Laugarvatn to Þingvellir - Day 3

Date: August 21st, 2009
Distance: 36km
Country: Iceland
Song of the Day: Black - Pearl Jam

If I had gone to sleep with the wind howling, I woke up to it threatening to blow the tent down. It had picked up to about 30kph with stronger gusts. That is the only reason I got up. I just didn't think my poor tent could take it anymore. I tried getting dressed as best (and warmly) as I could. I then got up and started taking the tent down. Getting it down was easy, rolling it up was hard. I had to stake each layer down before I could roll it up.

From there things weren't looking any brighter. I was hoping to ride to Geysir and Gulfoss, but with the wind blasting down the road it wasn't going to happen. I was going to ride off when I starting talking to a German couple who were also fellow bikers. They wanted to do the same thing, but were going to take a bus instead. Since it seemed like my only opportunity to see Geysir and Gullfoss, I decided to join them. There was a bit of a problem at the bus stop. The schedule there said that the bus had already left. The next bus would be coming that afternoon, but wouldn't return that day. That didn't work for me (there was no way in hell I was staying another night there), so I got on my bike and headed out. The (now) tailwind was actually pushing me up the hill. It was excellent, until I saw that bus that was supposed to have left. I turned around and began fighting the headwind. It was like pedaling through soup. The German couple had the bus wait for me. I ditched the bike and got aboard.

So I know taking the bus is cheating, and it cost me about 30 bucks for the round trip, but it was worth it. The Geysir thermal area was very neat. This is the geyser that gave them all the name. I guess it doesn't erupt very much anymore, but it used to be huge, probably similar in size to Old Faithful. It was supposed to have been active after an eatherquake in 2000, but has gone dormant again. Though, I guess they throw soap in it occasionally (on national holidays) to make it erupt. Just next to it was another geyser called Strokkur (butter churn), which erupts every couple of minutes. This isn't a spout like a fire hose, but one quick explosion that throws water into the air. I stood there and watched it through a few different eruptions. Quite cool.

From there back onto the bus to see Gullfoss, which is Europe's largest waterfall. I would say it is about half the volume of water as at Niagra falls, but that is still really big. There are also two steps to it. The first is about 25 feet, and the second is about 70. It is also hidden down in this basalt canyon, so you can't see the bottom of the falls. It appears almost to disappear into a crack in the earth. It was fun, but it was still cold. All the spray kicked up by the falls was blown by the wind right into your face. I wandered around took some pictures before looking for somewhere warmer.

After that it was back to the bus. I actually slept for most of the ride back. Was dropped off and said goodbye to the German couple who had been so nice. Sadly by that point the wind had basically stopped. So I had to actually work to get up the hill this time. And the road from there to Þingvellir is probably one of the hardest. It is a gravel road for most of the way. Only the steeper parts are paved. On my knobby tires I wouldn't mind, but I didn't want to get a flat in my slicks. The grades are also bad. I didn't see any signs, but 20% would not have surprised me.

I should also mention something about Icelandic roads, they do the minimum they have to in order to make a road. Some of this probably has to do with the work required to maintain roads in a cold climate. Beyond that however, may Icelanders still believe in the Huldufólk, or Hidden People. These are like Elves, trolls or other natural spirits. Delays and cost overruns during road construction is often seen as the work of the Hidden People. So in the U.S. if there is a little hill in the way, we just bulldoze right through it. Not in Iceland. The just pave or gravel right over the top of everything. So if you are looking for where the road goes, just find the tallest ridge, and you can be assured of going right over it.

After clearing the last ridge things started getting better. The gravel road met up with a paved road for the rest of the way into Þingvellir. And it was downhill. With a view of the lake in the background I couldn't have asked for anything better.

I got into the camping before 7:00, had some dinner and a shower. It was still to early to go to bed, so I washed some clothes in the sink and sewed a patch onto one of my bike shorts. I was thinking about going to see site of the all thing during sunset but I decided against it. Instead, I just went to bed.

-Dravis