#BlackIce: Running across Iceland (Day 2) -

The day 2 update from the #BlackIce expedition in Iceland by Robbie Britton and James Elson:

If you ever want to feel what our day two was like then get on a treadmill, grab a hairdryer, turn it to cold air and point it in your face. For five hours. Then have someone throw some small bits of ice cold water at you for the last couple of hours whilst you eat a variety of Chia Charge products. It was wonderful.

 

Starting off with a cup of tea in a natural hot spring is really how every Sunday should start, before running a long way on an isolated trail. It’s like we planned it this way, except for Dan jogging towards us in the nude. That was…different.

 

We set off from Laugafell to Nyidalur, one refuge hut (closed) to another, before seeing what was there and deciding whether to push on or find out if luck was on our side again and we could get inside. The hut that is.

Two things happened instantly upon setting off, one being the wind started blowing into our faces at about 25-30 km/h and the other was starting our day with a river crossing, thus making the feet a little chilly. The feet were no problem but the head wind was really hard work.

 

There’s very little highlights to a day running with your head down across a moonscape like Iceland, but still the views of distant ice fields were captivating, drawing you closer with the desire to explore and adventure.

 

It was pretty early on that we decided that the hut at 51km would be our stopping point today but upon arrival it was clear that we wouldn’t have run past this oasis in the storm. Not only was it “Raining sideway” into our faces, but the hut was open, had beds, a working kitchen and an extremely helpful chap called Sebastian, who was hiking 100’s of km across Iceland, having already skied the route we were doing in Winter in 9 days. Check out more here.

He also makes awesome waterproof backpacks.

We set about getting ourselves comfortable, I ate Chana Masala number three and we enjoyed a team meal with Sebastien telling us about his adventures and showing us all the different outdoor products that he had made himself, from sleeping bags to waterproofs and backpacks.

 

Weather reports came in from the outside world and an early start was planned to avoid the worst of the incoming storm, as although we love nothing more than trotting along in the pouring rain and wind, it can make it much more miserable to have a wee. Dan even managed to piss in his own face, a real life defining moment for him.

 

That said, whatever Iceland throws at us next, be it brilliant sunshine or a wild blizzard, the adventure will only continue, stopping in our tracks at more stunningly beautiful landscapes and, if the weather does really shit out, at least it will make for an interesting story…


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