ride the vulcano 3FI2301
Welcome to Iceland Here we go again. The adventure Iceland goes into a new round. We are in for an adventure that we will remember for a long time. This island is breathtakingly beautiful and full of surprises. But before it finally starts we learn in our welcome briefing everything that is important for the next days. We can hardly wait that it finally starts. stay tuned.
a first taste So this is our first day of riding. Our hotel is actually not far away but the direct way can take anyone. We use this wonderful day to explore the Kevlafik Peninsula. We learn something about the history of the Vikings, walk between 2 continents and experience first hand how much energy slumbers under this island. A visit to the Blue Lagoon is a must on any Iceland tour. After a really first-class lobster soup, we soon tackle the first kilometers of gravel. Again and again we are offered breathtaking and partly surreal views. And this is only the beginning, tomorrow we face the first big adventure.
we are explorers Today is our first real adventure day. After we spent a lot of time yesterday in the, if you can call it that here at all, busy corner of the island, today it goes off into nowhere. A lot of nowhere to be exact. But first we check off a few things on our "must have on Iceland" list. We marvel at the world-famous "Geysir" which ejects a meter-high water fountain in nice regularity. One must have seen that. Then we continue to "Gullfoss" one of the largest and most famous waterfalls in Iceland. There the ways of tourists and explorers separate. Tourists turn left to explorers to the right. Because there one of the famous F-roads is waiting for us, the F35. Over 100km of gravel fun in an overwhelming scenery waiting for us. Happy about the geschafte we finally reach the north of the island. Suddenly we have the impression to be somewhere else. Is this still the same island? Oh yes! What a day
a silent day Today we let it go a little quieter than yesterday, after all we are on vacation;-). And Iceland has much more to offer besides breathtaking panoramas and wild roads. The north of Iceland is not only beautiful, it can also be very rough. In the morning it has just 6 degrees celsius and it is foggy. An almost mystical silence lies over Saudarkrokur until we start our engines. We continue north, the road winds along the coast and we are pretty much the only ones who seem to be up and about. After a while we reach Siglufjördur, a small town with a great history, which can only be reached through very narrow tunnels. There we warm up with a good coffee something. The highlight, however, is the Herring Era Museum. Which tells in a very nicely arranged exhibition the history of the place and the fishing industry. After that we continue towards Akureyri. The second largest city on the island is a nice contrast to the peace and solitude of yesterday. A visit to the local motorcycle museum must not be missed.
small riding, great day A new day in paradise is dawning. It will be another short day, a half day of rest if you will. But who knows Edelweiss who knows that rest day does not mean that there is nothing to experience. But one after the other. First of all, motorcycle riding is on the program. There are two ways to leave Akureyri. The tunnel or the curvy gravel pass over the mountains. Three times you may guess what we decide. Small tip... it is not the tunnel;-) The weather is perfect and the view fantastic. Then we continue on the road to Godafoss.... maybe "the" waterfall on the island. This is a must see. After that we continue relaxed to the Myvatn region. One of the places in Iceland with the highest biodiversity. The landscape is characterized by volcanic activity and breathtakingly beautiful. On time at lunchtime we reach our destination of the day Husavik. There is a lot to do here and everyone will find an activity to pass the time. Half of the group uses the time to go by boat on whale watching, Claus and Willi visit the whale museum, while Mitch, Brent, Marcus and Thomas explore the hinterland of the city by motorcycle. What a great day.
another day in paradise After the last two days we took it a little easier. Today is once again a long day of riding on the program. In the end it will be over 300km. There is much to discover today, and of course we do not miss a few gravel roads to ride. So we follow the coast, once again it seems as if we were the only ones on the road. At a viewpoint we can once again watch whales and puffins. then we say goodbye to the coast and drive a little further inland. There we are impressed by the Asbergy Canyon with geometrically perfectly formed rocks and a hidden biotope. Afterwards we ride towards Hafralgi and Detifoss. We don't meet many people here, because the buses approach the waterfalls from the west. While real adventurers take the gravel road to the east. The views are stunning, the weather perfect. After lunch we cross a desert-like landscape. A stark contrast to the green of the last two days. But before we go to the hotel, we make a small detour to Studlagil Gorge. The up and down, on foot, is a bit tedious but the basalt formations compensate for all the effort. So enough dust swallowed, now it goes to the hotel where a nice warm pool is waiting for us
a full ten We have no idea what lies ahead of us today, as we sit in the morning in bright sunshine on the terrace of the hotel and get our briefing. We start very relaxed along a beautiful lake. The view is great so we take the time for a quick photo stop. Only a few kilometers later we reach the visitor center of the Vatnajokul National Park. There we learn more about the park and its use. We continue mostly on perfect gravel roads towards Oxi Pass. A gravel road which, if you take it exactly, only exists because it is so beautiful. The pass winds up and down through a breathtaking landscape. The one or other waterfall may not be missing, of course. We now follow the coastline in the south of the island. One breathtaking view follows the next. And as if that is not enough we have our lunch in an empty restaurant. The only other guest is Farin Urlaub from the band "Die Ärzte" One of the biggest rock bands in the German-speaking world. And because we have not experienced enough today, our tour guide suggests to use the time for a trip to a glacier lake. The road there has it quite in itself The gravel is coarse and deep. A real challenge. But at the end we have a glacier lake including a glacier tongue all to ourselves. This day is clearly a ten.
on the "ice" side Never trust the weather forecast said our guide when rain was announced yesterday. As our day begins is once again no trace of rain and so we make us full of energy to explore the next kilometers of the island. There are a few things on Iceland that you should not miss. This includes, of course, the glacier lagoon "Jökulsarlon" and a beach with the famous black sand. Conveniently, we find both along the ring road on which we move today majority. The landscape is like from another world, barren and wide, above all enthroned the "Vatnajökul" glacier He accompanies us almost the whole day. After lunch, we once again take a kind of "road";-) to get to a glacier tongue. except for a handful of hikers, no one is there. From far away we can see the tourists who do not even come close as we do. Beautiful. A few kilometers and many breathtaking views later we already reach our destination for the day. But we wouldn't be adventurers if we were satisfied with that... right?....right!. Tomorrow we have a great adventure ahead of us. So that we get an impression of what awaits us we swing on the bikes and take one of the famous F-roads to hone our skills regarding water crossings. What a great end to a great day.
something for everybody So here it is, the big day. We've talked about it a lot. And prepared ourselves well. The highlands of Iceland are waiting for us. Shortly after leaving our really fabulous hotel, we turn onto the F208. After a short stop we take the first of about 20 water crossings. The landscape is breathtakingly beautiful. We have enough time to enjoy it, but a few flat feet have crept in and of course we have to take care of them ;-) The group is great all pack with and motivate each other. Then it's finally time for lunch. The only option out here is a large campground called "Landmannalaugar", which is quite special with its charm and atmosphere. Freshly strengthened we make us on a sandy track on the way towards civilization. The second part of the group spent the day against it a little less game. Along the south coast countless spectacular views and interesting places are waiting for curious visitors. For example, the most famous of the Black Beaches or Skogafoss. Speaking of Skogafoss, how about lunch right at the waterfall? Here you go;-)
last but not least Today is a special day because it is our last day of driving. And already directly in the morning it turns out that this day will also be something very special. Because things happen the way they happen and sometimes they happen at the same time. So Brent takes the lead of the group today. So we lose no time and keep it with Claus "ATTACKE";-) Our first stop is a crater filled with water, the landscape around it is beautiful, probably does not need to be mentioned. Then it goes along lakes and hills towards Thingvellir, the, for the history of Iceland, probably the most important place at all. So... enough history for today, there is still a fjord to go around. It is small but beautiful. Once again we let this incredible island affect us. Reykjavik is getting closer and closer. And we roll into the city with the feeling of having experienced something special. We have seen a lot, experienced a lot and probably more importantly found new friends. Special thanks to Lee for the fantastic photos and to Brent for herding the herd. What a trip.