Iceland Day 3: morning

I'm off for my Blue Ice Adventure. I was originally going to do this tour first in case it got rescheduled due to weather. I really wanted to be able to go. But accidentally booked it for Monday instead of Sunday. I always forget European calendars start on Mondays and not Sundays. 

But I think it worked out for the best since the Golden Tour gave me a true taste of the weather. I was drenched and cold and only we were only outside for twenty minutes max. For this trip we'll be outside for 2-3 hours, depending on the weather. 

This morning I got ready and kept wanting to add more "just in case" items to my bag. An extra sweater - even though my torso was fine yesterday. Or my cashmere shawl/scarf, even though I brought my face mask.  In the end I decided on just a pair of extra socks. Mainly due to my bag being full and my boots being only 98% dry. Luckily I booked the extras - rain gear and hiking boots. 

I did find my camera was out of commission most of the time because of the rain and steam. I did see a guy with a bag over his so tried that out this morning. Looks like it will work. 

I packed my lunch from my fixings of cheese and salami and bread  I brought from home. 

I have 3 sandwiches, 2 power bars, 2 string cheeses, 2 chocolate granola bars and tea. I packed the same thing yesterday and only ate about half. But today I'm burning a ton if calories and won't be home until after 7. At which point I think I'll crash and not go out for dinner. 

I'm currently on the bus with 12 others. Yesterday I was the youngest amongst retired British. Today I'm the oldest amongst 20 somethingers, mostly American I think. 

This will be an interesting day. My two tour guides are Thor and Ivar. As we headed off Thor gave an intro. Apparently yesterday was bad with the wind and rain. He mentioned they were going to adjust their scouting, ending with we "Don't want anybody to die."  

So we'll see what today is like. For now I'm enjoying the scenery as we continue to climb on our drive and cross over the mountain ridge in very poor sight conditions. 

We just had our last pit stop. To pick up food and whatnots before heading to the glacier. The place was like a 7/11 and inside was abuzz with people in their snow gear - mostly tourists but also a few locals. This one guy pulled with a massive jeep. There's tons of these around but in Reykjavik they're mostly associated with tours. Even the mini-vans are jacked up on massive tires. And even the regular sedans in town you can often hear the metal studded snow tires. 

The gas station was the last outpost if civilization. Even from the parking lot it just went off to nowhere. 

It's feeling a bit like the ski club trips of my youth. The same rituals and pit stops. It's still overcast and drizzly and windy. We're all eating an early lunch on this final drive. I'm holding off on too much water since I really really had to go just now. Almost didn't think I'd make it. I hydrated up this morning - a little too much maybe. 

Can't wait for the hike/climb. We're approaching the mountains as we head inland from the south shore.