Laugavegurinn -- Day 4
Last day of the trek, much easier than the third, weather spectacular, but feet still hurting from the previous day. I woke up, surprisingly feeling well, and walked over to the transport truck, only to find the driver sleeping in the back. Had breakfast inside the hut with the big group (granola and surmjolk), coffee (first non-instant Nescafe coffee of the trip!), didn´t eat that much as I wasn´t so hungry. Said goodbye to the warden and she handed me another half shot of the moonshine stuff, although I wasn´t sure that was a good idea with the steep hill I knew I´d be walking down later that morning.
First leg of the hike was a repeat of the approach the previous day, then the long walk down, which went smoothly enough, then across a narrow footbridge over a gorge with rapid water running under (I learned later than one of the ladies on the trip had to turn around at this point for fear of the bridge).
More ups and downs for maybe 2 hours, passed by one of the Icelandic groups, and their dog. Walked along a long flatish path, heard some birds chirping (a sign that we were getting closer to the end), stopped to speak to some other ravelers, reached a bridge over a river, surrounded by thick vegetation (unusual for this trek), stopped and had lunch, and rested for about an hour and enjoyed the nature. Still, none of the other groups passed us.
The two Dutch guys showed up, and we walked with them the rest of the way to þorsmörk. Crossed another river, this time by removing hiking shoes, putting on sneakers and walking across, and then entered the forested area approaching the valley. Trees for the first time!
And finished the hike at the campsite area in þorsmörk by the early afternoon! Set up tents on some thick, thick grass (ended up being good for sleeping). Kind of couldn´t believe I had finished it. I had heard that the hike "really wasn´t that hard", which in a way is true. only 4-5 hours per day, not a lot of big hills, nothing that required any technical climbing, river crossings weren´t so bad after all. But I suppose what made it feel "challenging" was that at almost any time the possibilty of something going very wrong exists -- getting all the clothes, sleeping bag, etc. wet, twisting an ankle, slipping on a wet rock, getting lost in fog, getting sick, etc. But none of these things happened.
Klemenz drove me and Dori to the next campsite, and we ate apple pie and waffles at the cafe there, then used the sauna next door, and then the pool. Also I took my first shower of the trip.
Drove back to the campsite, and by then the big group had arrived and were drinking beers. I joined them for this, spoke to the Canadian couple about the education system in Canada, and a Dutch guy about how much we loved this trip, and how it´s hard to talk about it in a way that captures why we did. For dinner I had grilled whale meat (tastes kind of like venison? more like beef than like chicken, that´s for sure). It was delicious, and I thought that given the opportunity I should try it once, but I think this will be my only time.
For the first time, I ended up sitting with one of the Icelandic groups, the one that had been singing at the huts each night. They offered me a delicious brie like Icelandic cheese with crackers, and this chili sauce that I liked a lot. At my request, they sang the beginning of "O Borg Min Borg", and then pulled out the songbook of Icelandic songs they had been using, and by reading along, got to sing a song or two with them. At some point one of the guys in that group convinced the Dutch guy to pretend to be a priest and marry him and his girlfriend, as he had repeatedly told her throughout the trip that he would do. This led to wild cheers by all of the Icelandics. I ate skyr for dessert made by D for her group.
When the Icelandic flag was taken down at sunset (they do this every night at the huts), the Icelandics drunkenly sang the national anthem, and I happily watched. Just like the other nights, there was a lot of laughter, everybody now drinking beers, and feeling satisfied with the trip. I went to sleep happily.
Extra fact: From the campsite I could see Eyjafjallajokull, where the volcano recently exploded. It dropped volcanic ash all over the campsite actually. The glacier was still black with ash.
Madonna -- Like a Virgin
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