I arrived a day before the official start. Customs was quick and easy with no vaccination check. Bought some wine at Duty Free since alcohol in Iceland is heavily taxed. The drive to our hotel in Selfoss was over mostly flat, treeless countryside covered in moss, with the ocean on one side and cliffs on the other. Extremely sparsely populated. Excellent roads. Speed cameras were in known locations, so the driver alternated between 90kph and 110 kph. 

The hotel sits alongside the only river we crossed, which I found surprising. Largest river in Iceland by flow rate. After a nice breakfast I wandered around the town in new hiking boats. They need some serious breaking in. I visited Bokakaffio book store/cafe and had a fantastic hot chocolate. Paid $7 to visit the Bobby Fischer Museum. Ate Iceland’s famous hot dog, with all the trimmings. A messy affair. I need to have another with fewer add-ons before passing judgement. 

After a little nap I took off on a 5km hike along the river. Many birds, a few orange rabbits. Millions of flies. In all my reviews of Iceland, the bugs were a barely mentioned nuisance. They don’t bite, but they are relentless. Stopping to look at the view at any time brought about a swarm. Across the river was a golf course with everyone dressed as though to ski. Beautiful snow-covered mountains in the distance beckoned.  

Had lamb shawarma for dinner, perhaps for the first time. As predicted, darkness did not arrive. Not as predicted, it was never cold, wet, or windy.