Pedals and Paddles Worldwide: Iceland

Showing posts with label Iceland. Show all posts

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Iceland 2012 Video

Took me a while to get to this one, but now its done.

The music is Iceland's Of Monsters and Men, "Little Talks" which was every other song on Icelandic radio that summer.

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

50K from Reykjavik: Reykjanes Volkvangur (8/24/12)

TOP TRIP

Trip: Reykjanes Natural Park

Distance: 80km

Sights: Lake Kleifarvatn, Krýsuvík Hot Springs, Lake Grænavatn, Reykjavik Seaport

If you didn’t look at the porous volcanic rock that made up the ground and only stared down the road over the nearly flat plain to the bluish outlines of mountains near the horizon – you’d think you were in Wyoming looking at the Tetons. Yet 50K from Reykjavik, I didn’t know what to do.

The rest of the gang was either in the Western fjords or glacier hiking on Mýrdalsjökull. Earlier in the week, Brandy had rented a tandem bike at “The Bike Company” behind the tourist information on Bankastræti. I went down and picked up a Trek Mountain bike to make the trip.

The plan was to hit the nature park, the bird cliffs and then come back through Selfoss (and the “Sausage Wagon”) to take the big long hill over the Mid-Atlantic Ridge along Route 1.

I rode out of the city along one of the numerous bike trails that run parallel to most of the major roads. It wound through the neighborhoods in Garđabær and Hafnafjördur along routes 40 & 41. About 5k outside of Hafnafjördur, the road to Reykanesvolkvangur turns off. My guide book stated that this would be a largely unpaved road. However, for about the first 8k this road is paved and busy with large trucks heading each way.

It turns out that right before you enter the Reykanesvolkvangur, there is a huge quarry. After the turn to the quarry, the road immediately goes gravel and you have to climb over a couple steep short hills. The second hill was especially challenging as it was too steep to sit but the road to slick and tough to get traction while standing.

As I came down from the second hill, the terrain opened up to the left to Lake Kleifarvatn and the road ran on a ridge to the right along the side of the lake. Somewhere in the almost lifeless lunar landscape that the lake sits upon there is an alien, awesome beauty.

Lake Kleifarvatn

After passing the lake came the indisputable smell of Hot Springs. The Krýsuvík area sits on the fissures of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. There is a parking lot for the largest of the hot springs, Sultan. In 1999, one of the springs became clogged and exploded so there is now a bilingual (and awesome) warning sign:

I parked the bike on a sign post and headed onto the boardwalk. The boardwalk wanders through, over and around hot springs that look much like the Paint Pots in Yellowstone. Seth and I had earlier commented that in Iceland they just put up a parking lot and a bathroom and say: Park here, see the sites but don’t expect any services.

Indeed, in the States they would never have built a site like Sultan. The boardwalk goes over springs and has sulfuric steam rising between the boards. I remember being at least 25 feet from any steam pot in Yellowstone.

After wondering the hot springs (and listening to Austrians – probably Karinthians – complain that all the signs were in English and Icelandic but not German), I got back on the road past the old farmstead and to the “Green Lake” of Lake Grænavatn.

After taking pictures of the lake - that didn’t really bring out the green-ness – I continued south toward the Krýsuvíkberg birding cliffs. I got off the road and headed up an open hiking trail that took me about 2k up to a small knoll (is there any other size of knoll?). From the knoll I could see Route 427 at the T intersection 4 km down the road.

I made it back to the road and made it maybe ½ km before I felt slipping from the back tire. At first I thought nothing of it but then realized: uhh…ohhh! I have a flat! With no flat kit or pump – I was screwed!

So, I’m 50K from Reykjavik in this deserted plain. I started to walk back towards Hafnafjördur. I figured at worst I could try to hitchhike. For about twenty minutes I saw zero cars going my way and only 3 going the other – all packed with tourists that would never have fit me AND the bike.

Where I popped my tire...

Finally one car came my way. It was a primer-grey painted Opel pick-up truck. The driver, Peter, stopped. While he did not speak very good English (Waaay better than I speak Icelandic…), I was able to get a ride, putting the bike in the back pickup.

Quietly we drove back the 30km over gravel and quarry to Hafnafjördur which I had ridden while he chain-smoked Salem Lights. We drove into a mini-mall with a KFC in it where Peter made a joke that I should eat there despite not being from Kentucky. Then he stopped and said:

“He fix it,” pointing to a window in the shop (it was a BIKE SHOP!!!). I thanked him, got the bike out and he drove off.

I walked my bike into the shop. There two younger guys were more than happy to fix the tire. (And, put more air in the front and grease the rusty chain…)

As I left the bike shop, dropping a hefty Kr 2500 for the work, I realized I couldn’t do the bike trip I planned (already 30K in the hole), nor did I want to without bringing a pump. So instead I decided to ride back to Reykjavik.

Reykjavik is on a peninsula, so I rode around the city along the paths that follow the sea coast until about 3 when I decided to return the bike – in better shape than I had received it…

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Reykjavik: Photo Blog (8/23/14)

City Hall

The Pond

Music Gazebo

No tractors...during rush hour

Fischer/Spassky table

18th Century Fishing boat

Weapon to cut trawler lines (1970s Cod Wars)

Bacon!

Hallgrimskirkja

Leif Ericsson

Reykjavik from Hallgrimskirkja

Longboat Sculpture

Artsy Reykjavik

Thakgil to Reykjavik: Photo Blog (8/22/12)

Victor at Camp Thakgil

Brian, Sarah, Andy, Aharon and Victor and the walk by Camp Thakgil

Foss by Thakgil

Sheep around Thakgil

The road to the Glacier

Basalt Cliffs of Vik (Victor, Korynn, Amie, Seth, Laurie)

Vik

Seljalandsfoss

Foss next to Seljalandsfoss

Andy falling in the river

Everything we packed into a Yaris with 5 people

Death Road: Route 214 (8/21/12)

We left the restaurant in Vik and Seth stopped me:

"At about 12 km up, there is a blind rise and then an immediate switchback. The Yaris isn't designed to do that. Tell Aharon to take all the hills in first."

I found it exciting - others NOT SO MUCH.

Skaftafellsheiđi Loop Trail: Skaftafell – Part Two (8/21/12)

Aharon, me and Brian at the edge of the World

TOP TRIP

Distance: 16km (10 miles)

Location: Skaftafell National Park, Southeast Iceland

Difficulty: Medium

Sights: Glaciers, Fosses, Mountains

Upon return from the short ~~hike~~ walk to the tongue of Skaftafellsjökull, we got some coffee, snacks and water. We headed out on what was a 16k hike that none of us were prepared for as one of the greatest trips we’ve ever taken.

The trip started with a rather easy hike up stair built trails past two waterfalls. One of these was Sarah’s goal of the entire trip – Svartifoss. (She’s got a thing for basalt.) The trail wove through bushes that were ALMOST tree-like.

Sarah @ Svarifoss

Once we crossed out of the “tree-line” there was a long stretch on a rocky plain that led into the direction of green lichen and moss covered mountains. The rocky plain looked like the set of Red Sonja. (I was ready to fight Bridgette Neilson.) As we walked across the plain, we realized that everyone else we had seen since leaving the camp was NOT going further.

As we approached the mountains, The scenery changed from Red Sonja to Lord of the Rings. I stated that we were going over the gap between the mountains and down into the valley in front.

Andy summed up my statement later: “Usually when I go hiking somebody misreads the contour lines.” That “somebody” was ME this time.

Mountains ahead that we would climb towards

Hiking map

Instead of going down into the valley in front, we climbed almost straight up to the Skorabrýr ridge. Atop the ridge we got amazing views of the Skaftafelljöll as its peaks climbed above the clouds. And further along we got great views of the main glacier climbing playing “peak”-a-boo as it crept between the peaks.

Andy at the edge

The end of the Glacier

The trail then took us along the side of the higher Kristinartindar (1126 meters). A more difficult trail spurred off of ours to summit “Christina’s peak.” Brian decided to take it while the others of us took the “easier” trial that continued along the side and for the next half hour across the Southern face of the peak.

The trail brought us to a huge cliff that overlooked Skaftafellsjökull. Here we saw our first other person in a couple of hours. The Italian we met was kind enough to take our picture at the point.

Andy, me, Sarah and Aharon

The spot was also where the difficult trail Brian took rejoined our easier trail we were on.

Me: “Here comes Brian”

Italian guy: “But he is running?”

Sarah: “Yep, that’s Brian”

Brian rejoined us and gave the Italian guy a little recon on the difficult trail: “It’s fine except one point where you have to hug the cliff. But, it was probably the most fun thing I have ever done in my life.”

As we were now at the point where it was just an hour hike back to the campground, I gave the Italian guy our map and sent him up into the mountains. We hiked along the edge back down.

We knew we were getting close as the trail went from zero people to passing people every 2 or 3 minutes. The end took us down the easier loop trail into the campground.

After 4 hours hiking over waterfalls, across slate cliffs, over a cliff he had to hug onto and a foot wide ridge to the top of Kristinartindar, it was on this easy trail with railings and stairs that Brian slipped and almost went down a cliff…

When we got to the Camp the others were packing and we followed suit – headed for Thakgil.

Glacial Walk: Skaftafell – Part One (8/21/12)

Watch out for quicksand!

Distance: 3.2 km (2 miles)

Location: Skaftafell National Park, Iceland

Difficulty: Easy

Sights: Glacier; quicksand

We were doubling up on hikes this morning. So our first hike we decided to do the short one down to the ice caves along the tongue of the glacier.

Well, it turned out to be a walk along an easy paved path and it turned out to NOT lead to ice caves (sorry Liz).

It did take us to some rolling mud hills that lead down to the glacier itself. Yet, between us and the actual glacier was an icy swift flowing stream. Brian thought that we could “wade across.” I chose to nix that idea.