Dettifoss - June 27-29 2015

Backpacking time, awwww, yeah!

We stuffed Chris's bag full of all the heavy glamping goodies (solar panel, speakers, extra food, superfluous clothes, sweet rocks, etc), and dumped it at the visitors centre. Then we loaded mine and our struggling REI day bag with the small amount of stuff we'd need to backpack 34k over two days.

The trip took us along the Jökulsá river, starting in Dettifoss, which is the most voluminous waterfall in Europe, down out of the highlands and towards the coast to Ásbyrgi. We lucked out on the way there - the outrageously expensive bus ride should have cost us $38 each for the 45 minute ride, since it wasn't covered by our circle passport, but there was no reception for the portable card-reader when we arrived. We we're good enough people to walk BACK to the bus to try and pay again, but the bus driver just twiddled with his mustache and told us we must have good karma. Score.

We wolfed down veggie sandwiches and headed off. The trail begins at Dettifoss, an impressive grey-water glacial water waterfall. The sheer volume of water pouring over it made the tiny specks of people standing beside it seem insignificant. Like ants scurrying around in a world that COMPETELY dwarfs them.

Almost immediately the path spilt- we had the option of a longer, easier hike on the canyon's rim, or a slightly shorter but tougher hike down the canyon by the river. We chose for more badassery, and before long were scampering over rocks and lowering ourselves down cliff faces- literally almost repelling 30 or so meters down a cliff face. With a rope. That's Icelandic trails for you.

It was a liiiittle steep

We dun climbed down that!

 

The trail followed the river for awhile before climbing back up to the rim

yep, there's a trail hiding in there

Up top were lots of rocks and cliff faces and roaring water below, and nothing but endless tundra-y low rolling turf.

As we neared the first campsite some 20k in, epic rock formations began popping up - jagged, black basalt columns slicing through the river and slashing across the cliff faces. The place has often been compared to the Grand Canyon- it's not quite on the same scale, but it's a long, steep canyon with a river, and maybe a touch cooler in that we had the whole thing to ourselves - we saw maybe half a dozen other hikers, all headed the opposite way from us.

There was also a wee river to ford.... It was pretty chilly!

 

We camped in what was apparently the campground - we didn't see any info, but we were also beat from the hike and didn't look too hard. Just as we were getting ready to go to bed, a pair of Slovakian hikers rolled up and pitched their tent maaaaaaybe three or four meters from ours. There was an entire field, in fact TWO entire baseball fields worth of free space and they set up camp and commenced farting, chomping and soon snoring directly next to us. Like I wouldn't sleep that close to my friends if we were on a camping trip as a group. I almost asked them to pass my water at one point.

But they were nice dudes, working at a restaurant / hotel near Godafoss. Of ourselves, I chatted em up, as I am want to do. The wife spent 12 hours laid out in her sleeping bag recovering from the trek.

The next day, we woke up late, with no real pressing schedule, ate some oatmeal with dehydrated bananas, peanut butter and walnuts, and trekked onwards, starting off at some really cool rock formations near the campsite called hljóðaklettar. Yay, time for more cool rock photos!

 

Anyways, moving on, the rest of the trek was quite scenic as well. And the last 13 km flew by!

 

Ásbyrgi canyon

A final rope swing into the campground

We ended the day in Ásbyrgi, located in a massive, wide canyon where apparently Thor's horse, usually an airborn creature, once plopped it's hoof down. It's also the only place in Iceland with groves of regular sized trees. Random. We basked in the glorious sun, went to the mini store half a dozen times when we got cold/bored/needed more hot chocolate/to see if they were paying attention, then hit the sack.

The next day we jetted back to Dettifoss for a minute and fetched our extra baggage. We were the only passengers from Dettifoss to Myvatn, and our driver was the goofy moustache twirler who was quite fond of saying 'indeed!' As we were the only passengers on the bus, we he stopped so we could hang out in Krafla (geo thermal area with a crater) before heading back. As we rode down the hill toward Myvatn, the driver whimsically sighs and told us how in the winter, everything around is pitch black ( as Krafla is in the middle of nowhere. Myvatn is the 'hub,' with a whopping 300ish people), except for the power plant, which is lit up like 'something out of a sci-fi film!' With no small bit of nostalgia, he paused at the top of the hill overlooking the valley with the power plant, and mused 'we used to smoke so many joints here! Look at the northern lights, and then the power plant, and we'd be like: that's so crazy, man! Woah!' He laughs and twirls his mustache.

Viti Crater at Krafla

Back in Myvatn for an hour or so to refuel, we We're then off to the capital of the north, Akureyri! We have big plans, mostly involving drinking lots of espresso and internetting. OK, consisting entirely of drinking lots of espresso and internetting. And maybe a couch. Yeah, a couch sounds good. And some candy. Yeah. Candy and coffee and couches and internets and books. (I've read five or six books already?)

US!

 

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