halló, iceland
September 5, 2015I wrestled my bike into its box and lovingly wrapped it in packaging tape. My luggage and bike were plunked onto the airport scale, the number creeping up to a total of 114 lbs. Cringe. I was charged zero for heavy bags and zero for bike shipping, courtesy of a happy mistake by Icelandair.
I’ve received the whole wide range of reactions when this trip comes up I bring this trip up:
The excited friend: “You’re going to have so much fun!”
The parent-like acquaintance: “I assume you convinced someone to go with you? NO?! Oh my god, I am so glad I’m not your mother. Find a Sven to fight off the polar bears. Do they have polar bears in Iceland? I’m sure they have Svens.”
The most common: “On a bike? Like a bicycle? A bike doesn’t even have an engine. And of all places to bike, why Iceland?”
No idea. It just got stuck in my head.
I spent the next few hours watching Finding Nemo, the sun set and rise before a Mars-like landscape came into view. The plane touched down in Keflavik airport in southern Iceland; it looked like there was nothing there. Just a rocky lava ravaged wasteland. I spent half a day trying to stay awake, putting my bike together (tube had popped on the plane, front brake cable came loose) and exploring Reykjavík. They have delicious hot dogs and a pretty church. The architecture of their large buildings is probably inspired by rock jointing.
Then I went diving at Silfra, which is a fissure created by the diverging Eurasian and North American tectonic plates. The water is filtered through the rock and is so clear that the visibility is about 120 m – which is insane. The water was 3°C and the air was 4°C which dropped to about 0°C with the wind chill. Everyone was frozen by the end of dive 2, but it was worth it.
Fun fact: hot water in Reykjavík smells like sulfur (ie. rotten eggs – delicious).
Cheers from Reykjavìk, Iceland
PS. According to the road webcams, the north is snow covered and sitting at an ideal cycling/camping temperature of -5°C to -10°C My plan is based on complete and total optimism that by the time I get there, it’ll be passable and above freezing. I like my roads clear and my water in liquid state, but you can’t have everything…