This Ain't No Lady Hike In the Park and Other Adventures

Saturday, August 11th, 2012

I am very grateful I am not the type of person who has trouble sleeping in new places. I slept like a log or a rock or whatever figure of speech you can imagine for a solid 10 hours to make up for my lack of sleep the day before. With some vanilla skyr (I'm already dreading what my life will be like without it once I go home) for breakfast I was ready to face the day.

Bogga, Eidur, and I went down to the harbor to fish around 10:30. Eidur's mother Thorhildur joined us too. We stopped and said hello to Bryndis and Gunnar on the way (more womderful cousins). I spent several afternoons with them last summer and this visit I will be staying with their daughter Selma Osk in Reykjavik.

It was another warm and sunny day, but the fish were not biting. We went to the shop to have lunch and I got to see Lisa. Stebbi was not there, but I got to see him later. For those of you that don't remember, Lisa and Stebbi were my Snorri host cousins last summer here in Faskrudsfjordur. It is their daughter, Bogga, and her family that I am staying with this time.

After lunch, Bogga, her husband Elvar and I decided to "ganga a fjall" (walk the mountains). Last summer I managed Sandfell, which I thought, at 750 meters high, was quite a challenge. The mountain of choice for this walk was called Hoffell (hof-fet-l) and stands 1100+ meters high. Not only is it taller, it is meaner and rockier. It started off quite lovely, with lots of moss and blueberry bushes. By hour 3 it was nothing but rocks and sand and cliffs that had me clinging to rock faces and trying to fend off a panic attack. Despite the occasional terror and tired legs it was fun to climb and the views were spectacular from the top. There is something incredibly satisfying about reaching that tip top point and knowing that despite how sore you will be tomorrow, you followed through and managed to do what you set out to do. We signed the guest book, with the right date this time (there was a slight mixup on Sandfell last summer). There were not many names in the book, and after having struggled up the mountain I understood why.

My least favorite part of a mountain climb, just like last summer is that you aren't done when you reach the top. You still have to get back down, which can be even scarier than climbing up. Again I heard Bogga utter the terrifying phrase, "Just slide down on the little rocks. It is easiest." Gah. I considered twisting an ankle so a rescue helicopter could be called to bring me to the bottom.

By the time we got back to the car we had been walking and climbing and tripping for 7 hours and I was spent. If not for some chocolate during our brief rests I don't think I would have made it. Warning, nerd moment: Just like in Harry Potter with chocolate helping cancel out the ill effects of the Dementors, it also helps restore health to exhausted hikers. I slept very well again that night.


Sunday, August 12th, 2012

Bogga, Thorhildur and I planned a girls trip up to Thorhildur's mountain cabin off the Oxi Pass. Dad, you know where I mean. This was our accidental shortcut through the mountains when we did the ring road. We got to the off roading portion of the drive up in the mountains and had to turn back because of the fog. We could have made it but there wouldn't have been anything to see. Instead we took the long way home, stopping here and there to take in the sights. We did a little rock collecting in a dry stream bed and stopped to explore a gorgeous gorge. The fog lingered at the top of the mountains but it was still a stunning landscape. The road brought us to Reyðarfjörður where we bought a one time use grill and lighter so we could make the lunch we had planned to eat at the mountain cabin. We drove to Kolmuli, a family farm owned by Bogga and Thorhildur's grandfather to have a little cookout. Pylsa og Prince Polo, já.

I was thoroughly carsick by the time we got back to Bogga's house so I took a little nap before dinner. I felt much better afterwards, which is good because I refuse to waste time here feeling sick. There was some excitement in the middle of dinner when Elvar was making more garlic bread in the microwave and the microwave caught on fire. I am told these things only happen when I come to visit. Thorhildur suggested they find a filmmaker to follow Bogga and I around to document all the little disasters that seem to happen in my presence.


Tomorrow we drive to Ásbyrgi where we will camp and I will get to see the waterfall, Dettifoss, and the national park there. Can't wait!