One challenge at a time

  I woke up eager to see what was out there.. other than biting insects and as soon as it was light I headed out to the nearest trail…  Eco pond.  It was only a short hop up from the campsite but I was already sweating by the time I got there. It was a short loop…  around a pond.. funnily enough. But there weren't that many places you could get a glimpse of the pond. The mossies were far more dense here and despite liberal applications of FULL Strength 100% will stop anything DEET, I was still getting bitten. I was soon to learn to just live with it but they were already annoying me.  There wasn't much of interest around the pond and I headed a bit further up the road.  I very soon found myself at the marina, the place where I could hire kayaks, perhaps for the following 2 days. I walked round the bay side of the Marina and as I did so noticed splashes in the water…  I stood and watched. Massive fish were jumping out of the water but also…  what w...

 Am I back in England?  Day 1… arrival 9 hours on a plane and l am transported to a bright sunshine warm London day to…  a warm torrential rain version of Florida!  Hey…  how did that happen.. I thought the rainy season was done and dusted by now! Apparently not. It seems to have become a habit for me when driving in the USA, on the wrong side of the road, in an automatic, that I must do it first in a rainstorm. That was how I left Boston, In torrential rain and seemingly now also leaving Miami.  It takes a while to get used to the sensitive controls and the automatic…  driving on the other side of the road isnt so bad, I flip into it fairly easily it seems. I do talk aloud to myself at every junction though to ensure I get it right!  First stop was Bass Pro store which is the shop I first went to in Arizona, when Louize and Mark introduced me to the all American outdoor store. I loved it and so, given that I had to pick up a gas canister, I found...

 I woke up on Day 15 in a wet and slightly cold campsite in Reykjavik... I had booked a trip out to see the volcano and the omens... specifically the cloud layer, the mist and the drizzle were not the best conditions if one hoped to see the volcano crater... I waited at the bus stop outside the campsite, getting impatient when we were almost an hour beyond the pick up time... apparently some of the other punters weren't where they were supposed to be. Anyway, finally in the coach and on my way to Grindavik for the second time in 2 weeks. The drizzle became a downpour, became torrential and it became less and less likely we were going to see anything. The guide was also of this opinion because he basically said, there is no point going up to the viewpoint, you won't see anything. We will just go down to the old lava fields... At this I piped up..  I know I'm generally the shy and retiring type, but weather changes here quickly and just not bothering to try and see  the cra...

 Essentially this is going to be a short blog as today was 'back to Reykjavik day' I woke up to rain hammering down onto the tent... there is NOTHING worse than packing up a wet tent. Trying to avoid your sleeping bag getting wet until it goes in the handlebar bag. Don't let the sleeping mat touch the wet grass... Be careful how you fold up the tent so that the sleeping compartment doesn't get wet. Horrible job. Fortunately I'm pretty good at packing up my stuff and have got into a good rythm after 13 previous days of packing and unpacking everything... so it wasn't too long, everything was on the bike, I had my long cycling trousers on cos it was bloody cold... and I headed off into the wind and rain and mist. About 200 yards up the road, I realised that this might be the first time that I may need a back light on my bike, so I stopped and hauled my rear light out of my bag and zip tied it to my seat pack. With that and my luminous rucksack cover I was pretty c...

 It's hard to describe the point when your senses re-awaken.  The last week or so has been spent in a black desert with little signs of life... I could have been on the moon or Mars. Spectacular though it was and so completely different to places that I have beem before, my soul felt incomplete. The fresh air I breathed (along with a fair amount of grit and black dust I may add) and the vistas my eyes took in were magnificent and I'm sure that when I'm back home. I will miss the freedom and the solitude of these roads and the black desert... but missing was the smell of life, trees, birds, little animals running around.... and then I arrived at Thingvellir! I had had a small foray out the previous evening but today and yesterday I meandered through the small paths, the antithesis of the black desert... for here there was life in abundance. On a small scale to be sure, but life abounded. In the myriad of small rock dwelling plants, the heather, the different types of moss, t...

 So last night, I was charging my phone in. the campsite when I smelt burning and then saw smoke coming out of the end charging my phone. I pulled it out quickly but was immediately worried that I wouldn't be able to charge my phone anymore... which needless to say would be a disaster.... I pulled out my spare charging cable and hooked up my slightly charred phone to my battery pack... and waited.... If it wouldn't charge I knew that I would have to find a phone repair shop and fast... I needed my phone to get me home... 93%... cmon phone... it looked like it was charging but until the number started rising I could not be sure... it seemed like ages .. 94%! Yes! and no further burning smell.. clearly I had stopped the charging process in time for no damage to be done or at least not enough damage to prevent me from ising the phone. So back to plan A it was then. The following morning I awoke and packed up... it all gets stowed away in order and with ease, following the rythms o...