Mount Laki
The next day we head off to Landmannalaugar at a nice pace. The weather is just great, the piste is nice and the scenery is breathtaking once again. The closer we get to Landmannalaugar, the more crowded the roads get. At the last river crossing we are encouraged by an enthusiastic crowd and doesn’t take long before we realize Landmannalaugar is turned into a mega tourist circus, not the least because of the destroyed bridge in Vik. There’s more 4WD’s, tourist busses en tents than my short term counting ability can cope with. We appear to be the only bikers and somewhat dissappointed, we order a hot cocoa and move on shortly after that. Not our cup of tea…
The piste to the ring road takes us through kilomters long lava fields and after a roadside fish dish, we again head inland. Between Mount Laki and the impressive volcanos of Lakagigar lie multiple river crossings. I manage to ride them standing up, but Caro can use a little persuasion every now and then, which goes along with the inevitable wet boots. It’s almost 10PM and we’re both pretty tired as we arrive at a cosy hut. It’s been a few days since my last shower and I really could use one now. A quick wash at the sink is not really what I had in mind, so the only alternative is the cold mountain river next to the hut. I can assure you: the ice cold water doesn’t do your manhood any justice, but for the Germans camping at the otrher side of the river, it is the event of the day!
Undeep water
Caro can definitely use a little extra rest, so the next day I decide to leave on my own pretty early for a little ride through the surrounding lava fields. A ranger warns me that a deep river crossing is impossible by bike. Now the only thing that can go wrong is that I have to turn back somewhere in the middle of the piste, that’s what I think… But when I’m actually in front of the crossing, the river doesn’t really look that wild nor deep. It is pretty wide indeed, about 75 m, but it all seems pretty feasible at first sight. I decide to just go for it, but as I am only about 10 m far, I am already struggling big time to avoid the big rocks that seem to be about everywhere. It goes pretty well until about halfway, when I realise I am way off track. That little distraction, that brief look away from the obstacles is enough to let me hit a big rock with the front wheel shortly followed by a nice dive under water. After a good sip of ‘Icelands Finest’, I crawl back up and lift the KTM as quickly as possible. Luckily my panniers saved my bike from drowning and in stead of complaining about being all wet, I can’t but laughing with my own stupid me. Look at me standing here… It won’t be my last silly act on this trip. With the sun in my face I again open the throttle wide as I move on high speed. I am alive and kicking!
A bit of crazy fun
After a good cup of coffee, a bowl of cereals and some more off-road craziness, it’s noon already as we set off on the sealed ring road direction east. The Oxi valley takes us back inland where we enjoy our outdoor cooking on a nice camping spot with an extra fleece jacket and some snow in the background. The next day we move on to the Hengifoss waterfall where we leave the bikes near the road and decide to climb the steep hill to the waterfall. Our boots appear to be far from the ideal footwear for the climb over the slippery muddy trail but the reward is more than worth it.