How the Idea was Born
Since my formidable teenage years, I periodically ask myself a question that was originally asked of young scouts by Bert Miller (the original patriarch of my boy scout troop, affectionately known as '99): If someone wrote the story of your life, would anyone read it? I do my best to retain that adventurous spirit and be up for adventures large and small. In the summer of 2015, I became anxious for a bigger adventure, having not had one for quite some time. To start my search, I drafted a list of preferences, beginning with the rough countryside. If you throw in a dash of rain and wind, the scene quickly becomes idyllic. After all, what is camping but a fine and pleasant misery? Using my list (and a real temptation to utilize an engineering decision matrix), I ended my search at Greenland. It ticked almost all the boxes on my list: Hard to get to, unideal climate, etc. Basically terrible backpacking weather. I figure, if a vacation isn't tough and pushes your comfort limit, what's the point? Unfortunately, the only box Greenland didn't tick was the reasonable flight price. At around $2,000 a flight, and flights being fairly sporadic it became quite a planning obstacle. I began looking for nearby locations and naturally Iceland came into the picture. Looking at pictures and hiking trails, I sold myself fairly quickly on the idea!...As if that was hard.
While catching up with Joel Alvey, I mentioned I was thinking of taking a backpacking trip to Iceland. His initial response: "Why Iceland?" I told him of the research I had done and he gave me a reaction of "If you say so...". About a week later, Joel calls me back asking "When are we going to Iceland?! I have already bought two maps and a guidebook!". He was hooked! We booked tickets for the following October and started organizing our thoughts. As we planned, we made a list of gear that we needed and quickly realized we didn't have much! Luckily, I have inherited the 'research the absolute crap out of anything before you buy it' gene from my father. Throughout the following year, I analyzed the best outdoor equipment for our needs, and we purchased as we went. Additionally, Iceland's shoulder season weather is not to be messed with, and we weren't going to take a chance on sub-par equipment. Not to mention, it was a great excuse to finally buy our own things! Joel and I skyped weekly as we determined our itinerary: the driving route, landmarks worth seeing, and what hikes we wanted to do. By the time October came, we had a rough itinerary set and naturally made our own interactive google map to keep our heads straight!
After a year of planning out what gear we wanted to take, it was finally time to pack it up and hope it fits.
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| If you look closely will notice the most essential piece of gear. The Peanut Butter. |
Packing up was just about as much fun as it looks.
Sooner than we knew it, Joel and I were off on an adventure through and around Iceland!
Iceland Day 1 & 2: Keflavik and Reykjavik
I departed from Indy and met Joel after a 4-hour layover in JFK. Having a 3 seat aisle to ourselves, we watched movies, ate a dinner of chicken with white wine, then promptly passed out eager for the trip ahead. We arrived at 8 a.m. to a sunny 45℉ Keflavik, Iceland.
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| Don't ask what we were looking at. We were just happy to be on the plane! |
After finding our checked luggage, we followed signs to customs. Expecting to wait in line and answer the usual "why are you here?" questions, we kept walking. Then suddenly, we were in the middle of the lobby. The customs was literally nonexistent!....or we may have arrived illegally....hard to know. But, we were not going to stop and find out!
Anyways, we found the bus terminal, booked a ticket and headed off to Reykjavik! Forty-five minutes later, we arrived at the Reykjavik terminal....two miles from downtown and our hostel. Well, good thing we have hiking shoes! With our gear (which, for me, consisted of a 7-day backpacking backpack, a carry-on suitcase, and a small day pack), we started our trek into town. Surprisingly, the walk was quite pleasant. A short 30min walk later we reached our hostel, the Oddsson at 10:15. Unfortunately, weren't allowed to check in until 2 p.m. They let us store our gear and we started through downtown on a beautiful day!
Anyways, we found the bus terminal, booked a ticket and headed off to Reykjavik! Forty-five minutes later, we arrived at the Reykjavik terminal....two miles from downtown and our hostel. Well, good thing we have hiking shoes! With our gear (which, for me, consisted of a 7-day backpacking backpack, a carry-on suitcase, and a small day pack), we started our trek into town. Surprisingly, the walk was quite pleasant. A short 30min walk later we reached our hostel, the Oddsson at 10:15. Unfortunately, weren't allowed to check in until 2 p.m. They let us store our gear and we started through downtown on a beautiful day!
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| Time to explore! |
Once in the heart of downtown, we immediately found the nearest coffee shop. We had 3-4 cups each to get us going and a breakfast sandwich. This was our first clue about prices in town. $10 for a bagel sandwich? Ouch. Oh, well. We needed it.
Sufficiently caffeinated, we continued on our way! Our first stop was Hallgrímskirkja, a Lutheran church with an impressive facade. The bright light on the white stone contrasted beautifully with the fall colors. Inside, we were captivated by an astounding organ rising the full height of the cathedral.
Sufficiently caffeinated, we continued on our way! Our first stop was Hallgrímskirkja, a Lutheran church with an impressive facade. The bright light on the white stone contrasted beautifully with the fall colors. Inside, we were captivated by an astounding organ rising the full height of the cathedral.
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| The vibrant fall colors were beautiful in the bright sun! |
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| Impressive! |
Afterward, we wandered around gathering our bearings. As we meandered back to the hostel, we recalled a brewery so we popped in for a drink. Bryggjan Brugghús is a quaint microbrewery by the harbor with a nice atmosphere and good beer to boot! The only downside being price -- over 1,000kr ($10) a beer. (But, we later found that to be average.) Moving on, we stopped by the Bonús Grocery Store (essentially the discount grocery) to pick up a mighty dinner of pasta, sauce, bread, and eggs. We also stopped by the Vínbúðin (the state ran liquor stores) and ponied up $50 for a bottle of Jameson. After all, what better way is there to make friends?
We checked in no problem and headed up to our 4th floor 12 bed shared room. Joel and I took the bunks with the best view of downtown. Why they weren't full, we will never know. We then checked out the communal kitchen and rooftop patio with hot tub!
We checked in no problem and headed up to our 4th floor 12 bed shared room. Joel and I took the bunks with the best view of downtown. Why they weren't full, we will never know. We then checked out the communal kitchen and rooftop patio with hot tub!
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| The view from my bunk! |
While whipping up our feast in the communal kitchen, we managed to make a friend: Dez, a friendly Hawaiian girl who had been staying at the Oddsson for a few days. As the three of us ate dinner, people Dez had previously met stopped by and we made more friends! We met Lisa and Jed, both Australians. Dim, also an Aussie. Lastly, Robin and Mike from Germany. We all sat around the kitchen tables chatting as others came and went.
Prior to others arrivals in the kitchen, Joel and I had opened our Jameson to sip with our spaghetti (because what pairs better?). As soon as the others sat down, more alcohol appeared. Specifically, Dez brought out Brennivín. A traditional Icelandic liquor. "Why have you never heard of it?" You ask. Because it is terrible. Not Jeppson's Malort terrible, but resembling Jagermeister, it was not something I wanted again. But, after 3 more reluctant group shots of Brennivín, the night began. Not long into our kitchen party, someone, not I (promise!), started singing Disney songs. Naturally, I joined in. Turns out, other people like drinking and singing Disney songs too! Specifically, Jed (the rather large, burly, and long-bearded Australian) and I were having a wonderful time singing and drinking. Additionally, we discovered we both wanted to live out in the country and decided we could be agreeable neighbors but would need at least 5km in between.
After some time we, unfortunately, ran out of alcohol. Dez mentioned that she had been stopped by a guy selling alcohol outside of his van the day before and we that could go that route if we wanted. But thankfully, that was a unanimous no! In lieu of the shady alcohol van, Dez and Jed walked to the nearest Vínbúðin to purchase more. They came back with Gull Lager (a large Icelandic beer brand) with an abysmal abv of 2.25%. We would later discover there is a bit of history in that number as you were only allowed to sell beer up to 2.25% in Iceland until around the post WWII era.
At 11:15, we realized the hot tub was closing in 15 minutes! In our stupor, everyone quickly changed and hopped in. For those few minutes, in that rooftop hot tub on a cold fall evening with stars abundant overhead and new friends all around sharing stories and beer, there could not have been a better time had in all of Reykjavik.
Eventually, Joel went to bed around 12 and I called it a night at 1. I decided it would be best to try and get a respectable amount of sleep before we got picked up for a full day of scuba diving at 8 a.m.
For more pictures of the day, check out the album!
Prior to others arrivals in the kitchen, Joel and I had opened our Jameson to sip with our spaghetti (because what pairs better?). As soon as the others sat down, more alcohol appeared. Specifically, Dez brought out Brennivín. A traditional Icelandic liquor. "Why have you never heard of it?" You ask. Because it is terrible. Not Jeppson's Malort terrible, but resembling Jagermeister, it was not something I wanted again. But, after 3 more reluctant group shots of Brennivín, the night began. Not long into our kitchen party, someone, not I (promise!), started singing Disney songs. Naturally, I joined in. Turns out, other people like drinking and singing Disney songs too! Specifically, Jed (the rather large, burly, and long-bearded Australian) and I were having a wonderful time singing and drinking. Additionally, we discovered we both wanted to live out in the country and decided we could be agreeable neighbors but would need at least 5km in between.
After some time we, unfortunately, ran out of alcohol. Dez mentioned that she had been stopped by a guy selling alcohol outside of his van the day before and we that could go that route if we wanted. But thankfully, that was a unanimous no! In lieu of the shady alcohol van, Dez and Jed walked to the nearest Vínbúðin to purchase more. They came back with Gull Lager (a large Icelandic beer brand) with an abysmal abv of 2.25%. We would later discover there is a bit of history in that number as you were only allowed to sell beer up to 2.25% in Iceland until around the post WWII era.
At 11:15, we realized the hot tub was closing in 15 minutes! In our stupor, everyone quickly changed and hopped in. For those few minutes, in that rooftop hot tub on a cold fall evening with stars abundant overhead and new friends all around sharing stories and beer, there could not have been a better time had in all of Reykjavik.
Eventually, Joel went to bed around 12 and I called it a night at 1. I decided it would be best to try and get a respectable amount of sleep before we got picked up for a full day of scuba diving at 8 a.m.
For more pictures of the day, check out the album!
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