In the land of the gods

Over the weekend I did the fimmvörðuháls hike into Þórsmörk, a place that many Icelanders say is the most beautiful place in the country. I went with a bunch of people from my work, so on Friday the office was full of rucksacks and stuffsacks, fleece and hiking boots.

After work, we drove to the beginning of the trail, some two hours away, then, laden with water bottles, hiking poles, and many layers, we started in on the 20something kilometer trek. The hike starts at the base of an enormous waterfall, then follows the river up to a plain of glacial till to the edge of a glacier's tongue. After crossing the glacier in several sections, the hike continues along some narrow ridges, across a plateau and down the other side. The final descent is through a surprisingly lush forest (for Iceland, so that means the trees are the height of a suburban hedge) and into the valley of Þórsmörk.

Since the hike was overnight (the popular way to do it this time of year), we got to see the sun set and then rise again, and the weather was absolutely perfect, so the scenery was at its dramatic best. The hike was challenging, but there is nothing quite like hiking in this country, a place where you can fill your waterbottle straight from the stream of water freshly melted from a glacier, mixed by waterfalls, and filtered through volcanic rock. Moments like watching the sun rise over the impossible shapes of the mountains here as the damp air breathing off a glacier cools your face is unforgettable. It was hard to belive I was there, listening to the silence of these huge open spaces, watching the light change in the sky, and thinking about how few people know this all is here.

After the hike, we camped for the rest of the weekend in Þórsmörk, a weekend that included all the usual Icelandic útihátið activities- barbecuing, drinking a lot, singing songs around a bonfire while wearing a lopapeysa (thanks to J for giving me one last week so I was suited properly!), and then spending the next day either sleeping or getting a sunburn. It was kind of a letdown after the amazing hike, but I did do some exploring and found that Þórsmörk is indeed worthy of the name. There are dozens of entrancing paths through the forest, and little tucked-away glades that are bursting with buttercups and columbines at this time of year. Part of the charm of the place also seems to be the inaccessibility, and once again I understood why Icelanders are so excited by enormous jacked-up trucks when we drove out the day after. Unless you hike in, the way to get out of Þórsmörk involves driving through a plain of glacial till that is rushing with braided streams that come straight off the many glacier tongues in the area. There are no bridges, so you have to drive straight through. Fun times if you're in a Land Cruiser, but not recommended with a Jetta.

Ship sighting: More cruise ships yesterday and today. They generally seem to only arrive for a day, coming in the morning and leaving around suppertime, and they still are so huge and surprising on the horizon that last night I actually choked on the water I was drinking in my attempt to point the ship Aida Blu out to J last night. It's the biggest one yet, and the tadpole-sperm thing on the side was big enough to see from the living-room window.

Earlier this evening I also learned that the ship I mentioned last time, Song of the Whale is going to be back in Reykjavík in August, and they're offering educational tours. I'm SO there.