We were picked up by the Eldhestar van to take us the hour-and-a-bit to the horsey place where the day’s activities (the Hot Springs Tour) would happen. Given the time shift, and the lack of sleep on the plane, the 8am pickup was awfully early. I basically missed breakfast.
It started as a somewhat cold and soggy day, and we were all given bright orange rain outfits for the ride, though we wouldn’t need them for very long. Still, it wasn’t all that hot most of the time, and fairly windy, so it was good we were insulated. Even me!
Luscious has told a great tale about her experience of the day, so I won’t get too verbose about it all. Or will I? Anyway, the short version is that it was fun and absolutely worth it.
My horse was all about eating (they matched us up well), and took care of me fairly well. There were a few moments where it was clear he was checking to see who was really in charge, but I think I did fairly well at asserting myself, and we got along just fine.
The lunch break at the river was too short. But very cool. It was at a spot where the hot spring water river joins with a regular stream, and the temperature is wonderfully human-tolerable.
There were quite a few other people around, enjoying it, too. Many weren’t all that shy about their bodies, but being American about it, we decided to at least find a little dip in the terrain to change into and out of our clothes.
After really only a few minutes to soak, we held up the show a little by getting back to the horses later than everyone else. At least that’s what our guide accused us of. Though they were all still getting saddled up and ready when we got there, so we were just among the last to get ready.
The riding itself was pretty good. Icelandic horses have an extra gait that other horses don’t have. A very smooth ride, called a “tölt“, which some horses get into mor easily than others. I was able to hit it at times, but frequently enough for my jarring bones, he would prefer a regular trot. Ah well.
Quite a bit of time spent on horseback. My mother would have been pleased.
When we got back to the Eldhestar hotel, we went around and enjoyed a bit of coffe and hot chocolate with the rest of the crowd from our and the other tours. However, we somehow missed the trip back to Reykjavik. Not that we were in a hurry, since we had to catch a 2am flight, and it was only 5 or 6 at the time, but a little disconcerting.
We turned down the offer of a sandwich while the person who would shuttle us back to our hotel got ready, and instead decided to ask them if we could take a shower. Ahhh… good choice, given the day’s activities and the fact that we weren’t going to see another hotel room for at least 24 hours (and a shower for even longer, as it turned out).
More on the evening and flight later.