Small housekeeping note: I'm a little uncertain how to format my wealth of media with the storyline. For now, I'm trying to just dump media at the end of each subsection. The photos tell the story just as well, if not better, than my words. However, this results in some huge blocks of photos! But gahdamn, this country, y'all. It's too gorgeous to not flood you with so many photos. However, if anyone has a preference for less media throughout the storytelling and then just a huge media dump following that - or any other creative formatting ideas - let me know in the comments.
A Slow Start to the Day
Day two began slowly, a blessing after the long travel day before. Breakfast wasn’t until 10a, and we didn’t leave for the corrals until around 11:30a.
Following breakfast, Kim (Siggi’s wife) came out into the common room where Kate and I and some others were sitting and chatting as we waited to head to the horses.
“So are you my Americans?” she asked Kate and I. We smiled and nodded in answer.
She then looked at me, “And you’re my endurance rider!” I smiled and nodded again.
She asked me if I was sure I didn’t want a different horse given my endurance background, “Don’t you want a different horse? Something more exciting?”
I shared with her what I had noted the night before about Penny. While another horse could be fun to ride from a standpoint of experiencing the breed, I wanted to be able to relax and take in the sights and capture them. The trip was horse centric, but I also wanted to take in this country.
I asked Kim about the flying pace and expressed interest in that if possible, but noted that most importantly I didn’t want a horse too forward and heavy in the hand that I always had to hold back. She told me she’d see if they had anything and we left it at that.
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| Ran the GPS in two chunks on this day. Total stats for both legs of the trip to and from Arnastapi above. |
Riding Out to Arnastapi
By mid-morning, we took a short shuttle to the corrals, saddled up, and set out toward Arnastapi, a small fishing village on the coast. The trail wound along dramatic clifftops, offering sweeping views of black sand beaches and the North Atlantic. Freshwater streams plunged over the cliffs, carving silver ribbons that tumbled into the sea below. Thanks to the good fortune of mild weather we were promised stunning views.
As we left the farm, we traveled parallel to the road for a short way before crossing through pastures that bordered the hotel. My head was on a swivel the entire time as I took in the stunning landscape around me. Sunlight slipped between clouds, spotlighting green pastures, black lava rock beaches, and deep blue ocean. Remarkable.
Penny was quite settled compared to the night prior, and I found him very trustworthy as we traveled across the terrain. He knew where he was going and was surefooted over the terrain, allowing me to enjoy taking in the countryside.
The views along the cliffs were absolutely stunning. Vistas like these, coupled with the mountains meeting the coastline, were a big draw for me to Iceland. It’s so dramatic and beautiful to see how the freshwater streams plunge toward the ocean. To observe the sunlight dancing between clouds to strike the landscape and light up the brilliant greens and contrast them to the black stone and sand and the blue hues of the ocean. We were remarkably fortunate to have such stunning weather on this day.
The trip along the coastline was unhurried , mostly walk with a bit of tölt then and again. We took two breaks to rest the horses, snack, and take in the scenery.
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| Penny making the most of his last moments in the corral by napping. |
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| Stori Kambur horses that weren't a part of our trip waiting for day-tour guests. |
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| Saddle and bags. |
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| Heading out from the corrals. We will eventually end up on the spit of land that extends into the ocean in the upper left of the photo |
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| Blurry, but look at that lovely pasture! |
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Grey building is our nightly accommodation
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| Glacier in the distance |
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| Holy Ram; common area, hotel rooms, and sauna |
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| One of many streams we would encounter and cross on our way to Arnastapi |
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| Perfect Penny <3 |
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| Just a horse and his home |
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| Even 10+ days later going through these photos for this post I cannot get over this stunning landscape |
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| Freshwater inlets |
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| First crossing above a significant waterfall! |
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| Bye water! |
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| This landscape with the horses and riders. I CANNOT. |
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| IT'S JUST SO BEAUTIFUL |
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| Break for snackies! |
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| Approaching Arnastapi |
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| Utterly delighted with life |
Exploring Arnastapi
When we reached Arnastapi, we untacked the horses and turned them out into a pasture to graze while we explored the coastline for about an hour. Many in our group opted to enjoy tea in a local cafe. However, Kate and I chose to hike along the coastline to look for a natural bridge arch. Unfortunately for us, we went the wrong way to see it but it was still a beautiful hike. The cliffs and rocks only became more dramatic and the sunlight danced across the landscape highlighting the stark contrast of colors and textures.
At the set return time, Kate and I met back up with the group at the pasture where we rounded up the horses and tacked them up for the return trip.
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| Horses being turned out for an hour break |
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| Penny rolling; it would quickly become a goal for me to photograph my horse rolling every time |
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| Like Q, he doesn't roll over and opts instead to roll one side then stand and do the other |
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| Dramatic coastline views |
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| Sweet boy |
The Ride Back
Our return trip was predominantly along the main road. However, we did traverse some old road grades along the mountain slope. Along one of these, we had a good gallop along with lots of tölting.
Penny was amazing. His relaxed personality allowed me to thoroughly enjoy the company, the landscape, and the ride, while capturing lots of media. Utter perfection!
In no time at all, we reached home base for the night for the horses - which was the pasture right behind the hotel! We turned the horses out, put our saddles in the barn nearby, and headed in for the night. All in all, the day ended up being ~3 hours in the saddle for 10.5 miles.
As it would turn out, our room was the closest to the pasture and had the best view of the horses. It was so lovely to see them from the windows as we wound down for the night!
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| View from our room window |
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| Happy horses |
Evening Reflections
Dinner was hearty and delicious: lamb sausage, potatoes in béchamel sauce, peas, and red cabbage kraut, followed by homemade ice cream with berries and chocolate drizzle.
Over the meal, we learned the plan for the next day: a longer ~25 km ride eastward along the peninsula’s coast. I went to bed tired but eager for what awaited.
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