It was the crampons, with the front spikes, on the ice. Professor Plum had nothing to do with this one. Only a couple of quick reflective actions kept me from a possible broken nose and a concussion.
At the end of a one-and-a-half-hour hike on the Solheimajokull glacier on the south coast of Iceland, I looked around for a final view of this magnificent ice walking adventure. It was then that I caught my front spikes and headed downward, my life flashing before my eyes.
I threw my ice pick to the left; with my right hand, I swung my camera hanging around my neck to the right and turned my upper body just enough left to protect the only face that belongs to me. My left hand and my left ear connected with solid ice. Ouch! I was back on my feet before I had to take a standing eight count. Both my ear and left hand were cut. I did not know the left hand was cut and bleeding until I took off my glove at the end of a 40-minute hike back to the bus. Albeit the ear was treated it continued to bleed during the two-hour ride back to Reykjavik. To those friends who prayed for my safe walk on the glacier, next time pray harder.
Would I hike the glacier again? It was one of the most amazing adventure experiences of my life. The exhilaration, the breathtaking view, the crevasses with their Tidy Bowl blue water far outweighed any bonk on the head.
Carrying crampons, helmet and ice pick, our small group hiked 40 minutes up to the glacier where we were given instructions on ice walking. “Walk like an American cowboy,” Daniel, our young guide, explained. “You don’t want the front spikes of your crampons digging in. Down you will go.” Next time I will listen more closely to my instructor.
Once on the ice, we crunched over some amazing terrain with crevasse, sink holes and ice ridges that a week from now will have moved in another direction. Only the crampons hitting ice broke the silence. I scooped up and drank cold, pure water from little pools.
Solheimajokull glacier is near the sleeping giant known as Katla volcano, which is overdue to erupt. Now that would have been an adventure.
Arcanum Glacier Tours offer glacier walks, snowmobiling, ice climbing, super jeep tours and ATV tours. If you are planning a trip to Iceland — and you should — go online to www.arcanum.is.
At the end of a one-and-a-half-hour hike on the Solheimajokull glacier on the south coast of Iceland, I looked around for a final view of this magnificent ice walking adventure. It was then that I caught my front spikes and headed downward, my life flashing before my eyes.
I threw my ice pick to the left; with my right hand, I swung my camera hanging around my neck to the right and turned my upper body just enough left to protect the only face that belongs to me. My left hand and my left ear connected with solid ice. Ouch! I was back on my feet before I had to take a standing eight count. Both my ear and left hand were cut. I did not know the left hand was cut and bleeding until I took off my glove at the end of a 40-minute hike back to the bus. Albeit the ear was treated it continued to bleed during the two-hour ride back to Reykjavik. To those friends who prayed for my safe walk on the glacier, next time pray harder.
Would I hike the glacier again? It was one of the most amazing adventure experiences of my life. The exhilaration, the breathtaking view, the crevasses with their Tidy Bowl blue water far outweighed any bonk on the head.
Carrying crampons, helmet and ice pick, our small group hiked 40 minutes up to the glacier where we were given instructions on ice walking. “Walk like an American cowboy,” Daniel, our young guide, explained. “You don’t want the front spikes of your crampons digging in. Down you will go.” Next time I will listen more closely to my instructor.
Once on the ice, we crunched over some amazing terrain with crevasse, sink holes and ice ridges that a week from now will have moved in another direction. Only the crampons hitting ice broke the silence. I scooped up and drank cold, pure water from little pools.
Solheimajokull glacier is near the sleeping giant known as Katla volcano, which is overdue to erupt. Now that would have been an adventure.
Arcanum Glacier Tours offer glacier walks, snowmobiling, ice climbing, super jeep tours and ATV tours. If you are planning a trip to Iceland — and you should — go online to www.arcanum.is.
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