Bike/raft packing ‘58 style

[javatime]

Thanks, really enjoyed that and also the slight irony of Ron heading out into the bike shed in his Aldi/Lidl winter jacket

[Alpinum]

(so I suppose I’ll even have to apologise to alpinium for being right, bollocks!)

No bother. That's what we're here for. Discuss things, share opinions. Be right or wrong about some tiny little detail no sensible person would otherwise care and learn about the flip side etc.

I always chuckle at claims of firsts and have pointed some mistakes out to one of the RSF "fans". He was a bit...
well, we are not friends it seems

I bet some local has ridden his bike across the Sprengi before Horace Dall. Love story between Selfoss and Akureyri or for a job, or to visit frænka Ragnheiður (aunty Emma) etc.

All the folks I've met all around the world (well, not quite, but still in quite a few different places) remind me of this.
Every second (just a feeling) bikepacking video I mind to watch (mostly for up to 2 minutes or so) reminds me of this


Well... Amundsen will have been the first. Buhl too.
I can think of a few things where one can still be the first (without riding in a lab coat and high heels), but those claims resounding from Iceland mostly are proper rubbish from pretentious folks.


Now... for the truly important part...

If it’s to impress me (please don’t prejudge how I identify) the lab coat’ll need to be tweed (obvs).

Hmm... I think a tweed coat is too well suited to be fair.

And them shoes best be shiney at the end...

Front or back end?

Please do, I will pay handsomely for the picture rights

noted

Agreed, but sometimes too much information causes worry and ignorance can be bliss.
When I did the same route in 2003 I’d spent the months leading up to the trip reading everything I could and building up a massive sense of anticipation about the life threatening dangers I would face. As it was there was a heatwave and the rivers were nearly non- existent and the worst problem I encountered was nearly running out of fags before I reached Akureri.

After a couple of trips to Iceland and more than 1 traverse per trip I found it perfectly normal to just pack for 2 x 4 - 8 days of food (depending on rough route) and then head out for two traverses (S-N than N-S on a differen route). Iceland is in fact a small Island for a cyclist.
The "oh so brutal" weather isn't much different from any weather I experienced in the high Alps or in Western UK where storms hit just as violently. Main difference is that in the Highlands of Iceland it's harder to find shelter, since the terrain is a bit more vast. But still... It's not like you're 2 weeks away from any sign of civilisation when you're traversing the interior on a bicycle. Never was.
Of course locals always try to instill this "our land is so harsh", but this locals do all over the world. I always hear "weather changes real fast"...

Expedition... we've had this before.
Some call it holidays...