Updates are damned.
Until long past midnight I fight with my gadgets
because I have naively downloaded some Xperia update. This has ruined
the smooth cooperation between tablet, camera, raw-converter and file
explorer. Everything now takes about three times more time and is much
more uncomfortable.
It's overcast but no rain. I choose next torture instrument, the bicycle. Bicycles are rented from a café. Someone has to bring a bike over and I'm described on the phone as a 'regular size woman'. Bike has very thick tires with 'rocketer' written on them. Not bad. Together with it comes a helmet. To protect me against the birds, I suppose. What else could happen. I also get a sandwich for lunch. It has to be 'this side up'. Interesting.
The circle around the peninsula is 49 km. Seven more than my usual round but it's also not Tuesday. And I have a whole day instead of two hours. But there's 998 meters high Kaldbakur standing in the way.
Lupines by the road and everywhere. It looks like lupine is the flower of Westfjords, like cranesbill was for me the flower of Hornstrandir.
Paved road changes into gravel very soon and starts to go up and down. Looks more and more dramatic with cliffs visible overhead and constant chatter of birds somewhere.
At about the end of the peninsula are cool rock formations. I plan to eat my sandwich when a big darkgreen bus arrives. It contains two people from Switzerland who for some reason think that I'm a local. They wonder about the bike, complain about weather and the lady then wants to make a selfie with me. Probably goes with a headline 'weirdos I met on the way'. They leave and I get to eat my sandwich. It is with cheese and jam. The jam was probably the reason for holding the thing level. Well, not all the jam has stayed where it was supposed to be.
The lighthouse a bit further is not particularly interesting except that the Swiss are there. Weather in the north is getting lighter.
More big loose stones on the road. At times road consists only of these. Since there's not much traffic here then everything that comes down the mountains, stays more or less there.
Around the corner and clouds have holes. Grey-orange mountains with bright green grass, thin white cloud sneaking around. Perfectly formed beach. I sit on grass above and do nothing. Sun has come out and it's nicely warm on the grass.
Then there's a sign that road is impassable. What does an average tourist think seeing such a sign? Well, this surely looks passable to me! Theres a strech that stays under water with high tide but I was promised no high tide before eight o'clock. There's a thicket of lupines. And then a stone wall, carved into half-tunnel by the waves. Covered with colorful moss and flowers, water dripping. Fulmars peak out of holes. A car comes from the other direction. Big and black.
The instruction says that I have to turn left after an abandoned house with red roof. Not that there were much other roads. Back through the peninsula. Steady and long ascent. Green pasture all around, clear skies ahead. Sheep look at me wondering. They have it easy, they don't have to drag a bicycle with them. I'm getting hungry again. Should have brought more food.
A bit before the pass there is a Snickers wrapper on the ground. Cursing I pick it up to find that half of the chocolate is still inside, untouched. No visual damage, no weird smell. What could happen with a snickers anyway. Take it with me as motivation for consuming on the pass. Who picks up candy wrappers on ascent, eats chocolate on the pass (Kaldbakur proverb). Some patches of snow before the pass. Draging a bicycle over steep slippery snow is also probably a special Icelandic pastime.
Then down accompanied by the song of the brakes. I wonder if they change these after every customer. It's very steep and wholly covered with big stones.
Finally down, I cruise along a fence, low sun and long shadows. It has been only ten hours. My fingers are tired and stiff. The other side of the fjord which was not visible in the morning is suddenly covered in mountains in different sizes and shapes.
The swimming pool has closed. Very careless of me, already many days in Iceland and no swimming pool visit yet. I did better in March.
Get beer, soup and waffles with whipped cream in exchange of the bicycle.
It's overcast but no rain. I choose next torture instrument, the bicycle. Bicycles are rented from a café. Someone has to bring a bike over and I'm described on the phone as a 'regular size woman'. Bike has very thick tires with 'rocketer' written on them. Not bad. Together with it comes a helmet. To protect me against the birds, I suppose. What else could happen. I also get a sandwich for lunch. It has to be 'this side up'. Interesting.
The circle around the peninsula is 49 km. Seven more than my usual round but it's also not Tuesday. And I have a whole day instead of two hours. But there's 998 meters high Kaldbakur standing in the way.
Lupines by the road and everywhere. It looks like lupine is the flower of Westfjords, like cranesbill was for me the flower of Hornstrandir.
Paved road changes into gravel very soon and starts to go up and down. Looks more and more dramatic with cliffs visible overhead and constant chatter of birds somewhere.
At about the end of the peninsula are cool rock formations. I plan to eat my sandwich when a big darkgreen bus arrives. It contains two people from Switzerland who for some reason think that I'm a local. They wonder about the bike, complain about weather and the lady then wants to make a selfie with me. Probably goes with a headline 'weirdos I met on the way'. They leave and I get to eat my sandwich. It is with cheese and jam. The jam was probably the reason for holding the thing level. Well, not all the jam has stayed where it was supposed to be.
The lighthouse a bit further is not particularly interesting except that the Swiss are there. Weather in the north is getting lighter.
More big loose stones on the road. At times road consists only of these. Since there's not much traffic here then everything that comes down the mountains, stays more or less there.
Around the corner and clouds have holes. Grey-orange mountains with bright green grass, thin white cloud sneaking around. Perfectly formed beach. I sit on grass above and do nothing. Sun has come out and it's nicely warm on the grass.
Then there's a sign that road is impassable. What does an average tourist think seeing such a sign? Well, this surely looks passable to me! Theres a strech that stays under water with high tide but I was promised no high tide before eight o'clock. There's a thicket of lupines. And then a stone wall, carved into half-tunnel by the waves. Covered with colorful moss and flowers, water dripping. Fulmars peak out of holes. A car comes from the other direction. Big and black.
The instruction says that I have to turn left after an abandoned house with red roof. Not that there were much other roads. Back through the peninsula. Steady and long ascent. Green pasture all around, clear skies ahead. Sheep look at me wondering. They have it easy, they don't have to drag a bicycle with them. I'm getting hungry again. Should have brought more food.
A bit before the pass there is a Snickers wrapper on the ground. Cursing I pick it up to find that half of the chocolate is still inside, untouched. No visual damage, no weird smell. What could happen with a snickers anyway. Take it with me as motivation for consuming on the pass. Who picks up candy wrappers on ascent, eats chocolate on the pass (Kaldbakur proverb). Some patches of snow before the pass. Draging a bicycle over steep slippery snow is also probably a special Icelandic pastime.
Then down accompanied by the song of the brakes. I wonder if they change these after every customer. It's very steep and wholly covered with big stones.
Finally down, I cruise along a fence, low sun and long shadows. It has been only ten hours. My fingers are tired and stiff. The other side of the fjord which was not visible in the morning is suddenly covered in mountains in different sizes and shapes.
The swimming pool has closed. Very careless of me, already many days in Iceland and no swimming pool visit yet. I did better in March.
Get beer, soup and waffles with whipped cream in exchange of the bicycle.
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