We only hiked up to the Esja Steinn!? Yep. Like everything else in life, time and weather make fools of us all. The original plan of doing our hiking on Monday had to change because of 100% rainy forecast. One unfortunate difference between a Monday and a Sunday in Iceland is that Sundays run fewer buses and our plan pretty much relied upon the use of public transportation. We made it to the mountain range without any problems, just didn’t have enough time to do the entire 4-5 hour loop hike.
Esja trails were unsurprisingly busy, littered with all sorts of tourist and locals alike. There were hikers with fully energized schnauzers, hikers with exhausted Rottweilers, and even a few hikers with kids who’d hang their heads upside down and drink straight from the rivers teat.
The hike itself was both challenging and beautiful. Climbing higher unlocked an amazing view of the countryside in one direction and a continuously clearer awe striking picture of the layered mountains and peaks from the other directions. Hiking has become a sort of home for us in and of itself. Wherever we are and whatever we’re doing, we want to hike and we want to hike more. We enjoy the challenge of a steep climb but are also just as happy if it’s a flat walk. We like to push a fast pace but don’t have any problems taking a little time to smell… the volcanic rock.
The by and far best part of the day was that we didn’t get lost. Wandering mindfully doesn’t always mean we know where the hell we are, were, or are going.
Dinner for the night happened at a “sushi train” restaurant. Instead of having to order big sushi rolls, smaller sushi plates spin by on a conveyor belt in the middle of the table as you hang out. Grab what you want to eat and ignore everything else. Pretty fucking genius.
Having spent last night at the English pub, we had to try out the Drunken Rabbit tonight (Irish pub). It might seem silly to spend time at these kind of pubs while in Iceland, it’s really not though. The Drunken Rabbit has a 2-for-1 Sunday night Strongbow special – original Strongbow. Process that shit!