning that the Fagradalsfjall volcano erupted, I booked a flight to Iceland to see it for myself. I departed from John F.

Kennedy International Airport and landed at Keflavík Airport. Jordi Lippe-McGrawI have a lot of unique interests, from hunting truffles to exploring abandoned castles, but witnessing natural spectacles, like tornadoes, tops the list. So when I heard about a new eruption at Iceland’s Fagradalsfjall volcano, where I could watch lava shoot into the air from a visible (yet safe) distance, I had to see it in person.

 I previously booked a trip to see Fagradalsfjall in 2021, when it last erupted and became the first active volcano in the Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark in over 800 years. The activity petered out until this August, when Fagradalsfjall erupted once again. Only this time, people could see inside the bubbling crater from a nearby hill.

Because my trip revolved around nature, I couldn’t exactly plan it far in advance. I had to act fast. After all, a volcanic eruption can last anywhere from several hours to several years.

Just eight days after the eruption made the news, I, a self-proclaimed lava hunter, was on a hill in Iceland watching new earth form. And I did it all — flying from New York to Reykjavík and back — in less than 35 hours. Here’s what the bucket-list experience was like.

Being on the East Coast made the overnight journey to Iceland much more manageable. After my plane landed, I went to the airport bathroom and changed into hiking clothes. Jordi Lippe-McGrawIn terms of travel time, it’s much easier to get to Iceland from the East Coast or the Midwest.

 I happen to be based in the New York area, so I departed on an 8:35 p. m. Icelandair flight out of John F.

Kennedy International Airport. The flight time was just under six hours. I landed in Reykjavík the following day at 6:15 a.

m. Greenwich Mean Time, which is four hours ahead of the Eastern Standard Time I came from. I changed into my hiking gear in the airport bathroom, and by 8 a.

m. , I was hiking to the volcano.  I hired a private guide for my trek to make sure I felt safe.

Joe kept an eye on the gas levels during our ascent. Jordi Lippe-McGrawI hired a guide, Joe, from Hidden Iceland, a travel company that offers private volcano excursions. He’d be accompanying me to Fagradalsfjall.

Though travelers can certainly complete the trek on their own, I decided to get a private guide to make sure I felt safe along the way.  He walked ahead of me to test for loose rocks and checked gas levels as we approached the site. Plus, he monitored the weather before my arrival to make sure we were catching Fagradalsfjall at the most optimal time.

 Having an expert with me made the trip more enjoyable. I was running on zero sleep, and thanks to Joe, I could focus on the lava instead of the logistics. The 10-mile hike to Fagradalsfjall was beautiful but challenging.

The 10-mile hike took us around six hours to complete. Jordi Lippe-McGrawEven if I didn’t get to see lava pouring out of a crater, I still would’ve found the hike along the volcano’s ridges to be incredible.  On a clear day, you can see the coastline, mountains, lava fields, and valleys of cooled black volcanic rock all from one vantage point.

Of course, knowing there was bright-red lava at the end of the hike made it even more appealing. That being said, we weren’t walking on your average groomed trail. A lot of the path crossed through small to medium-sized boulders, so I was constantly trying not to slip or roll my ankles.

 We ascended about 1,300 feet, with the bulk of the climb happening in the first few minutes. The hike, which was approximately 10 miles, took us six hours to complete.   As I admired Fagradalsfjall, I came across brand new sights and sounds.

I had a clear view of the eruption from a nearby hill. Jordi Lippe-McGrawHonestly, the pictures from my trip don’t do the experience justice. You have to witness it first-hand because the sensory input is novel.

 As I walked closer to the eruption site, smells of sulfur wafted past me and built my anticipation. The smell really hammered in how this event is purely natural.  I was able to stand on the crater’s edge, so close to fresh lava, to take the ancient volcanic landscape in.

I was captivated.  Lastly, the sounds were unlike anything I’ve ever heard. There was crackling, whooshing, and bubbling as the lava shot into the sky and splattered onto the cooled rock.

Pieces of the crater also broke off and tumbled into the lava, causing splashing noises to fill the air.  It was complete sensory overload in the best way possible. Few people get the opportunity to see a volcano erupt, which made the experience feel even more special.

From a safe distance, I watched lava spew into the air. Jordi Lippe-McGrawVolcanoes are scattered across the globe, from Hawaii to Greece to Japan. Even though you can even hike many of them, the majority are dormant.

 When they’re active, they can be hard to see without binoculars and are sometimes only accessible to scientists or drones.  Fagradalsfjall is one of the few volcanoes where you can take a selfie with spewing magma in the background. But because the hike to get to it is so difficult, I wasn’t surprised the eruption site wasn’t overcrowded.

If you can handle the trek (or are willing to tour by helicopter), I suggest visiting. It’s cool knowing that you’re one of few people in the world who will ever get to see an eruption with their own eyes. I was also able to explore Iceland’s other natural wonders during my trip.

Before I boarded my flight back to New York, I stopped at a geothermal spa. Jordi Lippe-McGrawIceland is home to numerous natural wonders — including Strokkur Geyser, Blue Lagoon, Gullfoss Waterfall, and the Fagradalsfjall volcano. Many are less than an hour drive away from the international airport, so it’s possible to see multiple in a single day.

I managed to fit several of the sites into my jam-packed itinerary. On the day I saw the volcano, I was in the car headed to my hotel, the 101 Hotel, in Reykjavík by 2 p. m.

I spent the night before flying back to New York the next day. Since I had a full day before my departure, I squeezed in a trip to the Sky Lagoon, a thermal spa, on my way to the airport. My flight took off around 5 p.

m. , and after a whirlwind day in Iceland, I was back in the US by 7 p. m.

 The itinerary was exhausting, but I’m thrilled that I went on the bucket-list trip. The route to the eruption site was steep and challenging. Jordi Lippe-McGrawThe intense itinerary left me exhausted, but it was entirely worth it.

In less than 24 hours, I physically challenged my body, laid eyes on a natural wonder, and even found time to make it to the spa. If you want to do the same, keep an eye on Iceland’s volcanic activity and be ready to book that flight. Read the original article on Insider.