July 21, 2020
Day 4 - Sampling the ringroad and headwind for the first time
The middle of nowhere to Varmahlíð
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Day 4 - A campsite in the middle of nowhere to Varmahlíð - 63 miles
Another suprisingly mild night considered how far north Iceland is, and a thin t-shirt for sleeping was more than enough. The lack of condensation on the tent was also a very welcome sight- so many mornings on previous trips I'd wake up to soaking flysheet and it's always horrible to pack away like that. It's way too easy for mould and mildew to start setting in.
With only 35 miles to the end of the highland route, I was in no particular rush. The road continued with a slightly improved surface and it only took about 4 hours to cover the distance. Views from the saddle continued to impress however, and today was a varied mix of undulating hillsides and turquoise lakes. Flies were oddly completely absent, but the sun was not, and yet again Iceland's weather fooled me and I got really burned on the legs. With a final rolling hill cleared, the road unceramoniously changed back into smooth tarmac as it passed a small hydro station (which looked more like a school or apartment complex). A 5 minute freewheel downhill was all I got to enjoy until the tarmac abruptly ended again. Turns out I wouldn't have a smooth surface on the way to joining the ring road, and the last 6 miles were on wet muddy gravel which felt like it look forever.
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| Heart | 2 | Comment | 0 | Link |
Finally on Iceland's main iconic road and it wasn't quite the solitude I'd grown fond of in the last few days. You can tell it's extremely popular with tourists thanks to the steady stream of motorhomes and caravans, but next to the roads I'm used to in the UK, it was comparatively deserted. I decided to have a quick stop at an empty picnic area for some food and cooked up a pasta & sauce sachet on my stove. Not very filling, but easily the tastiest instant camping meal I've found. Trying to feed myself on tour is probably my least favourite aspect to be honest. I've really got to try and force myself to eat more to match my huge appetite at home, because usually I skimp out to save time/money and end up losing a ton of weight.
Back on the bike, I noticed that yet again I was lucky enough to have the wind blowing behind me from the West. There was quite a climb into Varmahlíð, but this was almost laughably easy with tailwind. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever had the chance to climb in really favourable winds on a cycle tour before- I suppose this is what I've been missing!
The 'summit' came all too quickly and I was instantly hit by a wall. This was the first time I realised that you can't predict which way the wind will be blowing in the fjords, and the direction will change seemingly randomly in each successive valley. Having to pedal hard when going downhill with a roaring noise in your ears is not enjoyable, so I kept up morale on the descent to Varmahlíð by yelling Lord of the Rings battle speeches into the sky!
Ride now, ride now, ride! Ride for ruin and the world's ending!
The village itself is absolutely tiny with a population of 137, yet still manages to boast a very modern-looking school, swimming baths, supermarket and better football pitches than 99% of ones in the UK. There were a handful of nearby campsites to choose from, and the one I picked happened to be up a really steep winding hill. As soon I got pitched up at the camping ground, I realised I'd left my sunglasses at the bottom and whizzed back down to pick them up. Back at the camp again, the impulse to splurge out on snacks got the better of me, so descended once more and realised that this time I'd left my bike lock key at the top. This now meant I was going to make 7 trips along the same bloody piece of road! Stocking up with a 'healthy' dose of overly sugary foods was probably worth it. I had intended to try to true my bent wheel before bed, but after digging my spoke key out from the bottom of my panniers, I realised that I didn't really feel confident trying to fix it. It's something I've only had to do once before (4 years ago at Uni) and this time it was more distorted, and in multiple places. Rims are delicately balanced things, and I didn't want to cause more harm than cure, so gave up and went to sleep... after the neighbouring kids had stopped screaming by 11:30.
Today's ride: 63 miles (101 km)
Total: 230 miles (370 km)
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4 years ago