Day of Rest in Þórsmörk

After the two day trek across the Lagaveur Trail with a final 14 hour push through some of the most breathtakingly beautiful landscape I have ever seen, we were ready for some down time and much needed rest.  After all, this is supposed to be a vacation; Þórsmörk ended up being the best place in Iceland thus far to relax.

Spent two night here in a lush valley in the shadows the Myrdalsjökull and Eyjafjallajökull glaciers.

Woke up at 11:00 to a backpacking gourmet breakfast of dehydrated fruit and maple almond butter burritos.

After some hot showers we headed to the lodge to get some time out of the rain, I never realized how soaking wet I was from the previous 4 days of biking until I entered a dry structure.  

Still ravenously hungry we from the trail, we attacked this basket of fresh baked bread like a couple hyenas.  

Thick Icelandic butter, vegetable soup.

With a short break in the rain, I took advantage of my renewed energy to clean the bikes a bit.
Tourists pay big money for jars of volcanic ash, I was cursing it as I attempted to scrub it from all our components.  I shudder to think what my bearings look like.

Volcanic mud and sand turned the rims into grinders to quickly wear down the break pads to almost nothing during the previous day's descent.

Þórsmörk was bustling with people, as there was an ultramarathon running the same route we had biked the previous two days, this meant intertaining conversations with people from all over the globe who had come to Iceland to run the iconic Laugavegur trail.  

This years winner in 4 hours, 48 minutes, 8 seconds.

55 km, total elevation gain of 1900 meters (or 6233 feet) and total descent of 2200 meters (7218 feet) which took us a total of 19 hours of trail time on bikes, 5 hours the first day, 14 the second. 

We took advantage of all the special amenities provided for the racers, most notably massage and a fresh roasted Icelandic lamb feast. 





Ate dinner with some racers from Canada who had finished around the 6 hour 30 minute mark, who called us "crazy" and were equally amazed that we had completed the trek with bikes and were still on speaking terms with one another, and called Monica "hard core".

 Paradise camping; Sauna; Hot Springs; Yoga Yurt.

Barrel sauna and a dip in the hot spring pool.

Chillaxing under some fine needlepoint work of famous paintings.

The Road to Landmannalaugar

Since arriving to Iceland we've been keeping an odd schedule of biking until two or three in the morning and sleeping late. This being the byproduct of the time change, jet lag, and the perpetual sunlight at this latitude.  Our nocturnal tenancies have afforded us several luxuries, one of which is cycling abandoned roads at night.  Because we arrived so late to camp at the Galtalækur Farm,  the owner didn't feel she could in good conscience charge us the full rate and instead asked for 500 Kronur (a little over $4.00). I have been continually amazed and delighted by the genuine kindness that the people of Iceland have shown.

Awoke at 11:00 to perfectly manicured lawns, grey skies...

And an active volcano looming on the horizon shrouded in cloud cover; it has been rare to see the sky, sun, or the tops of mountains here.

Ate a delicious brunch of breakfast burritos and set off with a North-East bearing, we set off on road 26 for the junction of road F225, leading to Landmannalaugar.  

Road 26, was extremely rough and created  from volcanic debret. 

A road or standard touring bike would have much trouble on this surface.
Torrential rain and speeding semi trucks were memorable elements of this segment of road.

 2 hours from the farm, f225 turn off; a welcome sight.

Break for food and to review our route.

After about an hour on f225, we rose gained enough altitude to enter the low hanging cloud layer, transforming our surroundings into a virtual moonscape, very erie.

Few hours later, top of the first big climb, time for another meal.  

Keeping the MSR water bladder on the tail bag proved handy on several occasions.

Finally some color!  The variation in landscape was dramatic as we continued to progress on this road, changing every two hours; emerald green ground cover.

First water crossing, murky glacial silt made it imposible to see the bottom, could be 6 inches or 4 feet. The only way to gauge the depth accurately was by watching a big lifted land cruiser drive through. 

Fortunately it was relatively shallow. We used Wiggy's light weight waders for this crossing, although our feet were already completely soaked from the day's ride.

Some American bourbon to warm the blood.

One way the rain proved advantageous is by helping to compact the glacial sand for a consistent riding surface; was able fast enough to scare the sheep.

SUMMIT!

Over three more passes and two valleys we reached our goal around 1:00 am.

Landmannalaugar base camp.  Time for a dip in the hot springs after 14 hours on the road.