Iceland Divide 2024: need advice on tent, sleeping mat and stove

[Alpinum]

Most petrol stations have meths, it's pink, is called Rödsprit and smells awful. Must have a very special sort of additive. Works well though. You'll definately find some in Akureyri.

I read that when wind gets nasty it's better to wait in the tent until it clears

even better to schedule your ride in such a way that you can spend the stormy hours in one of the many hot pots/springs.
Check windy.com or its app. Really helpful to check on it the next 2 - 3 months; it'll give you a good idea where those windy days come from, how long it takes them to pass and how the wind direction changes. Knowledge you can put to use next year.

[bonzo_bcn]

We are going to build our own quilts soon, what apex would you recommend for Iceland in summer?
I was leaning towards apex 200 which is rated up to -1 celsius?

[Alpinum]

Sounds alright to me (the Apex 200 choice).

Between August and September the coldest nights of 5 trips always were around light freezing. Like 1 - 2 nights per trip across the Highlands.

If you tend to use a light weight down or synthetic jacket anyways, you can use it for the coldest of nights to boost the quilt a bit.
For such trips I keep thin longjohns, long sleeve top, buff, fleece hat and socks with the quilt, so I've got dry clothes to change into when arriving wet at camp.

If you decide to visit some hot pots, bring stuff for bathing (naked isn't really a thing in Iceland's hot pots and even in remote places you may not be alone).

[bonzo_bcn]

Cool thanks, will get the 200 one.

[Alpinum]

If you haven't bought any fabric yet and wondered if 7D (eg the one from extremtextil.de) is up to the task (sleeping bag/quilt/bag liner); yes it easily is.
My oldest MYOG quilt is turning 10 in autumn, made a liner too. Especially the liner gets torn and pulled since I use it for almost all trips (to keep the quilts/bags clean inside). Has been washed umpteen times. Doesn't really even show the use, which now will be well North of a full year worth of.

Hmmm... I may need a decent project... Thinking about you preparing to go to Iceland makes me all itchy.

[bonzo_bcn]

If you haven't bought any fabric yet and wondered if 7D (eg the one from extremtextil.de) is up to the task (sleeping bag/quilt/bag liner); yes it easily is.
My oldest MYOG quilt is turning 10 in autumn, made a liner too. Especially the liner gets torn and pulled since I use it for almost all trips (to keep the quilts/bags clean inside). Has been washed umpteen times. Doesn't really even show the use, which now will be well North of a full year worth of.

Hmmm... I may need a decent project... Thinking about you preparing to go to Iceland makes me all itchy.

I was going to source it from ripstop.pl as it works out way cheaper, I was thinking of 10D both sides initially as I thought 7D inner side and 10D outer might be too risky.
Would you do 7D both sides?

[Alpinum]

Not only would I, but I did on all (3) quilts I made and said liner bag.
My go to winter bag is also completely from 7D as are some of my and my girlfriends down clothing. So far so good. Except for that time (winter, probably 2018) when I didn't tighten the bar harness enough and the front, studded tyre rubbed a hole through the dry bag and sleeping bag Karl and Pete may remember. The duct tape is still in place

In one case (Alpine winter weight down jacket) I snag the zip regularly and after three years there is some visible damage, not enough to fix it though. Fabric is still doing its job.

For the way I use my insulated gear I don't see the need for higher Denier fabrics.

Edit: now I see... Ripstop.pl doesn't seem to have 7D (used search function and it didn't reveal any 7D fabrics). If you're going to order with them anyways, I'd suggest to use 10D. Weight difference will only be about 30 g for a quilt for a 180 cm, 85 kg person. You'll have to shorten the toothbrush and dry the toothpaste

Something for the MYOG forum; with Apex or Climashield you can easily do some "body mapping" by adding a second layer (of the thinner version) eg at the top of your foot box, or around shoulder or hip areas. Basically there, where you tend to feel cold first.

And hey...

It's not funny!

[bonzo_bcn]

Not only would I, but I did on all (3) quilts I made and said liner bag.
My go to winter bag is also completely from 7D as are some of my and my girlfriends down clothing. So far so good. Except for that time (winter, probably 2018) when I didn't tighten the bar harness enough and the front, studded tyre rubbed a hole through the dry bag and sleeping bag Karl and Pete may remember. The duct tape is still in place

In one case (Alpine winter weight down jacket) I snag the zip regularly and after three years there is some visible damage, not enough to fix it though. Fabric is still doing its job.

For the way I use my insulated gear I don't see the need for higher Denier fabrics.

Edit: now I see... Ripstop.pl doesn't seem to have 7D (used search function and it didn't reveal any 7D fabrics). If you're going to order with them anyways, I'd suggest to use 10D. Weight difference will only be about 30 g for a quilt for a 180 cm, 85 kg person. You'll have to shorten the toothbrush and dry the toothpaste

Something for the MYOG forum; with Apex or Climashield you can easily do some "body mapping" by adding a second layer (of the thinner version) eg at the top of your foot box, or around shoulder or hip areas. Basically there, where you tend to feel cold first.

And hey...

It's not funny!

Might buy it here then https://www.adventurexpert.com/product/ ... bric-soft/

I'm always cold at the feet, so was thinking of maybe putting a thinner layer on the top half and 2 layers on bottom half. But the thing is I don't really know how warm this APEX thing is, so I'll just have to guess I( can always redo them after experimentation I guess).

[Alpinum]

You may not needed for Apex, but I suggest going with calendered fabrics. They tend to work better with humidity, wind and dirt.
I'd probably rather go with a calendered 10D than a non calendered 7D.
If you don't mind ordering from DE, check out Extremtextil.de. Fantastic shop.

[bonzo_bcn]

You may not needed for Apex, but I suggest going with calendered fabrics. They tend to work better with humidity, wind and dirt.
I'd probably rather go with a calendered 10D than a non calendered 7D.
If you don't mind ordering from DE, check out Extremtextil.de. Fantastic shop.

I looked in that shop initially, but it worked out more expensive, to a point where it’s no longer worth it to make them ourselves.
I’ll check if I can find calendered in the other shops thxs

[Alpinum]

Getting everything from Extremtextil the material costs where round about 110 €.

[bonzo_bcn]

Getting everything from Extremtextil the material costs where round about 110 €.

Bear in mind I have to make two quilts, if I buy if from Spain, it's 380 eur (12 meters of 7D + 5 meters of Apex 200) including vat and delivery.
I can save 21% by ordering from UK but then I have to pay uk vat plus customs.

[Alpinum]

Getting everything from Extremtextil the material costs where round about 110 €.

Bear in mind I have to make two quilts, if I buy if from Spain, it's 380 eur (12 meters of 7D + 5 meters of Apex 200) including vat and delivery.
I can save 21% by ordering from UK but then I have to pay uk vat plus customs.

Of course, 110 for one. If you don't mind having the footbox and upper sides from seperate fabric pieces, you can do it with a little less than 7 m for two quilts.
Depending on height of users (say up to about 190 cm) 4.5 m Apex will be enough. For the doubled areas you can use the cut offs from the main.

[bonzo_bcn]

Getting everything from Extremtextil the material costs where round about 110 €.

Bear in mind I have to make two quilts, if I buy if from Spain, it's 380 eur (12 meters of 7D + 5 meters of Apex 200) including vat and delivery.
I can save 21% by ordering from UK but then I have to pay uk vat plus customs.

Of course, 110 for one. If you don't mind having the footbox and upper sides from seperate fabric pieces, you can do it with a little less than 7 m for two quilts.
Depending on height of users (say up to about 190 cm) 4.5 m Apex will be enough. For the doubled areas you can use the cut offs from the main.

Ok, thanks, I'll check it out, we're both 1.85 so it would work.

[bonzo_bcn]

@Alpinum following your advice I’ve decided to get a mid tent: Durston X-mid solid 2, do you think a ground sheet is necessary for this trip?

[Alpinum]

I would.
Lightweight floor fabrics allow you to add another layer fabric (ground cloth) and still have a lighter and less bulky option than with eg. a 70D or 100D PU floor (regular tent floors found in TNF, Marmot, Hilleberg and many more) which weigh anything from 90 - 200g/m2. Even the heavily PU coated 100D floor will eventually become so worn it'll need replacing. Now here’s were the lighter option wins, since the ground cloth is dead easy and very cheap to replace and the tent floor itself will remain in good shape for many years to come. Well worth it, especially in a place like Iceland.

I make ground sheets myself from Chikara Nylon (a sturdy double PU coated ripstop nylon at 41 g/m2) which I get here: https://www.metropolis-drachen.de/Bauma ... ikara.html
For the X-Mid I simply added small, thin, elastic cord to the corners of the ground cloth. With these it's tied into the existing loops of the X-Mid's corners. Next to space and weight, the super quick set up of the X-Mid is quite remarkable. Make sure you don't spoil this with a loose ground cloth.

For some trips I also use the X-Mid (heavily modded Pro version, 2nd gen.) and wouldn't want to use it in Iceland without any modifications, since it’s not really a mid and not quite as good in wind as a treu mid in my experience. I recommend adding some guylines in strategic places and buckles to take force off the bottom of the zipper. I’ve added a total of 8 guylines. Whilst I was at it, I also added a bunch of pockets to the mesh net, for storage and loops at the tips for a hanging line along the tent’s ridgeline. You may also want to look at the door toggles. They don’t work well in a windy place. Adding guylilnes or mods for toggles on a Silnylon, Silpoly or DCF tent is dead easy. This way and with a low pitch I guess you should be fine without the need to constantly hide from the wind.

[bonzo_bcn]

For some trips I also use the X-Mid (heavily modded Pro version, 2nd gen.) and wouldn't want to use it in Iceland without any modifications, since it’s not really a mid and not quite as good in wind as a treu mid in my experience. I recommend adding some guylines in strategic places and buckles to take force off the bottom of the zipper. I’ve added a total of 8 guylines. Whilst I was at it, I also added a bunch of pockets to the mesh net, for storage and loops at the tips for a hanging line along the tent’s ridgeline. You may also want to look at the door toggles. They don’t work well in a windy place. Adding guylilnes or mods for toggles on a Silnylon, Silpoly or DCF tent is dead easy. This way and with a low pitch I guess you should be fine without the need to constantly hide from the wind.

Ok, then back to square one , I might go for the Hexpeak F6a, just need to check if I can fit 2 25" inch mats

[Alpinum]

Don't get me wrong, it's a really good tent and has enough length for tall people. Though it's a tight fit in width with one regular and one wide version of Exped Syn mats. Two wide versions could be too much.
It's good in wind, just not kinda good enough without any mods for careless camping anywhere in the Highlands of Iceland. Adding some extra guylines will take it from being a good tent to it being a great tent.

[bonzo_bcn]

Me again, peg time now
I guess I'll need 12 pegs for soft ground and 12 pegs for hard ground?
I was looking at these for soft ground: https://vampireoutdoorgear.com/products ... tent-stake and these https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32714391928.html in 200 or 240mm for hard ground?

[Bearbonesnorm]

I know nothing about Iceland (except it looks a lot like Dylife) but for soft of loose ground, you really need a wide / broad peg ... something like a sand / snow peg

[Alpinum]

Me again, peg time now
I guess I'll need 12 pegs for soft ground and 12 pegs for hard ground?
I was looking at these for soft ground: https://vampireoutdoorgear.com/products ... tent-stake and these https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32714391928.html in 200 or 240mm for hard ground?

The largest pegs I use for Iceland (outside the snowy season) are MSR Groundhogs. If the ground is still too soft, just put some rocks on top.
I tend to take about half of the needed stakes in form of Groundhogs, some small Groundhogs and light ti V-Pegs to make the set complete.
On top of this full set about another half with nails, similar to the ones you linked. 200 mm is easily enough. Less will do too.
There's almost always rocks to help with a strong pitch. Just remember to put them back in place

"Iceland? Where it looks like the moon and smells like rotten eggs?" - Homer J. Simpson

[bonzo_bcn]

@Alpinum I was starting to plan the trip and I have a few questions to ask you if you dont' mind:

We can do this ride between July and the 15th of September. You mentioned it is best to do it end of August/beginning of September, is that when the river crossings should be at their lowest?

There is a non profit organised trip on the 12th of August, the plan is the following:

Day 1 - Arrive at Keflavik Airport - transport to accommodation at Reykjavik
Day 2 - Prepare kit and bikes.
Day 3 - Early morning transport to Akureyri. Start the route ride 52km to Godafoss.
Day 4 - Godafoss to Botni 60km
Day 5 - Botni hut to Kistufell 81km
Day 6 - Kistufell hut to Nyidalur 57km
Day 7 - Nyidalur to Versalir 56km
Day 8 - Versalir to Alftavant 144km (may split this day)
Day 9 - Alftavant to Öldufellsleiõ 43km
Day 10 - Öldufellsleiõ to Vik 69km, transport back to Reykjavik
Day 11 - Celebrations and Pack bike etc
Day 12 - Depart Iceland

(I think Day 2 and 11 are unneeded as we could pack and fly on the same day).
I was thinking on maybe joining given the difficulty of the route, it will be safer to do in a group, what do you think? (my son prefers to go by ourselves).

If we go on our own: how did you manage the bike boxes? Did you get a taxi to the hotel with the bikes boxed and asked them to keep the boxes? For the transport to Akureyri/Vik, I was planning on using a Straeto bus, but I read they don't always have bike racks.

[bonzo_bcn]

I'm also about to pull the trigger on a Katabatic Flex 22. I bought a Corus 22F/0C and was cold in a camping trip in Wales, so I'd rather be on the safe side as I sleep cold. It will be handy on our prep trips to Scotland.

[Alpinum]

as mentioned elsewhere - sorry for the late response.

@Alpinum I was starting to plan the trip and I have a few questions to ask you if you dont' mind:

We can do this ride between July and the 15th of September. You mentioned it is best to do it end of August/beginning of September, is that when the river crossings should be at their lowest?

Yep. And some more benefits, at least from my perspective:

For most of my trips I went between mid August and mid September and believe it's the best time during "summer" months to visit. No snow melt, less glacier run off (easier fords) and storms (extratropical cyclones) can be forecasted many days in advance, so you know when those silly wind speed will hit (give or take half a day). You'll still want a strong tent, which doesn't mean heavy (see above mentioned brands).
The polar willow will be in full autumn colours at that time of year, it's quite something to behold.
Nights are dark enough for Northern lights.
Once you ride off the Highlands in the SW, you'll be with the tourist masses, which are still huge in September, but way less than June - August. Busses eg from Landmannalaugar to Reykjavik usually run until the second weekend in September, which may come in handy.

There is a non profit organised trip on the 12th of August, the plan is the following:
Day 1 - Arrive at Keflavik Airport - transport to accommodation at Reykjavik
Day 2 - Prepare kit and bikes.
Day 3 - Early morning transport to Akureyri. Start the route ride 52km to Godafoss.
Day 4 - Godafoss to Botni 60km
Day 5 - Botni hut to Kistufell 81km
Day 6 - Kistufell hut to Nyidalur 57km
Day 7 - Nyidalur to Versalir 56km
Day 8 - Versalir to Alftavant 144km (may split this day)
Day 9 - Alftavant to Öldufellsleiõ 43km
Day 10 - Öldufellsleiõ to Vik 69km, transport back to Reykjavik
Day 11 - Celebrations and Pack bike etc
Day 12 - Depart Iceland

(I think Day 2 and 11 are unneeded as we could pack and fly on the same day).
I was thinking on maybe joining given the difficulty of the route, it will be safer to do in a group, what do you think? (my son prefers to go by ourselves).

Seems like a good plan, except that I suggest to take your time unpacking and packing - getting last things sorted, visit a few places in Reykjavik, dip in the sea and the pool at Skylagoon for example.

Day 7: there's a lovely alternative route (to the F26 - Sprengisandur) just a couple of km after Nyidalur which takes you due NW first, soon West on a faint but smooth track, then South along wide gravel tracks and absolutely stunning views of the Þjórsá river with it's breeding area for pink-footed geese and more stunning views of the near Hofsjökull. At Versalir this alternative joins the Divide route on the F26. There's also a few options for camping and fresh water along this section. I've enjoyed some of the most unforgettable moments (just the nice kind of unforgettable ;-)) in this area.

Day 8: yep, you may want to split that one. I've headed in the direction of the Fjallabak on three occasions and everytime it was hard going in strong headwinds. The first part is fast. Rough (if not freshly graded) but it's all downhill. Then some tarmac which will feel fast after the days in the Highlands, but then up and into the Fjallabak, which can be a bit slower again. Probably also one of the busiest tracks, so expect some jeeps passing with passengers celebrating your effort and offering drinks and food. Not too far off route is Landmannahellir - some huts, spots for tent and lovely lakes and green hills all around.



[quote=bonzo_bcn post_id=318995 time=1705253114 user_id=4165
If we go on our own: how did you manage the bike boxes? Did you get a taxi to the hotel with the bikes boxed and asked them to keep the boxes? For the transport to Akureyri/Vik, I was planning on using a Straeto bus, but I read they don't always have bike racks.
[/quote]Yeah, I left them in the hostel/hotel. Bike would travel unboxed and unprotected (basically ready to ride) on the busses. If they don't have racks, you'll be able to put them inside the belly of the bus. Never was a problem, the drivers (mostly) seem very used to it and every so happy to help. Sometimes I'd email or call them, but it never seemed to be neccessary. Pay close attention to the timetables, check them 1-2 days prior (again). The bus hub for Reykjavik is in Mjóddin. I found it easiest to ride there myself; it's a nice (probably about) 20 min ride from the city center on cylce paths. Depending on how you ride, you can pick up goodies from one of the bakeries. Should you need a bus from the Fjallabak back to Reykjavik/Mjódd, make sure it's tied down well (eg to the spare tyre) - it's well bumpy.

[Alpinum]

I'm also about to pull the trigger on a Katabatic Flex 22. I bought a Corus 22F/0C and was cold in a camping trip in Wales, so I'd rather be on the safe side as I sleep cold. It will be handy on our prep trips to Scotland.

As stated before, expect at least one night of freezing in the Highlands. I tend to take a not really warm enough quilt/sleeping bag and then boost it by layering with clothing for the coldest nights.