At Nydalur I was delighted to have  completed the hardest route across Iceland. Nydalur is Iceland's geographic centre. The way south upon F26, the Sprengisandur Route is straightforward. South to the coast is safe according to a German cyclist in the campsite here, one of two brothers who told me they did the route southwest from Askja in 1994. He explained that they opted for the Northern route and empathised the Southern way along the glacier is dangerous because subglacial volcanic eruptions can cause sudden  flooding.

That morning on the road south from Nydalur it became apparent that the way south to Landmanalargar (the next place of interest) was going to be boring consisting of an undulating landscape of black hills. The only interest was the great snowfield of Hofsjokull glacier to the west. The wind that had been blowing in my face from the south since morning increased to a strong headwind by midday making it extremely slow and arduous going. There were no landmarks to reach and thereby no idea of how far I had travelled.  It would be the hardest day in a long time.

I am growing hungry. I calculate that I have enough to eat until next Thursday when I should reach a supermarket. I am already short of instant mash potatoes. Chocolate I have reduced the amount from 100g to 50g at lunch. However, I have more than enough biscuits.