By Kate Marshall

“We can go!” my friend excitedly announced at our Christmas party. “What do you mean – we can go?” I answered.

“We can go to Iceland!”

I told her that I thought the July trip to Iceland was a lads’ trip but she reassured me that Pete (the leader) had invited us too.

“Tell me you’ll go. I want to go but will only go if you do!” she pleaded. In my inebriated state I said I would …… but from the next day on, worried about my decision.

I do enjoy travelling, experiencing different places in the world but trekking in Iceland would be a challenge for me rather than a holiday! After suggestion that this trip might be too extreme for “girls” I was then resolved to definitely go! Anyway, as I had just turned 60, I decided that it was “now or never!”

 

And so began the preparation. Although I’m quite fit (not very fit) and enjoy long walks, I needed to practise carrying a heavy rucksack up and down hills. This was done as I walked my dog, sometimes with other members of our group, by gradually increasing the weight (usually by adding more tinned tomatoes) to 12kg which would be my final carrying pack. (My husband would carry more than his fair share!) I had a few sleepless nights mostly worrying about the heights (I do suffer from vertigo) and slowing the others down on the trek. I needed to keep a positive attitude!

After a rickety, long bus journey from Reykjavik to the start of the Laugavegur Trail we set up camp amongst other trekkers. Pete then led us up a couple of nearby mountains before we ate and settled for the night. (I think this was his assessment of how well -or not- we coped!) No rush – it is 24hour daylight in July in Iceland, of course! We were awakened early the next morning for a refreshing bathe in a natural hot pool. Lovely! So our adventure began!

The ever changing landscape of multi coloured mountains and volcanoes was spectacular. The geological contrasts of bubbling, steaming hot springs, lava fields, lush green valleys, freezing cold rivers to wade across and dazzling glaciers providing freshly melted ice to refill our drinks bottles would not be seen by most tourists. Such incredible scenery, different each day, more than compensates for the cold, windy, wet weather which pales into insignificance when the immediate environment is so stunning.

After 4 days of feasting on porridge, dried flatbreads, cheese spread, tinned sardines and packets of dried food, imagine our delight when we reached Thorsmork campsite and were offered an “all you can eat” buffet of roast lamb and roasted vegetables as well as delicious lamb soup! (We even made some fresh bread and lamb sandwiches for the next day’s trek!) Not champagne for us (as some trekkers at the end of their hike were enjoying) – we were happy with cold beers and hot showers!

One of the highlights of such a trip is meeting new people. One such meeting was with a young girl (about my daughter’s age) trekking alone who we spent an evening with as our paths crossed. She was from Germany (spoke perfect English) and enjoyed our company – eating together and playing Yahtzee! We now follow each other’s adventures on Instagram!
The final 2 days of our trek took close to glaciers, by the Eyjafjallajokull, (the scene of the 2010 volcanic eruption which stopped many airline flights) and descending alongside breath-taking waterfalls. A wild camp amongst some friendly sheep before the final stretch to the spectacular Skogafoss waterfall and back to “civilisation”? and regular tourist territory.
Another highlight for me was a walking tour of Reykavik (our final day) led by an entertaining, well informed local history teacher. She explained much of the culture of her Viking island as she explored the laid-back city with us. I was encouraged to learn that the two skills essential to learn on children’s entry into school, aged 6, are reading and swimming and pleased to discover that their high taxes fund free education for all even at University level as well as free health care for all. Maybe the high education levels correlate with their very low crime rates?

What makes a trip like this so successful is not just having a caring leader who is incredibly patient with weaker members (me) of the group but having the support and encouragement of a good group of friends. You learn that everyone has their strengths and weaknesses (both physical and mental) but working as a team to support each other makes the trip wonderful.

So, after all that unnecessary worrying I did experience the buzz of a trip of a lifetime! I saw parts of Iceland most tourists would never see and felt the high of facing my fears. (I’ve not conquered my fear of heights but know that, with support, “I can do it!”) Would I go again? No! But only because I’ve done that, been there – and like to explore different places. I certainly would recommend this adventure – you’ll not only learn much about the Land of Fire and Ice but also learn more about yourself!