My Travel Blog: Iceland Diaries - Solheimajokull Glacier hike

Iceland is a lonely traveler's heaven. The breathtaking landscapes and the ominous silence makes it one of the best places to relax and not only discover the wonders of nature, but to discover yourself. During winters, it is one of the harshest places on Earth. With chilly winds and snow everywhere, its hard to find a "normal" form of life. Even human civilization is sparse once you move out of the capital city area.

On Christmas last year, we went for a hike on Solheimajokull glacier in southern Iceland which is about 2.5 hour ride from Reykjavik. Add the snow showers and it takes about 3-3.5 hours. The tour bus takes a detour on a small road from the highway and within about 30 mins, it stops in front of a small cafe where the trail for the hike starts. Too bad the cafe was closed for Christmas as we would have loved some hot chocolate in those conditions.

After a brief lecture from the glacier guide and putting on the crampons, we started a couple of hours of journey - Yes, just a couple! Trust me, it's a lot if you are doing it for the first time. I am not an expert on glaciers, so I will just give a brief overview of what glaciers are and what kind of effect they have on surroundings as the guides told us.

Solheimajokull glacier in front of the frozen lagoon. The big boulder in lower center are carried by glacier's movement and not just due to erosion (That's one of the theories.).

Some very important things you should keep in mind while preparing for a hike of this kind:

Normal snow shoes don't work as you are walking on ice, not snow. You have to wear crampons and keep an ice axe.
Warm clothing is important as you might experience -10 degrees C of temperatures or even lower. It is important that the first layer of your clothing be a thermal warmer so it keeps your body heat from escaping. Also keep an extra pair or socks.
If possible, try getting a Balaclava which would cover your face. If you don't have it then even a scarf will do the job.
While we hiked, there were snow showers the entire way. Getting a rain/snow jacket is recommended.
Being hydrated is very important. You don't realize it while hiking, but once you are done your body responds to what it has been through. Keep a water bottle or much better a sports drink such as Gatorade. Also, chocolates are an excellent choice since they give you instant energy.

On the glacier, tons of snow covers the solid ice underneath.

Everything I said above just came in handy. While you are walking on a glacier with a group, you should be in a straight line following the steps of the person in front of you. This is especially very important if you are hiking in winters. There is a lot of snow around you and you never know if there is solid ice or ground underneath it. The best way to check where you are going is to use the ice axe.

The glaciers in Iceland have a history of encounters with volcanic ash since there are a lot of active volcanoes nearby. A very famous one which would ring a bell is Eyjafjallajokul the notorious volcano which hampered many flight across Europe and America when it spewed the ash across the continents. The problem was the engineers did not know how much ask is required for the motors to stop working. And of course no one wants to be in a plane whose motor could possibly stop in the middle of the journey.

Volcanic ash on the Glacier

So along with the bluish ice, you will see dark colors in glaciers which are basically the ask from the volcanoes. Glaciers are an interesting phenomenon. They keep growing during winters due to the enormous amount of snow and in the summers they melt forming rivers and lagoons. During summers, this glacier has a spectacular view with an awesome landscape in the background and the bluish ice. However, these days the glaciers are melting faster than they grow, probably because of global warming which is still a matter of discussion. Nevertheless, some people believe that Solheimajokull glacier will disappear in 100-150 years. To form one meter of ice, about ten meters of snow is required. Just imagine the rate of melting then! Its quite alarming.

Of course there is tons of ice in glaciers and there would not be a single block of it. The ice cracks under its own weight and forms structures as you can see in the pictures below. This is one of the ways in which glaciers grow. Also, unlike rock which cannot flow, ice can. Ice is kind of a fluid. It is the crystal form of water and as the tendency to flow though at a very slow speed, which we won't notice for a short amount of time. The fluid flows under the action of gravity and the weight from tons of ice above. As the glaciers move, they carve out a pattern on the surrounding mountains. These patterns are clearly visible during summer when there is less snow.

And this is one of the reasons I want to visit Iceland in the summer. The glacier ice is visible and the day length is significantly high. In fact in some regions, you can see the midnight sun. So when I visit again, there might be a few more posts about it. In the end I would say visiting Iceland during winter was worth it. I was always afraid of being in cold temperatures. Well, the fear is gone. I learned about a new culture. A new way of life in this land.

You can find more information about glaciers in general here. I would be happy to have any comments and suggestions on the comments below or just drop a text on my wall :)