Jökull - 31.12.2001, Page 73

Across Vatnajökull in 1956
Figure 5. Trölladyngja and Kistufell viewed from Dyngjujökull. - Horft til Trölladyngju og Kistufells af
Dyngjujökli.
where the shadows lie”. We wove through moraine
piles, a feature of the lower levels of the glacier at the
northern edge of the ice cap, abandoned the sledge by
a small stream, and entered the Odáðahraun.
We camped on the desert, close to the ice, south of
the Trölladyngja shield volcano. It rained heavily and
day thirteen was decreed a day of rest. We found that
nylon/cotton was not waterproof and constructed a
flysheet for the tent from an empty polyethylene food
sack. But our feet were warm and dry and we lay in
our bags, half asleep, revelling in the contrast between
inside and outside. Next morning, after a good break-
fast, our belongings were arranged into three loads.
Everything, except the food itself and personal items,
was sodden wet and very heavy. Slowly we rose to
our feet and set off to the east. Lava exists in two basic
forms which provide a walking surface for the back-
packer ranging from simple to very difficult. This area
had been subject to flooding, weathering, deposition
of volcanic ash etc.; it was as easy to traverse as sand
dunes. Almost always there was a route through the
lava blocks or, for the other type of lava, a simple
walk over rough plates. A far more serious difficulty
was the lack of water. It is a desert because rain just
percolates down through the porous lava and streams
from the ice gradually sink from view.
Our route ran parallel to the ice edge for about
23 km and we camped by a large river flowing north-
east from the ice cap, eager for water after a dry
day. The river was not potable, but a thin version
of “rock flour soup”. As all our foodstuffs were de-
hydrated there was no dinner. “Soup” was placed in a
container overnight, but most of the flour had not sett-
led by morning. Eating rock flour irritates the bowels
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