April 21-22 2006
Strange as it may sound - April 21st traditionally marks the beginning of summer in Iceland. The day is however getting much longer and therefore better for longer tours. Lucky for us snow is still abundant in the highlands and we are determined to make the best of it.
Day is bright and sunny and the paved road ends high up in the quiet snow covered land.
This time I go as a co-driver for Einar in his red diesel powered Jeep Cherokee XJ. Einar is reducing the tire pressure to make the ride a little bit softer. Mountains look inviting and beautiful as ever.
Gudmundur on his Toyota Land Cruiser with Steinthor as co-diver. He has mounted brand new AT-405 tires to try out.
Bessi on his trusted Toyota HiLux Double Cab with Dagur as the co-driver are also reducing the tire air-pressure.
Heading for the mountains. First tracks today are marked in the soft snow. Not a soul in sight...
Our intended route is a little traveled mountain pass named Vonarskard (pass of hope) and our destination is the hut Gaesavatnaskali.
With almost perfect conditions like today it is tempting to gear up and whiz on.
4x4 Off Roads!
To stay a float as the snow gets thicker more air has to be released from the tires.
Following a route by GPS can be tricky. For a while we took the wrong track and came to an abrupt stop where the route was in effect closed by this steep bank of snow and cliffs on the other side.
Some parts of the road are free of snow because the wind has blown it all away. This terrain would be difficult to traverse without a good map and GPS navigation in a laptop.
For a small shortcut we decide to cross the glacier. It is much flatter than the other parts of the route.
We make a short stop by this strange looking formation. Looks like a giant ravens head breaking up from the icy crust. In fact this is made by sand filling up holes in the edge of the glacier and then the ice melts away leaving sand strands behind.
Bessi's HiLux is caught on fire when a hose burns under the hood. It turns out that this is a vacuum hose for the brakes. Since there wont be much need for braking for the next few hundred kilometers this poses no significant threat.
Always fun to cross a partly open river with high banks of ice on the sides.
Dagur took his role as a co-driver seriously and took turns driving the HiLux.
What is even more problematic are small creeks like this one that is for the most part under thin layer of snow but partly open. This one is warm since it comes from geothermal source's. Einar's rear end falls down and is easily pulled up.
Gaesavatnaskali hut is only a few years old and is really well built with all the comforts you could wish for. This is our place for the night.
Morning comes with the wind picking up steam. Bessi and Gudmundur want to continue to Kverkfjoll. Einar and me decide to head back. His fuel is running low and he has to be back sooner. Weather forecast for the area is also not good with the worst weather close to the planned route.
Traveling alone in the Icelandic highlands is usually not recommended but we have VHF radio and NMT phone to keep in touch with Bessi and Gudmundur. This will make it harder to get unstuck so we take it slowly and reduce the air pressure even more.
We must cross Skjalfandafljot river. At this spot it runs in a deep canyon but according to maps there is a bridge we should be able to use.
Somewhere under is the bridge. Of course it is under thick layers of snow and ice and can't be seen at all - not even parts of the railing. With the canyon open on both sides crossing is a bit scary!
Bessi and Gudmundur have to return back to the hut at Gaesavatnaskali because the weather is just too bad and visibility almost non-existing.
Einar concentrating on driving and looking for signs of the road, sticks and other landmarks to lead the way. I use the map on the laptop with the GPS to help with the navigation.
Interesting how wind can make forms in the snow.
The stick marks the road and you can see it in the far distance.
At the Nyidalur hut, wind builds up the snow around the house up to two meters high. Although we cant get into the hut we have our lunch there.
As we drive against the frosty rain towards civilization the other two trucks are well on their way to Kverkfjoll.
Thrandur Arnthorsson
Thrandur is the chief-editor and owner of 4x4 Off Roads and an 4x4 off road enthusiast. Living in Iceland he loves to share the coolest 4x4 trucks and supporting more offroad freedom.
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