7: Reflections on our Iceland Adventure

The main thing we’ve learned is that Iceland doesn’t do things by halves either in terms of its landscapes, its weather or the genuine friendliness and kindness of its people. It will always occupy a special place in our hearts.

The landscapes and natural features of this small Nordic island are mind blowing. Where else do you find an untamed wilderness in the form of rugged mountain ranges, thundering waterfalls, dramatic coastlines lined with black basalt beaches, geothermic hot springs, spluttering volcanoes and breathtaking glaciers to name a few?

Not only is the landscape so varied, everything is on a massive scale; the mountains rise very steeply to dizzying heights.

The roaring waterfalls cascade with a power that is incredible.

The raw power of the planet is revealed in the bubbling sulphur fields and in the twisted and fractured rocks sculpted by the might of volcanoes and earthquakes.

It’s a landscape that made us feel very small and insignificant.

Iceland has experienced an unusually wet and cold summer… and we caught the tail-end of it! And when windy - it’s very windy- it’s one of the windiest countries in the world and we can vouch for that!

Luckily we also experienced Iceland at it's best. We had some lovely sunny, clear and warm days, but we learned that the weather can change very quickly.

We had researched the climate before our trip and we had expected it to be warmer. We were well equipped with cold weather clothing and bedding and our tent proved to be more than up to the job so we were ok but there were days when the cold and the wind were quite wearing.

We found the lack of any really decent shelter on cold and windy evenings to be challenging.

We have travelled in vehicles similar to Rocky in Africa but the weather on those trips was warmer and you tend to sit around camp fires on chilly evenings.

Our experience of campsites in Iceland is that they are quite  basic - often with no hot water.

They are designed more as refuges for hardy travellers to stop over for a night rather than being destinations in themselves as wild camping is not allowed in Iceland. That's not to say they're not welcoming, they are and they are often in spectacularly beautiful locations.

As far as Rocky is concerned, he proved to be the perfect choice for the F Roads, river crossings and rough tracks.

When we travel in Lionel, our motorhome, we have always to be conscious of road conditions and accessibility in terms of his size so it was nice in Rocky to go anywhere and park anywhere even in the centre of Reykjavik.

He was comfortable on long drives and over rough terrain.

In terms of equipment, we spent a lot and time, thought and effort on making sure Rocky was equipped with everything we needed and that certainly proved to be the case, we used most of what we brought and didn’t feel anything was lacking.

Although the tourist hotspots were busy, it was easy for us to get away from all that and we really loved the remoteness and the unbroken silence.

There were some days we only saw maybe two other vehicles.

Icelandic People are so friendly, helpful and trusting there’s a real small community feel. A special shout out goes to Hildur, Uni and Biggi of UniCars, we don't know what we would have done without you!

The people of Iceland live in a country with an inhospitable and often very remote terrain and they very much subscribe to the approach that everyone helps each other.

This has been our most challenging trip without a doubt but in a positive way… adventures aren’t the same as holidays!

A different mental approach is required, it’s important to understand that things can and possibly will go wrong and that resolving problems that crop up is all part of the adventure.

Ironically, Rocky breaking down resulted in one of the highlights of our trip. Spending a few days within a community, meeting and getting to know local people a little was a real gift.

As with all the countries we’ve visited, we’ve come away feeling that we’ve only scratched the surface and there’s so much more to see.

Will be back for sure - but next time in a different 4x4 vehicle such as a campervan or a demountable both of which provide some indoor shelter from the elements.

Rocky’s next planned adventure is to be shipped to Namibia in spring 2025. We intend to explore the Skeleton Coast, Botswana and Zimbabwe.

Thank you Iceland it’s been a blast!