Cycling in Iceland: Winds That Test Your Limits

Cycling in Iceland: Winds That Test Your Limits.. 

Join Cycle Baba on his thrilling journey across Iceland 🇮🇸. Battling fierce winds, endless rain, and tough challenges, he shares the true adventure of cycling the iconic Ring Road.

Hello, Salaam, Sat Sri Akal, Ram-Ram Ji.

It has been three days in Iceland now, and the condition is very bad. The weather is extremely harsh. Since yesterday, we have been drenched and haven’t been able to dry ourselves yet. Last night, we came to this caravan park and stayed here. Normally, they close it at night, but because the weather was so bad, they kept their kitchen open. I ended up sleeping in the kitchen area itself.

Now it’s almost 11 in the morning, and the weather has cleared a little. Last night I slept inside here. Let me tell you something—these cabins you see on the side cost ₹500 per night. Iceland is so expensive! It even feels more expensive than Switzerland. I always thought Switzerland was costly, but Iceland is way beyond that.

For the first time, I have seen a bit of greenery and slightly better weather because yesterday was horrible. It took me six hours to cover 20 km, and just the last 10 km took me five hours. At first, I covered 10 km in one hour, but after that, I was in such a terrible state. I was out of breath, and the cycle was hard to control. Normally, the cycle runs straight, but yesterday it was swaying badly. If a vehicle passed nearby, it would almost topple to the opposite side.

It was very difficult to manage. My gimbal was also broken, so now I am using this setup and keeping the camera facing me. If I want to capture some outside scenes, I’ll take them with my phone and use that as B-roll.

So now we have left the caravan park. You can see it behind me. Last night, three or four people came here, even from India. I wasn’t expecting to meet Indian travellers here, but those I have met in the last two days are mostly from the US or Canada—mostly NRIs who travel here.

Now we are on the highway, the National Highway No. 1. At the moment, it’s not raining for an hour or so, but after that, the rain will start again. I’ll try to cover as much distance as I can before the weather turns bad again. The weather here is very unpredictable.

Some people I met told me that the weather in the north is very good, around 15–20°C, but for a cyclist like me, reaching there will take six or seven days. Those with cars can easily get there quickly. Honestly, right now, I am only 20–25 km away from the airport. First, I had gone east from the airport, then moved west and south. Now I’m heading north, and later I’ll loop around from the western side back to the airport.

My cycle, Dhanno, keeps moving slowly, but as long as she is with me, there’s no problem. Yesterday, I saw some amazing volcanoes. Imagine—lava and debris right on the road! The town or village I passed through was called Green Vik. From Green Vik, I am heading towards the Viking area, which is about 250 km away. After that, I’ll start seeing glaciers, and moving further north, it will be full winter.

Today, I will try to reach Porlákshöfn, which is about 57 km from here. There are some houses in this volcanic area, surprisingly. Even though the place is volcanic, people have built homes here.

The signboard shows 56.2 km, but in between there are two steep climbs that I will have to tackle. I stopped Dhanno here near this spot. There’s a balcony above, which is not active anymore, but you can visit it with a ticket. You can either walk, which takes around one hour, or take a special vehicle. But everything is very expensive here.

This special volcanic vehicle takes you up—look at it, it’s massive and powerful. It’s actually a Mercedes truck, and the tyres are huge. What an incredible machine!

The ticket costs at least ₹5,000. They warn you not to walk on the lava crust. There is a whole circular route here—you can walk around it. Vehicles go only up to a certain point, and from there you have to walk. Although the country is called Iceland, in my opinion it should be called the “Land of Volcanoes.” There are so many volcanoes that you never know where or when one might erupt, especially in this region I’ve travelled through. Of course, there are also many green areas.

This entire circuit is about 10 km long. You can walk and cover it fully, but the problem is that there’s a very unpleasant volcanic smell, and the winds are extremely strong up there. The authorities simply say “your safety is your own responsibility” and step aside—but how do you really ensure your safety here? Many tourists go, but what’s the point if you only see the volcanic crust? The real thrill is in seeing an active volcano, and that only happens sometimes. I asked if this one is active, and they said no.

I had an apple and then moved on. Ahead, there is a waterfall that I plan to visit. My AccuWeather app shows that rain will start again in half an hour, so let’s see if I can reach before that. Today’s target is to reach a camping site 50 km away. Whether I’ll make it or not, I can’t say. It’s showing that after 3:00 pm the rain will stop, so let’s see.

I just came across another volcanic area. This place is full of volcanoes, but none of them are active. I’ve already covered 25 km. The rain has eased a little, but the clouds are still heavy. The next destination is 43 km away. It’s around 1 or 1:30 pm now, so I should be able to reach. Everywhere I look, there are volcanic mountains. This land has cracked and erupted countless times—whether today or thousands of years ago.

What you see here isn’t man-made; it’s natural. Lava has flowed down the mountains and spread here. Moss has grown over the cooled lava. From this point, there’s a 10 km road, but only 4×4 vehicles are allowed there. One such 4×4 went in. And then there’s this monster vehicle—it looks like a 16×2, maybe 8-wheel drive! Who knows where it can go.

Now that the rain has slowed, my spirits have lifted a bit. Although it’s still drizzling lightly, at least the wind has stopped, which is a relief. I’m enjoying this calm moment with some bhujiya (crispy lentil snack). It’s the moong dal kind, very crunchy and tasty. Add chopped onions and tomatoes to it, and it tastes even better.

Around me are tourists. One car broke down, so it’s been left on the side. The views all around are breathtaking—the mountains are incredible. Cars here stop to give way if another vehicle is coming from the opposite side.

But now it has started raining again for the past half hour. I don’t know how I’ll manage this ride. Today’s target is 30 km. The road is wet and waterlogged, my shoes are soaked once again. On one side, there’s a kind of lake. When the sea tide is high, the water comes in here; otherwise, it stays out in the ocean. The coastline is very close.

Since arriving, I haven’t seen proper sunshine even once—just endless rain. Finally, after a long time, the rain has eased again, and for the first time, I really feel I’m in Iceland. The scenery looks fresh, green, and beautiful. Rivers and streams have appeared, making the weather pleasant.

In the distance, there’s a lone church standing, which looks stunning. Here, in the middle of the mountains or plains, you find single churches or small cottages—it looks so picturesque. For the first time, I also saw some birds in a lake. Until now, it was only rain and more rain. Now, even flies have started to appear—I think this country will also have the fly problem.

The horses here reminded me of New Zealand and Mongolia. The vast landscapes with horses grazing are very similar. These ones are domesticated, unlike Mongolia where wild horses also roam. They look beautiful here.

I’ve covered about 60 km so far. The road ahead is a bit broken, but around 4–5 km further there is a caravan park where I’ll stop for the night. Today’s ride will be about 60–65 km. I’ve reached the town where I’ll spend the night. The view is spectacular—the rain has stopped, the skies are clearing. After three days of constant showers, it feels like the weather is finally improving. Though tomorrow also shows rain in the forecast, we’ll see—Rab Rakha (God’s will).

Here we are at the caravan park. I’ll set up my tent now. I see another cyclist here who has already pitched his. My tent is almost ready; I just need to fix the outer cover properly. The whole camping process takes around 15–20 minutes, including setting up the mattress. Unfortunately, my mattress has a leak again—let’s see where it’s coming from this time.

The outer cover is essential here because the winds are very strong. Without it, you’ll suffer both cold and the harsh wind slaps. You might ask, what are wind slaps? At night, the gusts hit you hard, almost like being slapped. So first I’ll secure the cover, then hammer in the stakes to fix the tent firmly.

Camping is done, brother. Now I just need to set up the mattress and other things. There’s a swimming pool here where I have to go and pay the charges for camping. After that, I’ll cook some food. This is our stop for the night.

Good morning, Salaam, Namaste, Sat Sri Akal, Ram-Ram ji! Right now, I am in Iceland. Today is my fourth day here. Last night, our camp was here. The night went well. It rained, but it wasn’t a problem. There were no horns, no traffic—completely peaceful. Woke up in the morning and now I’ll make something to eat. I’ve prepared a little porridge, you can call it whatever you like. After this, I’ll make some coffee, drink it, and then get ready to leave. The tent is packed, everything is ready. Just a little bit left.

I met a traveller here.

“Where are you from?”

“Germany.”

“How long are you travelling?”

“Four weeks.”

“Good luck, bro.”

So, this brother has been cycling around Iceland for four weeks. His bike is very interesting, a kind of reclining one. The rear tyre is 16 inches, and the front is 20 inches.

“How long do you ride in a day?”

“About 70 km.”

“Don’t you feel cold, especially in the front?”

“I stop every 5–10 km for about 20 seconds, and then it’s fine.”

So he takes short breaks and then keeps going. Nice guy, good to meet him. They are going in the opposite direction from me. People here have started waking up. If you want to use the washroom in such campsites, go early between 6 and 7 am. After 8:00 am, it gets crowded.

After packing up the camp and getting ready to leave, I met two more people.

“How are you?”

“Good.”

“What’s your name?”

“Chirag.”

“And yours?”

“Krishna.”

Nice to meet them. They had been travelling for two weeks.

“How was the experience?”

“Very good.”

“Did you see the Northern Lights?”

“Yes, we did.”

“You’re lucky! It’s rare to see them.”

We chatted for a while. They had a caravan full of supplies. They’re Gujarati brothers, carrying all sorts of food. Today was their last day in Iceland as they had a flight in the evening. So I told them to leave the food with me instead of throwing it away. They happily shared, and I got things like thepla. Imagine—having thepla even in Iceland! What more could one want? Really nice to meet them. They live in the US. In fact, most Indian travellers you meet here are usually from the US or Canada.

I also worked on adjusting my bike seat. This one I had bought for a small old bicycle, so it doesn’t fit properly here. I’ve already opened it three or four times in the last few days to adjust it. Four days in Iceland, and I haven’t yet seen a proper sunrise. Anyway, time to move on.

On the way, I saw houses being built. First, they lay sand, then concrete, and then grass is planted on top. This is a typical Icelandic house—single-storey, small rooms. Normally, double-storey houses aren’t built here because earthquakes are common. Only hotels are sometimes built double-storey. Otherwise, houses are simple but beautiful.

I’ve now reached back to my place. There’s a supermarket nearby, but I don’t need it today. I’ll buy things in the next town. I already brought some supplies from India, and with the food from the Gujarati brothers, I’m sorted for a day or two.

Here’s a ship terminal filled with vehicles. The capital city, Reykjavik, is only 40 km away from here. I’ve been roaming around for three days, not going beyond 500 km.

Now, the road ahead turned into a gravel path. Some road construction is happening. Along the highway, I spotted a restaurant where they were serving crabs. Right next to me runs the ocean. I’m about to cross a bridge over the sea. What a beautiful place this is! A river is flowing into the ocean here, with a black sand beach on the side. Truly amazing scenery—sometimes you get to see such wonders.

The weather has cleared up a little. Not full sunshine yet, but the clouds have lightened. Still, rain could come anytime.

It became a little warm, but soon the rain returned. Honestly, the rain has troubled me a lot. It’s been four days now, and I haven’t dried properly even once. Luckily, those Gujarati brothers had given me some pinni-type protein bars, so I’ll eat one now.

The road ahead was closed because of construction, but they allowed me to pass. They said that when I reach the construction site, there’s a side track I can take—it’s a gravel path, not paved. Somehow, after a rough two kilometres, I managed to reach a town.

The name of this town is Selfoss. From here, I will join the main Highway 1. Until now, I was coming on a different road from the airport, Highway 42. From Selfoss, I had to go towards Hella, which is 36 km away. But just as I arrived here, it started raining heavily. I sat down for a while and noticed an art gallery. It was closed, but outside were photographs of the people who first discovered and settled in this town.

While looking around, I spotted an Indian restaurant named “Eirikur” or something like that. I decided to go inside and have some tea. The cost of one cup of tea here is ₹450—around 50 Krona. Still, I had one cup, just because I felt like it.

Some locals noticed me cycling and handed me a packet of chicken or something to give to a nearby camping site. That made me think whether I should stay here instead of going to Hella. It was only 3 pm, but it was raining heavily both here and further ahead. If I had gone the extra 36 km, I could have saved money, but staying here would cost me around ₹3,000.

The Gujarati brothers I met earlier had a camping card. With that card, you can stay at certain fixed camping sites and only pay the tax, not the full fee. But this site in Selfoss was not included in that card. So here I would have had to pay about 3,200 Krona. If I had gone further to the next town, I could have stayed almost free, just paying the tax. That would have saved me about 3,200–3,500 Krona. The rate here is roughly ₹1 = 1.5 Krona.

Now, I am finally on the main circular route of Iceland, Highway 1. Slowly from here, I’ll try to complete the full round trip of Iceland. Let’s see—plans may change anytime. I’m a bit moody, and I may wander off somewhere else if I feel like it.

One thing I noticed here is the level of trust. I had left my phone charging, my GoPro mounted outside, and even went inside to buy some things. Nobody touched anything. People here are that trustworthy.

After checking the weather and calculating expenses, I decided to move ahead. With the camping card, the next site would cost me only ₹500, just paying the tax. Tomorrow, I’ll try to reach Vik, if the weather allows and rain doesn’t trouble me. From there, it’s 80 km further, and the total circular route is about 650 km. I’ll cover that slowly. After reaching the northern point, I’ll turn back towards the other side.

Now, I’ve started seeing snow-covered mountains in front of me, about 20 km away. The rain is still falling off and on. It feels like the weather is against me. On the side, a strong river flows beautifully.

I took the risk of riding the 35 km stretch. Now, only 10–12 km remain, but it’s already 6:30–7:00 in the evening. I’ve been climbing uphill, going down, then up again—it feels endless. The wind ahead is so strong that cycling against it becomes extremely difficult.

Finally, I reached the camping site. I had to pay 400 Krona because my camping pass was valid here. Otherwise, it would have cost me 2,400. So I saved about 2,000 Krona, and my effort to ride those extra kilometres paid off.

But I am very tired now. Today, in total, I have cycled around 70 km.