A fascinating introduction to the varied landscape of Iceland's interior with a good range of trekking experiences.
Walking through snow clad mountains, black volcanic sand, ice clad glaciers and magnificent waterfalls.
A whistle stop tour through the extremes of Iceland's landscape and weather! The itinerary is essentially waterfalls on day one, glaciers on day two and the 'golden circle' on day three. We had atrocious weather (lashing rain and 100mph winds) on day one so perhaps visiting three waterfalls wasn't the best idea. They were very crowded and the weather made it impossible to really appreciate them. The glacier walk on the second day had to be abandoned due to high winds but not until after about an hour in the weather putting all the kit on and probably another hour attempting to get up the path. The northern lights are elusive and I found them disappointing - you can't really see them with the naked eye, only through a camera lens set to the right exposure. We saw them on a separate bus tour on our last night in Reykjavik, not on the tour itself. Thankfully we had sunshine and calm for the last day. The landscape is beautiful and the food was delicious, if not all that varied. The long drives were broken up well with rest stops and road side sights.
Wow-an amazing experience! Solvi was an excellent host and guide. Always giving us native insights about the people and culture added immensely to my appreciation for the journey. The natural beauty of Iceland ranks up at the top of places I've been fortunate to visit including Patagonia (Condor trip), Alaska, Hawaii and more. One thing that could have been better--it would be nice to have had a better description of the accommodations at the huts and what to expect. For example, I think several of us were a bit surprised to be sharing a single room with all 17 guests and limited showers and restrooms. Also, letting folks know that their full baggage was available each night at the huts was great but not knowing that ahead of time, I thought we'd be lugging more on our backs during the treks through the fjords. No real complaints here!! Thora joined us as a second guide during the last few days as well and was quite delightful--really enjoyed her view on things as well.