Travels in Iceland

Photos from Iceland

2011-10-02T16:32:00.000-07:00

One of my guests on Mt Esja this summer is an avid photographer. Here is a link to his photos from Iceland:

http://www.avibender.com/Travel/Iceland/18634820_9B3mPD#1440119371_G7vRHqg

A blog I wrote

2011-10-02T16:28:00.001-07:00

Here is a blog I wrote for Tours By Locals called A Paradise for Outdoor Lovers:

http://www.toursbylocals.com/blog/list-Iceland-Outdoors&text=Iceland

A Special Winter Offer

2011-09-25T14:44:00.000-07:00

Many of the activity companies in Icelandic tourism take a break during the winter and don't offer any tours for 8-9 months (September-May). Mountain Climbing is an exception. We offer hiking tours and other tours all year round. From October till May we have a special offer: Hiking on Mt Esja and entrance to the swimming pool afterwards. Price: ISK 14.400 per person.

3 favourite hiking mountains

2011-09-11T12:23:00.000-07:00

Iceland is full with mountains of all sizes and easy to go to. The mountains around Reykjavik, capital region of Iceland, are so close, so popular for hiking and so easy to go to. There is no wonder why hiking is so popular in Iceland.

Here are three of my favourite hiking mountains:

1 Mt Esja because afterwards you can always feel you have been on the mountain. So many stories to tell!
2 Mt Esja because it is so nice and easy, suitable for everyone and so many stories to tell.
3 Eyjafjallajokull. Imagine how wonderful it is to go to the new still warm lava on the volcano from the eruption in spring 2010.

Horses and Hiking

2011-09-11T12:10:00.000-07:00

A new tour available: Horses and Hiking. First a riding tour through the lava landscape on Reykjanes peninsula (only 15 minutes' drive from capital Reykjavik's centre), Iceland, and then a hiking tour to one of the marvellous mountain in this geothermally active area. The duration of the hiking is approximately 2 hours. Price: ISK 14.500 per person.
Contact Mountain Climbing for more information (www.mountainclimbing.is and www.icelandhiking.is).

Sunshine on Mt Helgafell

2011-09-04T15:48:00.000-07:00

Wonderful day in Reykjavik, Iceland today. Sunshine, warm and no wind. The tour on Mt Helgafell was fantastic, peace and quiet and a lot of crowberries and bilberries on the mountain! It was a nice adventure, the passangers were back at the boat in 4 hours as planned! On the way back we met the locals on their way to the mountain.

Picking Wild Crowberries in Iceland

2011-09-03T13:09:00.000-07:00

Fantastic day today picking berries in Reykjavik, Iceland. I picked my people up in Reykjavik's centre and then we drove for maybe 30 minutes. You don't have to go so far to get into the nature in Iceland, Reykjavik is a small city with nice lands for picking berries!
We mainly picked Crowberries which is the most common type of berries in the Icelandic nature but we also picked some Bilberries (what we call blueberries). I had been baking some muffins yesterday and I took some with me to give a taste on the tour and show what you can do with the berries. In the end everyone got some recipes.
This is the muffin recipe:

270g sugar
150g butter
2 eggs
240g flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
50ml milk
1 tsp vanilla
Crowberries or Blueberries
80g Cocoanut flings

Preheat the oven to 170°C. Whip butter and sugar until it is light yellow and very easy to whip. Put one egg in and whip. Put another egg and whip. Put the flour, baking powder and the flings into the bowl, milk and the vanilla and stir. Divide the dough into the cups and put some flings over and put some berries over. Bake the muffins for 16-18 minutes.

A Great Tour in a Reykjavik Suburb

2011-09-02T15:59:00.000-07:00

Had a fantastic "Life in the Suburbs" tour the other day. We took the bus to the oldest and best known Reykjavik suburb Breidholt (three parts but we only walked through Breidholt I and Breidholt II).
At the beginning of the walk we got permission to visit a school swimming pool, talk to the teacher and watch the kids play in the pool. We then proceeded and by a chance visited a cultural centre for older people in Breidholt II. The woman in charge walked through the centre with us and introduced the work in the centre to the group.
The woman encouraged me to take as many groups to the centre as possible! This is being friendly to travellers! :)
We had a sandwich and a cup of coffee in a bakery at lunch and then we walked back and took the bus back to the hotel. This was a great tour!

Picking Wild Berries in Iceland - New!

2011-08-30T15:31:00.001-07:00

Mountain Climbing is running new tours: picking wild berries in Iceland, both Crowberries and Blueberries. A Special Offer: ISK 8.000 per person. Included: a plastic box for your berries and recipes for Icelandic berry specialities at the end of the tour. Pick-up and drop-off for free.
These tours are only available during August and September.

Running in Iceland 2010

2011-03-28T15:16:00.000-07:00

Iceland organizes many different kinds of marathons, ironmans, half ironmans and other running competitions during the summer (and winter). The main run, the Reykjavik marathon, is usually scheduled around the 20th of August every year. The other runs and marathons are scheduled from April till September.
In this video you see some clips from different marathons and runs that were organized during the summer 2010. As you can see the weather can be straining but it can also be marvellous, especially the perfect temperature, not too warm, not too cold. But sometimes it is windy and raining...
That is a part of the adventure.
For more information check www.mountainclimbing.is... ;)

Whales in the harbour

2011-02-20T08:59:00.000-08:00

Grundarfjordur, a small village on the west coast of Iceland, has two big whales ("killer whales") on a visit in the harbour. It is believed to be the same whales that "came on a visit" last year. See the pictures here:
http://www.dv.is/frettir/2011/2/20/hahyrningarnir-komnir-aftur/

Sometimes you can see whales and seals in Iceland. Usually you have to sail out on the ocean (you can buy whale watching tours) too see whales but it is possible (sometimes, not often though) to see them if you are standing on the coast. But you have to be lucky and even better, you have to know if they are to be seen and where to go.

A special offer

2011-02-18T02:56:00.000-08:00

Mountain Climbing has a special offer: 10% and entrance to a swimming pool for free during February-April 2011. That makes ISK 12.600 per person. Included: Pick-up at your hotel, refreshments on the top and a certificate plus the hot pool afterwards. This offer is valid until April 2011.
The picture is taken on Mt Esja during July 2011. Mt Esja is all snowy now during the winter!

Christmas Village on video

2010-12-07T15:13:00.000-08:00

Here is a video presenting the Christmas Village in Iceland and the activities around it. It was taken the opening weekend in the end of November. The Christmas Village is only open four weekends until Christmas.

Christmas Village nr 1 on CNN

2010-11-30T07:21:00.001-08:00

The Christmas Village in Hafnarfjordur is nr 1 on CNN's list of destinations. See more here:
http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/life/top-10-places-spend-your-christmas-810201#ixzz16l41QVSx

Mountain Climbing offers tours to the Christmas Village during the next three weekends and on the evening of December 23rd. Mountain Climbing also offers Christmas hikings. Included in those tours is guidance, information and stories about the Icelandic Christmas traditions.

Flood and eruption to come

2010-10-31T14:53:00.000-07:00

A flood has started from Grimsvotn in Europe's biggest glacier, Vatnajokull in Iceland. The flood isn't too big and there is no danger. The scientists say on the news that there will almost certainly be an eruption in the area in a few days.
There have been some bigger earthquakes in Iceland recently, over 3,0 on richter, so I am not surprised that something is happening. This is our everyday life! :)

Women celebrate their anniversary

2010-10-25T13:21:00.000-07:00

Icelandic Women had a big festival today to celebrate 35 years since they organized their first day off walking out of work at 2.25pm insted of 4.00pm or 5.00pm.

The calculations show that women in Iceland only get 2/3 of what the men get for the same job. Equality? Icelandic women think there is much to be done yet. They are still fighting for equality.

The women gathered in front of the church Hallgrimskirkja and walked down the street Skolavordustigur to the hill Arnarholl in the centre of Reykjavik. There women made speaches with music and singing.

The Icelandic nation is 320.000 individuals. In this gathering in Reykjavik around 50 thousand women came downtown. Women in other parts of the country gathered in their hometowns so this was BIG!

See pictures from the gathering in Reykjavik:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=24033&id=100000754157133&l=35cfa3b10e

National Geographic reminded me

2010-10-24T14:56:00.000-07:00

Interesting to see and read National Geographic Volcano-issue. While reading it I was reminded of many things during the eruption. It was a busy time for me. During the first half I was active as a tourist guide taking people to the area to see the fire from the volcano. During the second half I was working as a journalist for media abroad articles and news stuff every day so I was practically living in the zone.

I got to know this from two sides! It was an interesting time and of course a lot of fun for a person who likes busy times.

Snowing in Iceland

2010-10-22T16:45:00.001-07:00

It is getting colder in Iceland now, snowing in the north and east and snow in the mountains here in the south. We are expecting storm on monday. September and October were exceptionally warm so this is quite a difference.
Last winter was very warm in Iceland with almost no snow here in the south (in the capital, Reykjavik) except on the mountains of course but we had a cold period with a quite some snow in October last year. I remember that I thought at that time that probably it would be a cold winter. It wasn't.

Christmas Hikings in Iceland

2010-10-07T13:51:00.000-07:00

Mt Esja in Reykjavik, iceland is the home of the Icelandic Santa Claus so during October-December we will be adjusting our tours to this fact. We will be making special Christmas hikings with information about the Christmas Traditions and stories about the family of the Santa Claus in Iceland.

Yoko Ono coming to Iceland

2010-10-04T05:37:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when we are standing on Mt Esja I point out the island Viðey between us and Reykjavik and tell the people on my tours that that's where the John Lennon peace monument is. Yoko Ono comes to Reykjavik every autumn to turn the light on and it makes a fantastic living monument showing us a light pillar up into the sky for a few months or until the light is turned off.
Anyway. Yoko Ono is coming to Iceland again this week to turn on the light and with her is coming the new Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band. They are going to have a concert in Reykjavik next weekend and I am sure it is going to be a fantastic evening.

For more information check this out: www.imaginereykjavik.is.

Music festival coming up

2010-09-25T08:56:00.001-07:00

We have a music festival coming up in Iceland in October. Check this it out on this website http://www.icelandairwaves.is/.

A new Video on Esja tours

2010-09-12T09:00:00.000-07:00

I simply must put a link here. It shows what the Esja tours are like:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FcFxqca46Tw

This video is done by a film crew in Switzerland who came to Iceland to do a film on the crash. Thank you Bettina and co!

Learning Icelandic

2010-08-27T23:04:00.001-07:00

Check out this website: http://icelandic.hi.is/. It makes it possible for you to learn Icelandic online...

Playing with fire in Iceland

2010-08-26T15:27:00.000-07:00

Made a fantastic tour to the hot new lava between Eyjafjallajökull and Myrdalsjökull yesterday with my group. The rivers we had to cross were big but not too big for Mountain Climbing's car and the hike was fabulous, the sky almost clear and a wonderful view most of the time.
We got all the way up to the new lava, saw some magma not that deep in the ground and watched German (or Austrian?) guys playing with the fire. We hiked to the top of the new volcanoes in this area. When walking on those new volcanoes you can feel the heat under your boots. Your feet get really warm! One of us even got a stone in the shoe and there was some steam when she had taken the stone out of the shoe.
This was ADVENTURE!

Big rivers but not too big for the car

2010-08-08T13:56:00.000-07:00

We made a fantastic trip to Þórsmörk (Thorsmork) yesterday. It was raining heavily, maybe for the first time this summer, so the rivers were BIG! But not too big for the car. We made it easily to Þórsmörk for a short hike and then back.
On the way back home we went to a restaurant and had delicious fish soup. I couldn't resist having a dessert after that nice meal so I got some Icelandic strawberries with ice cream with my coffee. It was fantastic.

Interview on the hiking tours

2010-08-06T09:38:00.001-07:00

This is an interview about the hiking tours taken in early spring or late winter if I remember right: http://www.icelandnewsonline.net/2010/04/29/iceland-news-podcast-episode-3-mountain-climbing-around-reykjavik-with-gu%C3%B0run-helga-sigur%C3%B0ardottir/

Lava warms up your feet

2010-08-06T09:25:00.001-07:00

Our new hikes up to the warm lava between the two volcanoes/glaciers on the south coast are popular. It is indeed a fantastic thing to experience to climb up there (around 1.000m) and feel how the new lava warms up your feet through the shoes. :)

New video on Eyjafjallajökull

2010-07-25T15:26:00.000-07:00

I have been doing a video on the tours Mountain Climbing has been doing to the glacier/volcano Eyjafjallajökull on the southern coast of Iceland. This is where the floods came from during the eruption last spring.
The glacier is much bigger than you see in this video. This part of the glacier has its origins in the crater so there was a direct flood from the crater, magma melting the ice and the meltwater coming down during the eruption in April.
There used to be a lagoon in front of the glacier but it has disappeared, full with mud from the floods.

Video from a Helgafell tour

2010-07-22T16:53:00.001-07:00

This is a video showing one of our hiking on Mt Helgafell in Hafnarfjordur, Iceland. Isn't it nice?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTmnoIaWHzw

Hiking to the new lava in Iceland

2010-07-19T13:59:00.000-07:00

Mountain Climbing is now offering hiking tours to the brandnew lava in the south of Iceland. We drive to Basar in Thorsmörk on the south coast of Iceland and then we hike up to the brandnew lava between the two glaciers, Eyjafjallajökull and Myrdalsjökull. We will step on the warm lava and walk on the ash-covered ice. It is a wonderful experience you don't get in other countries!
Duration is approximately 12 hours, pick-up and drop-off included. It takes us 2 hours to drive to Thorsmörk and close to 4 hours to walk up to the lava. The lava is in around 1.000m height. This is a hike you won't forget!
Please send us an email for more information.

Live concert directly from Iceland

2010-07-01T12:59:00.000-07:00

May I remind you, the concert is beginning, broadcasted live from Iceland...

http://www.inspiredbyiceland.com/

Concert broadcasted live

2010-06-30T07:36:00.001-07:00

Interesting concert broadcasted live tomorrow. See here: http://www.facebook.com/inspiredbyiceland

Ash mist over Reykjavik

2010-06-05T10:59:00.001-07:00

Have been very busy taking tourists hiking and climbing. The weather has been fabulous with clear sky and quite warm, around 16-20°C. That's really warm in Iceland at this time of year. Yesterday there was an ash "storm" from the southeast so we could see much and everybody had to wash their cars this morning. This morning the ash storm was a little bit less. When we stood on Mount Esja we realized we couldn't see much because there was an ash mist over Reykjavik.
The weather forecast for tomorrow is fantastic and I have a tour scheduled! I believe I will take a camera with me to take pictures of the wonderful flowers on the mountain. :)

Clear sky at midnight

2010-05-24T11:16:00.000-07:00

Fabulous hiking weather in Iceland these days. Clear sky, sun and +15°C. This is nice! We were hiking on Mt Helgafell the other night, the sky was perfectly clear at midnight, the sun was shining and the view was beautiful! It is nice to live in the north.

Chewing ash

2010-05-24T03:34:00.000-07:00

They say the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull is over. For now.
I had a small group of tourists in the area on Friday and it was interesting. The eruption was much smaller than it has been for the last six weeks so the ash falling down on us was not so much. You couldn't see the ash but it kept trying to get into your eyes and when you opened your mouth and closed it again you were chewing ash. :)
My clients were happy. We took a short hiking on the mountain opposite the glacier. There was a fog in the area so we couldn't see much but it was enjoyable. And of course you experience the ash by chewing it and then we were walking in the black ash and it is like walking in wet asphalt. It sticks to your shoes.

Cows in ash

2010-05-16T12:32:00.000-07:00

We saw some cows in the ash close to Eyjafjallajökull, we saw some sheep alwso but the farmers in the area have started to move their sheep closer to Reykjavik. It is not easy. Nobody knows for how long the volcano will be erupting. The decision to take your sheep away means that you cannot take them back according to the Icelandic law. You will have to send to the butcher this autumn.

Ash in Þorvaldseyri

2010-05-16T12:30:00.000-07:00

This beautiful farm is closest to the erupting volcano, Eyjafjallajökull, in Iceland, only 1 km from the glacier and only 7 km from the crater. As you can see tha family has been getting a lot of ash on their farm. It is not easy.

A visit to ash land

2010-05-16T12:24:00.000-07:00

I went on a road trip together with a friend today. She wanted to drive to the volcanic area to collect some as for a friend in Australia so we did that. It is much less ash in the area now than a few weeks ago but still the ash fills your eyes and mouth when you get out of the car. As you can see on the picture it isn't very nice to stay for a long time out of the car. But it is interesting to visit the area.

Our song in the Eurovision

2010-05-10T08:57:00.000-07:00

Our singer and the song in the Eurovision Song Contest:

http://herabjork.com/

Joke about the Danish language

2010-05-08T16:52:00.001-07:00

I am still alive and writing, even though I haven't been blogging for a while. Because of that I am going to paste a joke here. It's a Norwegian joke about the Danish language. We Icelanders have to learn Danish in school because of our common history with Denmark (we didn't get independence until 1944) and we love this joke. My experience in Scandinavia tells me that all the Scandinavian people understand what this joke is all about.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-mOy8VUEBk&feature=related

Dikta with a popular song

2010-05-05T15:19:00.000-07:00

One of the most popular groups in Iceland these days is the group Dikta. Here you can listen to one of their songs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yx4KoRbh0cE

Buy ash from Iceland

2010-05-04T13:01:00.001-07:00

You can now buy ash from the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull, Iceland. It is the website http://www.nammi.is that is marketing this ash and it has become huge in popularity. See here:

http://nammi.is/icelandic-volcano-ash-160-gr-p-2306.html?zenid=d7cc0ce16d4a6def1e0dab0bef9bdb33

Interesting? Reminds me of the bits of the Berliner wall people brought home from Germany after the crash of the communist bloc around 1990.

Boiling water from the glacier

2010-05-02T15:32:00.000-07:00

The lava is heating up the melted water from the glacier. See the picture, it is boiling hot:

http://www.ruv.is/frett/sjodandi-vatn-rennur-ur-gigjujokli

Here you can see the fire in the glacier, LIVE:

http://www.vodafone.is/eldgos

And you can see how the lava has melted down the glacier. Soon we may be seeing the lava.

The landscape has changed greatly since the eruption started. There used to be a lagoon closest to the glacier. Now it is full of mud and even a 30-40m high mud mountain. The glacier is partly black with ash.

50 tons of ash per second

2010-05-01T03:49:00.001-07:00

The eruption is still going on in Iceland but gives us much less ass than in the first week. The volume of the ash is 50 tons per second now, it was around 700 tons per second during the first week. And it was (and still is) a small eruption!
The lava has started flowing from the crater underneath the glacier and has melted down the glacier on its way.
You can follow the eruption LIVE on http://www.vodafone.is/eldgos

Like this joke

2010-04-28T09:00:00.001-07:00

I really like this joke:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9gP4dZZxJM

LIVE: White Tailed Eagles

2010-04-24T15:02:00.000-07:00

See LIVE broadcast when the White Tailed Eagles are laying eggs in Iceland:

http://www.discovericeland.is/Ornwebcam.aspx

Hiking tour on youtube

2010-04-22T07:31:00.000-07:00

Last sommar we had a visit by Bettina and her film crew from Switserland. She was making a documentary about Iceland and made some interviews because of that. They also took part in the hiking tours of Mountain Climbing. Here you can see us on a Helgafell hiking tour. Hope you like as much as I do!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTmnoIaWHzw

The animals in the volcanic ash

2010-04-20T15:00:00.000-07:00

I have been busy working in the erupting area for the last days. It has been very interesting - and hard at the same time. The ground is filled with gray sand-ashes. When you walk around it is just like you are walking in asphalt. Your feet get heavy and everything gets muddy.
But that is not all.
There has been storm in the area so the wind has been blowing the ashes around. It gets everywhere. Into the houses, into the cars, where the animals are. Everywhere. And then you see the small animals, e.g. the mice and birds, trying to find some shelter from the ash.
The ash is poisonous so we don't know how and if the wild animals are going to survive.
We humans don't like it when the volcanic ash fills our eyes, noses and lungs. The animals definitely don't like it either.

Photo from the eruption

2010-04-16T19:34:00.001-07:00

Interesting trip made into the erupting area in soutern Iceland today. Took some photos of the volcanic eruption in glacier Eyjafjallajökull. Look!

Pictures from the eruption

2010-04-01T04:42:00.001-07:00

Yesterday opened up another erupting rift in glacier Eyjafjallajökull. They are both active right now and authorities have closed the roads for traffic to the eruptions. Here you can see some pictures:
http://www.ruv.is/frett/nyjar-myndir-af-gosstodvunum

Northern Lights - nice bonus!

2010-03-31T08:07:00.000-07:00

We saw the northern lights for a few minutes last night around midnight when returning back to capital Reykjavik. We were a small group on the way to see the volcanic eruption in southern part of Iceland when we saw it and it was a nice bonus. Now March is over. This is probably the last chance to see the Northern Lights!

New in July 2010 – Vestman Islands!

2010-03-29T16:02:00.001-07:00

Mountain Climbing will start offering tours to the Vestman Islands when the new harbour Landeyjahöfn opens in July. Pick-up is at 7am. We drive to Landeyjahöfn where we take the ferry to the Vestman Islands. We drive and walk around the village and visit the volcano that erupted in the 1970s. Some of us might even be interested in some activities, hiking, sailing around the islands (not included in price) or walking on the volcano. During the tour we get information about the eruption and the life on the islands. You get some free time before we head back to Reykjavik just before 7pm.

Price: ISK 98.000 or 565 Euros for up to 6 passengers. Group offers available.
Duration: 12 hours.
These tours start in July 2010.

Evening tours to see the eruption

2010-03-26T12:56:00.000-07:00

Mountain Climbing has now started offering evening tours to see the eruption in southern Iceland. Pick-up starts at 8pm. The drive takes ca 4 hours back and forth so the tour all in all will take 5 hours.
Our tours at 9.30am will continue.
This summer Mountain Climbing/Iceland hiking will offer hiking tours to the erupting area to see the new lava. Those tours will take approximately 14-15 hours all in all.

Another Live broadcasting on the web

2010-03-25T07:41:00.001-07:00

And this camera has a good angle. Please wait while it is loading.

http://www.vodafone.is/eldgos

The eruption Live

2010-03-25T07:30:00.001-07:00

Here you can see the volcanic eruption live:

http://www.mila.is/um-milu/vefmyndavelar/eyjafjallajokull-fra-thorolfsfelli/

Tour to see the eruption

2010-03-23T12:38:00.000-07:00

Took a small group to see the eruption in volcano Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland today. Nobody except journalists and policemen are allowed to go near the erupting area but we could see the yellow or orange colour from afar as you can see. Then of course we could see some smoke. It was a very pleasing tour and everybody was very happy.
Mountain Climbing will offer tours to see the eruption every day for as long as people are interested in the tours. Pick-up at 9.30am. Duration 5-7 hours.

Tours to see the eruption in Iceland

2010-03-22T15:41:00.001-07:00

Mountain Climbing offers tours to the area where the volcanic eruption is in Iceland. The first tour will take place tomorrow and we will try to go to some spot on the south coast of Iceland where it is possible to see some fire or smoke coming from the volcano.
Pick-up starts at 9.30am. Estimated duration is 5-7 hours. Price is 90 euros per person or ISK 15.000.

Webcamera from the area

2010-03-20T18:47:00.000-07:00

The eruption is only small yet. The eruption is in the eastern part of the glacier or volcano and some fire to be seen. Iceland is on GMT so it is almost two in the morning. This is a webcamera that the national broadcasting radion in Iceland has showing this area. Notice that we have night now in Iceland, maybe there is more to be seen tomorrow: http://www.ruv.is/hekla

Live on a website

2010-03-20T17:54:00.000-07:00

It might be possible to follow the eruption live on this website, tonight or tomorrow. We will see:

http://www.heklubyggd.is/vedur.htm

Volcanic eruption in Iceland

2010-03-20T17:50:00.000-07:00

Volcanic eruption has just started underneath the glacier Eyjafjallajökull in the southern part of Iceland. We have been expecting this eruption for some time now because of earthquakes in the area and now finally it has started.

Evening hikings can start soon

2010-03-17T14:05:00.000-07:00

Back from the travel convention in Berlin. The convention was great. This was my first time at a travel convention so I didn't know what to expect but it was very interesting, especially to see the difference between the marketing of all the countries and not least, the hiking/activity companies.
The Icelandic group I was travelling with enjoyed the time and used the evening to go to interesting restaurants. I tasted kangaroo meat for the first time. Delicious!
Now: Business as usual - hikings to Mt. Esja and Mt. Helgafell. We have daylight in the evenings in Iceland now (at around 8pm) so the evening hikings on Mt. Helgafell can start soon.

Picture from Mt Esja in Iceland

2010-03-09T14:02:00.000-08:00

Managed to post some photos on Iceland Hiking's/Mountain Climbing's facebook page. Now you can see them here.

This picture is from a hiking on Mt Esja in Reykjavik, Iceland last spring, almost one year ago.

The picture was taken just before I decided to start my company, Mountain Climbing, and offer hiking tours to Mt Esja.

There is not much snow on the mountain as you can see in this picture and it still isn't even though there has been some snow in the southern part of Iceland for the last weeks.

Traffic jams

2010-03-05T07:27:00.001-08:00

Iceland is still shaking or part of it with those earth quakes underneath the glacier Eyjafjallajökull. There are 20-30 earth quakes per hour and all of them of smaller magnitude than 3,0 except one that was 3,1. It might stop or it might result in an eruption. No one knows until (or if) it happens. It is exciting.

The people living on a nearby farm will get 20 minutes to flee from their farm if an eruption starts underneath the glacier. They are not worried. Earth quakes and volcanic eruptions are not that uncommon in Iceland.

If something big happens the area will be closed and no traffic allowed. It will not be like when I was 12 and we had an eruption in "nearby" volcano Hekla. My parents drove together with us kids out to the country to see the eruption. All the other families did the same thing. There was a traffic jam on the road to Mt. Hekla.

Changing weather

2010-03-04T15:48:00.001-08:00

The weather changes very fast in Iceland. Sometimes when I pick up my customers at the hotels in Reykjavik the weather might be gray and even raining or snowing but it doesn't have to be that way when we start the hiking or stand on the top. At that point it might be quite opposite with clear sky and beautiful view over the surrounding.

This was my customers experience this week. Yesterday we started the hiking in clear weather with beautiful blue sky but when we were standing on top of Mt. Esja we had fog all around us and we couldn't see a thing. But then 30min.-60min. later when we were lower on the mountain we had the fog above us and then we could enjoy the view.

This is Iceland.

Cold weather and earth quakes

2010-03-04T15:37:00.001-08:00

The weather has been "bad" in southern part of Iceland for the last few days. We have now been getting the cold weather from Siberia, the weather that Europe has been getting for the whole winter.

Other things have been taking our minds. We have a referendum on Icesave on Saturday.

There are earth quakes more or less all the time in Iceland, most of them only small (magnitude only -3). Today there have been more earth quakes than usual underneath the glacier Eyjafjallajökull so there might be an volcanic eruption coming.

But that's only guessing. Yet.

For the earth quakes - see here:

http://en.vedur.is/earthquakes-and-volcanism/earthquakes/myrdalsjokull/

We don't have lizards in Iceland

2010-02-24T13:39:00.001-08:00

I was asked a few days ago if remnants of a lupin (on the mountain) was a lizard and I answered no, we don't have any lizards in Iceland. We don't have any snakes. We have some spiders but we don't have any deadly spiders or dangerous animals.

We only have harmless (farm) animals in Iceland. The sheep go wild in the nature during the summer and the Icelandic horse is genetically the same horse that the first settlers brought to Iceland in 874.

We have some foxes wild in the nature and nowadays we even have some minks but no wolves. We have some wild reindeer in the eastern part of Iceland.

We don't have any bears. A few weeks ago we got a polar bear on a visit to Iceland. It had travelled on an iceberg, probably from Greenland, but that's quite unusual. We usually don't have polar bears in Iceland.

In the ocean we have seals and whales.

Daytours from Reykjavik

2010-02-21T16:24:00.000-08:00

Many people want to drive around Iceland. You can do that during spring/summer. But during winter it is not wise. The weather can be unreliable and there might be a lot of snow out in the country. Hotels in bigger towns are open but you cannot count on getting the service you might need.

When travelling to Iceland during winter a better choice is to stay at a hotel in Reykjavik or surroundings and make daytours from Reykjavik.

I recommend:

1 Reykjanes peninsula with the bridge between the two continents, geysers and the famous Blue Lagoon.

2 Snæfellsnes peninsula with villages, glacier and national park on the way.

3 The Golden Circle with visits to Thingvellir where the old parliament used to gather, the golden waterfall Gullfoss and the famous Geysir is something most people don't want to miss.

4 Activity day with hiking, whale watching and/or riding. During winter it is nice to look at the Northern Lights!

5 South Coast of Iceland with national park, great waterfalls and villages.

6 The west coast with historic sights from the Sagas.

During summer it is easier to drive around Iceland but then you would need to stay more than one week in the country.

Busy weeks on mountains

2010-02-19T08:40:00.000-08:00

The last weeks have been busy with school vacation in UK and winter vacations in rest of Europe.

The weather has been cold (minus degrees) in Iceland so it has been important to dress warmly, use hiking boots and take hats, gloves and scarves. I myself am always wearing my darkblue woolen underwear and fleece sweater plus my winter jacket.

If you don't dress according to the weather the cold somehow goes into your bones and stays there.

The circumstances on the mountains close to Reykjavik have been good. There has been some ice and snow on Mount Esja (only close to the top) for the last days even though that changes from day to day. On Mount Helgafell the situation has been good, less snow and almost no ice.

The sky has been clear and the view magnificent.

The only "problem" - if there is a problem - is the wind cooling down. But then it is so nice to have some hot herbal tea (Icelandic thyme) at the top or down by the car. It helps against the cold.

The smell of boiled eggs

2010-02-16T13:51:00.001-08:00

Some people say that the houses smell in Iceland. When I was 21 a guy on the Finnish national handball team said to me that the hot water in Iceland had a smell. I told him NO! That is NOT true!

Later I had to admit, he was probably right. The hot water smells in Iceland. I cannot smell it but that is because I live in Iceland. But when driving through or close to geothermal areas in Iceland I can feel the smell in the atmosphere from boiling water in the geysers and I realise that the Finn was right.

The hot water smells in Iceland and you can find the smell when you turn on the hot water at your home because in most of the houses (the older ones at least) the hot water comes directly from the geysers/geothermal areas. And the smell from these areas always remind me of boiled eggs.

Importance of dressing right on a glacier

2010-02-15T05:47:00.000-08:00

The news in Iceland said this morning that Scottish mother and son that had gone missing on one of the glaciers yesterday and that they were found alive during the night.

The tourists were a part of a bigger group of tourists on snow mobiles. Somehow the two of them went out of the group so the guides had to call a rescue team. Mother and son were OK when they were found on the glacier.

Icelandic nature can be dangerous when the weather is bad. Yesterday there was snow storm on the glacier.

It is important always to take appropriate clothes with you when travelling to Iceland. If you want to go on a glacier during winter you really should take warm clothes with you and winter or hiking shoes. If you want to go hiking during winter you should take hiking shoes and warm clothes. It can be cold.

Mother and son were appropriately dressed and they did the right thing while waiting for rescue. They went behind the snow mobile to get a break from the storm and then mother took her son into her lap to give him warmth from her body. That was important in this case.

Sitting in the hot pool in snowstorms

2010-02-14T08:09:00.000-08:00

You find outdoor (and some indoor) swimming pools in every community in Iceland. In Reykjavik, the capital, with around 150.000 inhabitants you find several swimming pools. And then you find more swimming pools in the other communities in Greater Reykjavik Area.

Even though Icelanders go as much to the outdoor swimming pools in snow storms as much as in sun and nice weather they don't swim that much. Most of them only swim 200m. The swimming itself is not necessarily the reason for Icelanders attending the swimming pool.

The reason is the hot pots, small pools with hot water that are a part of the swimming pool area. Icelanders love those small pools. That's where they sit and relax and talk to their friends. And that's also the reason why so many families have their own small pool in their garden.

Icelanders like to sit there in the hot water and relax.

Maybe the hot pools are to Icelanders the same as the saunas are to the Finns.

We love to relax in the hot pool after hiking

2010-02-12T11:36:00.000-08:00

Fantastic hiking on Mount Esja today. The weather was beautiful and clear when we started the mountain but when we were standing on the top there was a fog. That's how it is, you never know how the weather is going to be at the top.
The climbing took us maybe six hours up and down again. We finished with going to the swimming pool to relax in the hot pool. That's how the Icelanders do it. Icelanders have a lot of pools, usually there is at least one in every community.
We love to relax in the "heitur pottur", hot pool, after hiking.

The beds in St. Petersburg

2010-02-10T07:34:00.001-08:00

When I am travelling abroad I always try to get into touch with the locals, e.g. by staying at guest houses or homes, rather than staying at international hotel chains. Sometimes it makes the travels more difficult but usually not. In my family we laugh at our vacation in St. Petersburg 2007. We took the train from Helsinki to Russia and then metro/underground to the hostel we were staying at. Of course we didn't understand one word in Russian and nobody at the railway station understood English so it was a little bit difficult finding out which metro train to take into town but finally we found out and got to our hostel. We didn't realize at that time the difference in standards between Russia and Scandinavia. When you are staying at a guest house or hostel in northern Europe it is extremely nice, very clean and well taken care of and you have hot running water and nice beds. The hostel in St. Petersburg was nice and clean with nice staff but we smile when thinking about the beds in our room. My bed and my daughter's bed were so hard (bad) that we had the feeling we didn't sleep one second those four nights or so we were staying in St. Petersburg. :) But the city was beautiful and we met a lot of nice people. I remember especially the nice young guide we had on our sightseeing around town and the woman who shared cabin with us on the way back to Finland. Vacation memories - the most fantastic memories of all!

Earth quakes in Iceland

2010-02-09T06:52:00.000-08:00

We've been having some earth quakes in Iceland since yesterday. Well, usually we have some earth quakes every day but yesterday we had three earth quakes quite big, +3 on richter. That is quite some. I just noticed this on the news this morning but I felt something happening yesterday, the earth shaking. It is just so usual in my part of the country to get some earth quakes that I didn't think much about. But it is always interesting to know how big they are and we had those three more than 3 on richter. That is quite much.

Attending Travel Convention

2010-02-05T12:52:00.001-08:00

Attending the Travel Convention in Reykjavik tomorrow and on Sunday. Will be interesting to meet all this people. Have been contacting people today in order to set up some meetings. Will also meet people randomly and tell them about Mountain Climbing's hiking tours in Iceland. Nice!

Northern lights offer

2010-02-04T01:27:00.000-08:00

The Northern lights are one of the magnificent wonders in the Icelandic nature. Mountain Climbing has now a special offer: USD 38 or ISK 4.900 per person. The Northern lights tour is available every evening. Pick-up starts at 7pm. Pick-up and drop-off is included in price.

Speed in Iceland

2010-02-02T15:57:00.000-08:00

Tourists have been stopped by the police after speeding along route 1 in Iceland the last few days. Maximum speed is usually 90km in Iceland, in the city 50-70km depending on streets. The route around Iceland is narrow and can be very different from what most tourists are used to, maybe even with snow or glazed roads. Too risky, I'd say, to be driving at e.g. 128km speed.

Join Iceland Hiking

2010-02-02T06:38:00.000-08:00

Want to try the national hobby of Iceland - hiking? Join Mountain Climbing on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=178771275539

Info about me

2010-01-31T04:30:00.000-08:00

More information about me: http://www.toursbylocals.com/IcelandHikingGuide

Daylight in Iceland

2010-01-29T08:19:00.000-08:00

Fantastic weather now in Iceland and a good opportunity to go hiking on Mount Esja. I noticed this morning that departure at 9.30am is getting OK now. It is a little dark but soon changing so in a few days it will be daylight at 9 in the morning. During December I postponed departure till 10.30am but now I am changing it again. With pickup at 9.30am we are at the root of the mountain at 10am and that is definitely OK.

Blogging about travelling in Iceland

2010-01-28T09:17:00.001-08:00

Blogging is my second nature. I have been blogging since 2004 when I spent two months on a journalism course in Aarhus, Denmark. At that time I decided to keep family and friends informed about my time in Denmark through my blogging. Since then I have tried many things. For a while (in 2004) I was blogging in Swedish about Icelandic affairs and then I started keeping my personal and journalistic blogs.
I have always had this huge need to get into contact with people out there in the world, that is what gives me most as a guide in Iceland. Now my company, Mountain Climbing, has its own website and I am keeping hiking enthusiasts up to date through facebook and twitter. On this blog I am going to blog about travels in Iceland, conditions for tourists in Iceland and my hiking tours. Advices, discussions - whatever.
Hope you all are going to read my blog!