Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 550 0700;
www.sba.is
)
Runs a popular three-day Askja-Kverkfjöll-Vatnajökull tour, weekly from July to mid- or
late August. It departs from Akureyri and picks up in Mývatn. Cost is Ikr42,900, which in-
cludes transport and guide (but not food or accommodation). See (
Click here
)
for more
info.
Herðubreiðarlindir
The oasis Herðubreiðarlindir, a nature reserve thick with green moss, angelica and the
pinky-purple flower of the Arctic river beauty
(Epilobium latifolium),
was created by
springs flowing from beneath the Ódáðahraun lava. You get a superb close-up view of
Herðubreið from here (unless, of course, you're greeted by dense fog and/or a wall of
blowing sand).
The mini tourist complex has an information office staffed by summer wardens, a camp-
site/dm Ikr1200/6000)
, a comfy lodge with showers and kitchen.
Behind the hut is another Fjalla-Eyvindur 'convict hole': Eyvindur is believed to have
occupied it during the winter of 1774-75, when he subsisted on angelica root and raw
horsemeat stored on top of the hideout to retain heat inside.
Herðubreið
Iceland's most distinctive mountain (1682m) has been described as a birthday cake and a
lampshade, but Icelanders call it (more respectfully) the 'Queen of the Mountains'. It crops
up time and again in the work of local poets and painters, entranced by its beauty.
If Herðubreið (meaning 'broad shoulders') appears to have been made in a jelly mould,
that's not far off base. It's a
móberg
mountain, formed by subglacial volcanic eruptions. In
fact, if Vatnajökull was to suddenly be stripped of ice, Grímsvötn and Kverkfjöll would
probably emerge looking more or less like Herðubreið.
If you wish to climb Herðubreið, beware that a topographic sheet won't do you any
good here. As serenely beautiful as the queen may be, the hike can be unrelenting and
frustrating if you are not properly prepared. In the spring, as the weather warms slightly,
there are a lot of falling rocks, which can alter paths and topography. Clouds often shroud
