Reykjavík Grapevine - 29.07.2016, Qupperneq 57

BOOK YOUR FLIGHT OR
DAY TOUR AT AIRICELAND.IS
ÍSAFJÖRÐUR
ICELAND’S WESTFJORDS
ARE ONLY 40 MINUTES AWAY
Let’s fly
ÞÓRSHÖFN
VOPNAFJÖRÐUR
GRÍMSEY
ÍSAFJÖRÐUR
AKUREYRI
EGILSSTAÐIR
REYKJAVÍK
is
le
ns
ka
/s
ia
.is
F
LU
7
32
63
0
3/
15

Accommodation:
Hveravellir.is
How to get there:
Bus from BSÍ, or drive to Gullfoss
and take the Kjölur road
Bus trip by:
Reykjavik Excursions,
book at re.is
Distance
from Rvk
199 km
self. There isn’t a sound to be heard
except the breeze and the buzzing
flies. Blissfully alone, I take off my
boots, lie back, and drift off to sleep.
Strýtur life
The next morning, I pack a few
snacks, pull on a raincoat, and
head for Strýtur. This longer
path covers a wide variety of ter-
rain—one minute I’m striding
through rich green pastures, the
next walking a narrow, wind-
ing path across a pebble-studded
wasteland, then picking carefully
across the jagged, broken stones of
the Kjalhraun lava field. Dramatic
outcrops and boulders punctu-
ate the desert, many of them split
wide open over the centuries like
burst fruit, creating grassy nooks
perfect for resting or picnicking.
As I walk, I contemplate the na-
ture under my boots. It’s complete
chaos—there are broken pebbles,
gnarled vines, twisted roots, and
bursts of plant life strewn every-
where. And yet, it’s all exactly as it
should be. One rock shattered by
the slow pressure of the ground
has splintered and fanned out into
a shape almost as geometric as an
open book. At one point, a wide
circle of grey sand appears, cov-
ered in round stones—a natural
formation that could equally have
been painstakingly laid out by a
sculptor.
Strýtur appears suddenly,
when the path drops away sud-
denly into the crater, a square
kilometre filled with snow and
surrounded by splintered stone
towers and pinnacles. The view
takes my breath away. I take the
easy 200m climb to the lip of
Strýtur and walk its perimeter.
Mountains and glaciers embrace
this bleak highland paradise on
all sides. Taking deep lungfuls of
the cool air, I find a high spot to sit
and take in the view. It feels very
far from the rest of the the human
world. After lingering in a state of
dizzy wonder for a while, I shake
myself, and start the walk back,
filled with a sense of deep calm,
and relief, thinking: “It’s good to
know escape is still possible.”
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57The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 11 — 2016