Snowmobiling for Chickens
A few days ago I got asked if I wanted to go snowmobiling on top of Langjökull glacier. And for some strange reason, I said yes. Now, I am the sort of person who never goes on a rollercoaster, I drive under the speed limit, and I can’t even think about parachuting without getting nauseous. In short: I am a chicken. So going on a snowmobile tour is something I imagined I would never do, and definitely something I thought I could never enjoy. I was wrong.
- Find snowmobiling tours here
As I said, I am afraid of most things, everything from heights to awkward social situations (and puppets...I hate puppets). Sure, I may seem really cool; I wear black rim glasses and make my own hummus, but underneath all this chic exterior is a coward. So, in an attempt to avoid an awkward situation (and not wanting to look uncool), I went snowmobiling…on a glacier.
Is this what fun looks like?
To prepare myself, I studied up and read everything I could about snowmobile tours (nothing says ‘cool’ like preparation, just look at the boy scouts). The tour descriptions all said something like ‘whizz across the ice cap’ or ‘race across open snow fields’. No way Jose! I don’t want to race anywhere or whizz across anything. Slow and steady is the pace for this gal.
On the day of the tour, I was anxious, but I managed to disguise it as excitement. ("Oh, yes, I am shaking with excitement...not fear, definitely not fear"). And although the ride through Þingvellir National Park to Gullfoss waterfall was very beautiful and scenic, I didn’t enjoy it as I could think of nothing but my impending doom.
- Find Golden Circle tours here
My friends and I arrived at Gullfoss café around noon, where the guys at Mountaineers of Iceland were going to pick us up on a special all-terrain vehicle. I don’t know what I expected for our transportation, I guess something like a Super Jeep, a large vehicle that would handle the rough drive up the glacier, but that’s not what we got. No, we got a MONSTER straight out of a post-apocalyptic sci-fi movie.
In a dystopian future...
Just look at that thing! This towering black frame with gigantic wheels that stood before me did not calm me one bit! Why would I want to go somewhere where you need THIS to get there? Most of the people around looked excited though. They couldn’t wait to climb into this Mad Max-esque ride and feel its power while it crushed the snow and ice on the way.
The ride to Langjökull glacier took around 40 minutes, and the knot in my stomach grew bigger and bigger with every second. On the way, I considered asking the man next to me if he’d be willing to hold my hand but he looked too excited to be there. I’m also pretty sure that would have been considered creepy on my part. So, sick to my stomach, I suffered in silence.
At least the view was pretty good
We got out of the monster and walked to a small cabin where we put on thick overalls, gloves, helmets, etc. I generally don’t do things that involve needing a helmet (for obvious reasons) but to keep the cool, I usually tell people that I just don’t want to mess my edgy haircut. Now, however, I was on top of a glacier, about to ride around on a snowmobile. To hell with my gorgeous hair!
- See also Glaciers in Iceland
I managed to get really close to our tour guide Aron as he explained the safety procedures because I did not want to miss a single word. I thought about taking out my notepad (of course I brought a notepad) and write down everything he said, but the gloves were too thick, and it turned out, the safety procedures weren’t too many or complicated. Aron actually made it seem that riding a snowmobile was pretty easy. That can’t be right? Can it?
So if I turn the steering wheel left it goes to the left?
I got on my ride and started a frantic conversation with myself in my head:
What if I got lost or the sledge breaks down? -Aron said to just stop and wait for him.
What if I need to go to the bathroom? Do I need to go to the bathroom? No, I don’t think so but what if I do? -Well, we haven’t started, there is still time for the bathroom.
What if a snowman comes and tries to…-Ok. this is getting silly. Look around; there are children on the back of these things. You can do this. You are a grown woman, you own a washing machine and you drink coffee (caramel frappuccinos). You can do this!
So I've got to worry about elves now too?
And then we were off. The sky was clear and blue, and my heart was beating fast, but this time it was genuine excitement. It really wasn’t fear now; I was actually having fun. My plan of going slow and steady the whole way was completely forgotten. I wanted to go faster! And my worst fear; that of being left behind, quickly disappeared when I noticed how fast a tour guide on a snowmobile would show up next to those who had fallen a bit behind. That’s the kind of dangerous activity I like; the safe kind.
I was told that we ‘raced across the ice cap’ for around 25 minutes but I was having too much fun to pay attention to the time. We stopped at a place with a great view so we could take some awesome selfies. Which was perfect because I really needed proof that I had done this. Nobody would believe me without proof.
Proof
After taking the perfect selfie, we started heading back. I tried to go as fast as possible, reaching incredible speeds of 40 km/h. Sure, there were others who went faster, but for me, the chicken, 40 km/h was fast enough.
The ride back felt too short and when I saw the little cabin again I was a little sad. Before we set out, I was sure that I would rejoice when I saw that cabin again. It would mean my nightmare was over. The sight of it now, however, meant that my adventure was over. The cowardly daredevil was going home.
Helmet hair
We said goodbye to our amazing tour guides and climbed aboard the monster, which didn’t look like a monster anymore. It was just a (really) large truck now. Again, I didn’t enjoy its power, but this time it wasn’t because I was afraid. It was because I couldn’t wait to get back to a place that had WIFI so I could upload my pictures to Instagram and show off what cool things this cool chick did on a Saturday.
Do you think you have the guts to go snowmobiling? If you'd like to try, follow the link below for this tour.
기타 흥미로운 블로그
요쿨살론부터 비크까지, 꽃보다 청춘 5화
드디어 하늘씨과 쓰리스톤즈가 합류했는데요! 설원을 달리는 모습에 저도 아이슬란드가 엄청 그리워졌답니다. 빙하와 빛나는 요쿨살론 첫번째로 향한 요쿨살론(Jokulsarlon)은 아이슬란드의 대표적인 명소 중 하나랍니다. 영어로 Glacier lagoon 이라고도 하는데요. 방송에 나온 것처럼 눈 앞에 보이는 빙하는 빙하수가 흘러서 녹았다 얼었다를더 보기스코가포스 폭포부터 오로라까지, 꽃보다청춘 4화를 따라서
여행 5일째, 포스톤즈가 처음으로 향한 곳은 아이슬란드 남부에 있는 스코가포스 폭포(skogasfoss)입니다. 아이슬란드 남부의 대표적인 폭포 중 하나에요. 방송에서는 들르지 않았지만 스코가포스 거의 바로 옆에 위치한 셀리야란드스포스(seljalandsfoss) 폭포와 함께 같이 들르곤 한답니다. 스코가포스 폭포는 폭포의 물줄기 끝까지 올라갈 수 있단더 보기꽃청춘을 따라서
요즘 인기리에 방영되고 있는 꽃보다 청춘 아이슬란드편! 저도 매주 빼놓지 않고 시청하고 있습니다. 많은 분들께서 포스톤즈의 발랄한 매력과 아이슬란드의 놀라운 경치에 빠져드셨을 것 같습니다! 이번에는 꽃보다 청춘을 따라서 아이슬란드를 한번 가보도록 해요! 사실 아이슬란드가 한국에서 그렇게 가기 쉬운 나라는 아닙니다. 거리도 멀고 항공권도 비싸고! 우더 보기
아이슬란드 최대의 여행 마켓플레이스를 전화에 다운로드하여 전체 여행을 한 곳에서 관리하세요
전화 카메라로 이 QR 코드를 스캔하고 표시되는 링크를 누르면 아이슬란드 최대의 여행 마켓플레이스를 주머니에 넣을 수 있답니다. 다운로드 링크가 포함된 SMS 또는 이메일을 받으려면 전화번호 또는 이메일 주소를 추가하세요.