Iceland is famous for its glaciers and today we get to see one up close and personal. After less than an hour’s riding from Hofn, we arrive at a huge car park full of tourists all eager to take photos of the icy blue mass. We have been utterly spoilt for the last 7 days. We never once stopped where your average tourist may visit and seeing all these people is a bit of a shock to the system. I also have to park my bike in a busy car park on gravel (on leaving I am realising I did not pick my spot brilliantly as it takes two of us to turn my bike so I can ride it back onto the open road) and I feel a bit nervous. The photos below don’t do the scenery justice and we are in awe of nature. Seeing large chunks of ice on a beach feels very surreal and it’s on days like today I wish I had a better eye for photography and the skills to take a flawless image.
Our stop this evening is Vik, which will become my second favourite stopping point. Cameron has brought a little pocket camera which he lends me and I head off on my own before dinner with the brief to take “arty photographs”. Vik has a fantastic black beach and the early evening light is beautiful if a little eerie. I love exploring new places by myself, lost in my own thoughts and I feel very grateful to be able to go on my first motorbike adventure to such a fantastic location. I stumble across a small brewery and tap room and order a pint of beer but realise I left my wallet in the room. I promise the bar tender to return after dinner and he smiles and pays for my beer with his own card. It’s little gestures of kindness from random strangers that make me realise even more how much I have missed travelling during the Covid period. I get itchy feet really fast and much as I love my home in Scotland, I do love exploring other countries. Travelling on a motorbike may just be what’s been missing from my life.
