Reykjavík Grapevine - 15.07.2011, Síða 36

36
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 10 — 2011
The ‘Eyjafjallajökull Day Tour’ by Trekking Travel can be booked at www.trek.is or by calling 445
0881 and costs 19.800 ISK. The tour is guaranteed to run Thursdays and Saturdays between June
10 and September 15, and will run any other day for a group of at least four. The total time spent
is 10–12 hours.
Utter the word ‘Eyjafjallajökull’ to many
non-Icelanders and you’ll get a cringe
and a travel horror story as a response.
Actually, say ‘Eyjafjallajökull’ and you’ll
get a “God bless you! That was some
sneeze!” Then when you explain what
Eyjafjallajökull is (the glacier covering a
volcano that erupted in 2010, stopping
air traffic across the world) you’ll get the
cringe and a travel horror story. These
people probably haven’t been to the top
of Eyjafjallajökull and if they have, they
don’t appreciate the stunning beauty
of the view and the grounding experi-
ence of seeing the crater from which all
that ash erupted. But to reach this view,
there’s a four-hour hike to overcome.
MISSING: NATO MILITARY VEHICLE
When taking this professionally organised
hike, on an average day you’ll be a picked
up in an 8x8 former NATO military vehicle.
However, the day I went, that NATO car had
a ruined transmission, due to serving in a
rigorous rescue mission a few days prior.
Bummer. Instead, we made the journey to
1000 metre altitude in a jeep with extra-
large tires.
The pickup time was rather early, at
06:30. Luckily, this tour’s pick-up happens
to be wherever you are accommodated (with
reasonable limits), so this greatly adds to the
convenience factor. From there, we drove for
an hour until we arrived at an N1 service sta-
tion, where we got a quick coffee break. At
this point, our guide stressed that if we didn’t
bring some of the things on their list of nec-
essary gear, that they should be purchased
there at the N1.
On a lot of hikes I’ve attended, the guides
tend to ask you to bring a lot of unnecessary
things, which can lead to frustration when
you don’t get to use that brand-new flash
light (with laser pointer!). On this hike, that
isn’t the case. It is absolutely necessary that
you bring everything that you are asked to
bring. I very nearly discovered this the hard
way by not bringing sunglasses. Half way
up the glacier, when I took off the pair I had
bought at N1, I couldn’t see anything. Con-
sider yourself warned.
After our stop, we hopped back in the car
and drove another 45 minutes to the base of
the ascent. The first 1000 metres were a bit
bumpy. We were tossed around the interior
of the jeep like a bunch of maraca beans.
When we got closer to our destination,
the snow got deeper. Through one of these
spots, our guide Atli requested we “think
light thoughts.” It seemed to work, because
we shortly arrived at the place where we
would begin our hike.
At the outset, the hike took a surpris-
ing turn. Within ten minutes, every member
of our group was sweating profusely. We
stripped down to T-shirts for the first bit of
the hike, making our way up a 1.666 metre
high glacier bare-armed.
GEAR UP
For the duration of the trip, the group would
stop to take snack breaks to renew our en-
ergy, a necessity on long trips. During one of
these breaks, we were required to rope up.
The harnesses were provided for us, and a
rope was strung between each member of
the group. This was to prevent from anyone
falling into a crevasse. Atli instructed us that
should we fall into one, this system would
prevent us from falling further than to our
waist—and then he’d come and fish us out—
so there was really nothing to be worried
about. Thankfully, no one fell into a crevasse.
As we continued our ascent from this
point, the temperature dropped again. We
were level with the lowest clouds—an amaz-
ing sight to behold, and something I had only
experienced through the window of an air-
plane.
Finally, we reached the summit of the
volcano and were able to look down into the
crater created by the March 2010 eruption.
The crater still steamed from the heat of the
eruption. Looking out, there was a beautiful
view of Iceland that even the biggest hike-
o-phobes out there should witness. After
spending some time at the top to take in the
view, we headed back to the jeep, to return
to Reykjavík.
The trip to the top of Eyjafjallajökull was
a memorable experience that gave a posi-
tive perspective on an island/mountain/gla-
cier that is otherwise cursed by people all
around the world. But the view from the top
isn’t all there is to this hike. Getting to walk
through clouds and notice the landscape
dwindling behind you is all part of the hiking
experience. If you are feeling rushed, don’t
be afraid to tell the guide to slow down the
pace. After all, hiking is as much about the
journey as the destination.
Travel | Eyjafjallajökull
Walking On Clouds
Hiking up Iceland’s most infamous glacier
Words
S. Alessio Tummolillo
Photography
Alísa Kalyanova
www.banthai.name
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