Day 13 brought me to the east coast of Iceland for the first time. I experienced the legendary headwind that had eluded me up to this point. That, combined with the rain and brutal hill ascent made this the most challenging ride yet.
I had three options for getting into the east fjords: 1 - take the inland road that will get me directly to Breiðdalsvík, 2 - take the coastline route that would probably have epic scenery, but adds 30km and 1000m of additional climbing, or 3 - cut diagonally through the inland route and catch part of the coastline on my way. I opted for 3.
The first 40 kilometres were great. Sun was shining, no wind, small manageable hills to navigate. No complaints, until I hit the 40 kilometre mark.
The part of Route 95 that cuts out to the coast had the most extreme ascent I've ever tried. It was 300 metres over 4 kilometres with a sharp increase in the incline over the last kilometre. With the rain, headwind, and unsurfaced road conditions, I had to get off Dolores and push her for the last 750 metres. It's the first time I've had to do that.
The other side of the pass was just as daunting because of the extreme angle of decline and the loose dirt road I could barely maintain traction with. I rode down the mountain holding a death grip on my brakes just to maintain a reasonable pace and not start spinning out of control. My forearms were throbbing by the time I made it down.
Needless to say, this first 50 kilometres of the ride drained my energy. It took all my reserves to roll into Breiðdalsvík 33 kilometers later.
I had already decided I was taking the next day off, so I wasn't concerned about recovery. I grabbed a quick fish and chips at the local restaurant/general store, set up camp behind the hotel, and headed straight to the local bar.
I met another cyclist, Andrea, at the bar. He was covering 2400km across Iceland, and he brought a video crew to document the trip. Oh, did I mention he only has one leg?
He's an impressive guy, I encourage you to check out his website to see the stuff he gets up to - https://www.andreadevicenzi.it/ . He doesn't speak any English and I don't speak any Italian, but we had a great time playing pool while discussing cycling and our trips so far (through an interpreter).
I'm taking today (day 14) off to plan for the next five days. Back on the road tomorrow!
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