Icelandic Volcano Hiking

Our major activity on the southern coast of Iceland was a volcano climb in the Porsmork area. We loaded into Johann's super jeep, cruised over massive boulders and fjorded streams and rivers to arrive at the trailhead. It was sprinkling at the beginning of the hike, but the light rain turned into sleet carried sideways by strong winds. We did not see a single other hiker on the trail, which should have been an indication that hiking through the storm was ill-advised. Things were getting pretty dicey about an hour from the summit, and Chad and I were freezing (we learned the hard way that rain pants are a necessity).  After trudging through snow with steep drop-offs, we evaluated turning around.  Our decision was final when Johann remarked "you know, people die here."  I don't think anyone regretted that we would miss the opportunity to toast our ham and cheese on a rock.  Despite the scary moments and the cold, the hike was absolutely beautiful and quite different from anywhere I've ever been.

The Super Jeep

Gorgeous moss-covered mountains on the hike. Marmot rain jacket got compliments from our guide--the lack of rain pants was significantly more problematic.

We are smiling on the outside, but are actually freezing and miserable.

Unfortunately, my mint milanos fared substantially better than my iPhone.

Johann drove us up to the foot of the glacier.  The sign at the entrance said "beware toxic gases, quicksand, and falling ice."  We walk on the wild side.

We finished off the adventure with a trip to a waterfall up a moss-covered canyon.  This is the benefit of having a guide--we would have never known about this place without Johann, much less actually been able to get there.  We had to criss-cross the stream all the way up the canyon.  Everyone else tried to jump across the rocks without getting wet, but at that point, I was soaked, so I just sloshed through the stream.  

That night, we had dinner at the Penguin restaurant in Vik.  Icelandic lamb is not to be missed.