The Logistics
Weather
Matt and I cycled Iceland’s Ring Road (Route 1) in the peak of summer, from June 23rd to July 15th, 2023. Opting for summer had a dual advantage: milder temperatures and the enchanting midnight sun. The idea of perpetual daylight thrilled us, granting us the freedom to pedal whenever.
However, knowing that we would have daylight 24 hours a day is where the predictability of Iceland’s weather ends. The weather in Iceland is truly erratic. More than once, we had the pleasure of experiencing all four seasons in the span of one day. And while some days did present consistent weather conditions, those days were often coupled with fierce winds and rain. Over the course of our 21 day trip, we experienced temperatures ranging from 32°F (0°C) to 72°F (22°C). For the first half of our trip, we were stuck in a loop of on and off again rain. For the second half of our trip we were lucky enough to have mostly dry conditions.
That being said, the rain did not bother us nearly as much as the wind. I knew Iceland was windy. I had been there once before, though by car, and remembered being shocked at the sheer force of the wind gusts. Yet, I still underestimated how debilitating the wind would be during this trip. On any typical day, the wind speeds could range from 10-15 mph. It is not uncommon for wind speeds to reach anywhere between 20-40 mph, and, if you get caught in a storm, you can expect the wind gusts to exceed 70 mph. I will never forget the third day of our trip when we were cycling through our strongest headwind of the trip. There were points that day where we were pedaling downhill in our lowest gear and the wind was still strong enough to stop us. Many times the head and crosswind were strong enough to push us around the roads. We were lucky enough to experience a handful of tailwind days, and those almost made up for the strong headwinds!
Overall, I knew I wasn’t going to Iceland to cycle in pristine weather conditions. While the weather was a larger challenge than I originally anticipated, Matt and I did not let it deter us. We adjusted our pacing as best we could: taking it easier on bad weather days and rode longer on sunny days with tailwinds. Iceland’s beautiful days are truly a gift. When you experience a beautiful day there, I truly feel like you are experiencing one of the most beautiful day’s our planet has to offer!
Road Conditions + Traffic
Since Route 1 is Iceland’s main highway, the roads are kept in relatively good condition. It is important to note that heavy traffic combined with harsh winters do wear down the roads. It was not uncommon for us to encounter stretches of road that were rougher than others: potholes, alligator cracking, sections of the shoulder completely missing, and sections of road that were solely base material, yet to be paved.
Traffic varied greatly and was mainly dependent on where we were. Naturally, traffic was a bit heavier the closer we were to major cities, such as Reykjavik or Akureyri, then dispersed the farther we got from them. Route 1 does not have the widest shoulder, but it does provide some space from the road. Cars were usually good about slowing down and getting over when they came to pass us. A few things to note:
There are two tunnels that cyclists are forbidden to ride through, due to traffic. These would be the tunnels near Reykjavik and Akureyri. More info in the route section.
The stretch with the highest traffic is the south coast route from Reykjavik to Hofn, with the densest traffic corridor between Reykjavik and Vik.
We frequently encountered large trucks on the road between Reykjavik and Akureyri. These trucks would signal with honks if they couldn't shift lanes due to traffic or blind spots.
Keflavik to Reykjavik actually has a huge shoulder. While a very busy highway, this might be where I felt most protected.
Overall, I felt mostly safe when biking the Ring Road. The times I didn’t there was always an extra factor at play and it was never on the roads or drivers themselves; strong wind not allowing me to have full control over where I’m biking, fog through a mountain, etc. Matt and I were diligent about keeping our taillights charged, wore bright colored jackets, and walked through sections that called for it (dense fog and blind corners mainly) and we never ran into any issues.
Water Availability
Perhaps Iceland’s biggest gift to bikepackers is the abundance of free, fresh, filtered glacier water readily available. The streams coursing through Iceland are directly sourced from glaciers, providing pristine, drinkable water. Throughout our journey, we had numerous opportunities to replenish our water bottles daily. The only caveat is being cautious around streams near or originating from farmlands to avoid potential exposure to chemicals or bacteria.
Additionally, all tap water from the cold tap is safe to drink in Iceland. It is important to note that the hot water in Iceland can have a sulfur smell to it and may contain sulphuric acid, and is generally deemed as not fit to drink.
Food Availability + Packing
Food provisions are readily accessible, predominantly within towns along the route. While gas stations, restaurants, and supermarkets are abundant in these towns, it's important to clarify that these amenities are not conveniently scattered every 20-30 miles along the journey. Instead, we encountered businesses only in the mornings and evenings, coinciding with our campsite locations.
The most common places to buy food are super markets and gas stations. The most popular super markets are: Bonus, Netto, and Kronan. The supermarkets have set hours and these hours are consistent around the country. The gas stations in Iceland offer hot and fresh food as well as plenty of packaged options. The hours and food offerings do vary wildly depending on where you are at. We were always able to find information on the hours online. Our two favorite gas stations for food were Orkan and N1.
For the sake of weight, we didn’t want to carry a ton of food on us and generally picked up the food we needed for a day the morning of or the night before. That being said, we always had an emergency supply of food on us that could last for two days, in case we got in a tricky situation; a storm we couldn’t cycle in and were stuck with wild camping, bike problems, etc. Additionally, we were well-prepared for points along the route where restocking opportunities were limited.
Matt and I ate a lot. We had a huge breakfast every morning, a decent snack ~ every hour or every 10ish miles, a good sized lunch, and a huge dinner. Honestly, on a 21 day bikepacking trip, you cannot get enough food. Your muscles need as much energy as they can get, so don’t skimp on your go-to snacks!
Something to note, you can only get Ibuprofen behind the counter at pharmacies!
Gear Availability
While food and water were readily available, biking and camping gear were not. The only bike shops are located in Reykjavik and Akureyri (aside from one shop in the Westfjords) and the best places to go to a true camping store are in Reykjavik, Akureyri, Egilsstaðir, and Hella.
That being said, most campsites have kitchens, so we found that one gas canister got us through our trip just fine. Gas canisters could also be found at every N1 we stopped at, so we would have never had an issue finding them if we needed any more. About half of the N1s we stopped at also had a small selection of camping gear available, albeit a bit overpriced: bowls, cups, utensils, pots, dry bags, pillows, etc.
Active wear is more readily available, as many of the tourist spots have an Icewear or 66 North attached to it. We didn’t see one every day by any means, but enough to know that we could make due until we passed another one if we needed anything. Both Icewear and 66 North are pretty expensive though! I ended up needing a better pair of rain shell pants and we both purchased waterproof overgloves from Icewear. The quality was impeccable, but it made a dent in our wallets.
Campsites
Camping is super popular in Iceland, so there is no shortage of campsites! We found every campsite to be clean and most campsites in Iceland have great accommodations. Nine out of ten of the campsites we stayed at had kitchens and showers. All of them had toilets and running water. A third had a washer, and half of those came with a dryer.
We didn’t need to make any reservations at any of the campsites, we just showed up! The only exception to this was Camp Egilsstaðir. They require that you book online. A reservation far in advance wasn’t necessary, we could easily have booked the day of, they just require you to do it on their website. The campsites are a free for all; no designated spots, just find somewhere to pitch your tent. We found camping in Iceland to be very laid back and stress free.
The campsites along the south coast are definitely busier, but all of them are reasonably priced. The average we spent on a campsite was $22.00 USD. Every campsite we stayed at had the ability to take a Visa or Mastercard, and most had an honesty box where you could deposit cash (Icelandic Krona only) if there wasn’t a formal reception and you missed the camp host. Only a handful of campsites required us to pay an additional cost for the showers. If you do have to pay for showers, they take the 100 Krona or 50 Krona coins. Matt and I made sure to take out cash and coins at the airport, but honestly it was unnecessary. Any campsite that required coins for the showers or laundry (laundry always needed coins) allowed you to purchase coins with your card at reception. However, it was handy to have some cash on hand with the honesty box for campsites. We camped at two campsites where we never saw the host because we got in late and woke up early, and it was the only way to pay. Again, maybe not necessary, but we would have felt terrible leaving the campsite without paying.
Something to note–most of these campsites are in towns. And most towns also have public heated swimming pools. Communal pools and springs are super popular in Icelandic culture. All of these pools are equipped with a heated pool, a hot tub, and showers, because it is required that you shower before you get in. Many people we met took advantage of the pool showers as opposed to the camp showers, especially in the select few campsites that didn’t offer a shower. Matt and I never did this, but only because we typically got a late start and didn’t end our days until somewhere between 8-10pm, and most of the public pools close around 8:00 or 9:00 pm.
Money
It is true that things in Iceland are generally more expensive. Matt and I have been to Iceland twice. The first time we were living in Springfield, MO and have since relocated to Seattle, WA. We found the prices in Iceland to be more shocking when we were living in Springfield than when we went again this more recent time, having lived in Seattle. Take that for what you may, it could have very well been because we knew what to expect this time around. In any case, here are some important things to note about money in Iceland:
You can use your debit or credit card everywhere in the country, or at least we’ve always been able to. Visa and Mastercard are universally accepted. Discover and American Express will not be accepted outside of a few select places in Reykjavik.
As of July 2023, $1000 ISK= $7.60 USD. So whenever purchasing anything in Iceland, I would usually multiply it by 8 to get an approximate of what I was spending.
Tipping is not practiced in restaurants, which adds to the cost of food a bit.
Our average amount spent on food for each day from gas stations or supermarkets was $30-40 USD. We did buy a lot of snacks and usually a coke or gatorade as well.
Our average bill at a restaurant when we wanted to eat out was $75 USD, without purchasing alcohol. We didn’t drink alcohol while we were cycling to stay hydrated, and waited to celebrate until we were back in Reykjavik and our trip was complete.
Bonus will be your cheapest supermarket, it is basically the Icelandic Aldi. Netto will be your most expensive option.
Saftey
Iceland is considered one of the safest countries in the world. Our whole trip, we felt very at ease leaving our bikes unlocked and unattended going into grocery stores, restaurants, and gas stations. We were never worried at campsites. The only place we ended up locking our bikes was in Reykjavik, but even then, we left all of our bags on and had zero issues.
Route + Campsites
After a lot of consideration and research, Matt and I decided to cycle Iceland clockwise. At the time of planning, our reasons for this were: slightly more favorable chances that we would get favorable winds and to get the harder part out of the way first, while we had energy and were both fresh.
In hindsight, this was absolutely the right decision for us. In my opinion, there are huge pros in cycling Iceland clockwise.
You really are getting the hard part over with first, while you are fresh. The south coast of Iceland is flat. Especially compared to the rest of the country. So by going clockwise, you get 80% of the climbing done in the first half of your trip with fresh legs and high spirits.
By going clockwise, you are predicted to have favorable winds 55% of the time. When we originally planned the route, my thought on this statistic was, “Eh– that’s not a huge difference.” But let me tell you, ANYTIME you can get a tailwind, it makes the BIGGEST difference. The winds in Iceland are fierce and unforgiving. There were numerous times headwinds stopped us while we were going downhill… in our lowest gear. I will never forget our 3rd day of this trip. It was definitely the hardest day we had in terms of wind. With 3.5 miles to go we noticed an Orkan gas station. Matt suggested stopping for hot food instead of cooking to lift our spirits a bit after battling with the wind all day. After we got our food we set off for our last 3.5 miles. With the wind, this took us an hour. Here are a few wind resources we used to plan this trip and to monitor wind changes during our trip.
From Egilsstaðir back to Reykjavik, our trip truly felt like a holiday. The hardest climbs were done and we were approaching all of the places we wanted to stop and enjoy. Not that there isn’t a lot to see in the north, there is! The landscapes are still beautiful and otherworldly, there is just even more of that in the east and south. Knowing everything we had to look forward to made the “work” in the north easier to face when times were tough for us.
That being said, there are pros in cycling counterclockwise:
There is definitely more to see in the south and the east. This is where we wanted to spend the most of our time and where our daily miles decreased to really enjoy everything. Matt and I were faced with a tough decision early on in our trip when we got sick: do we rest a day and bike extra to make the miles up throughout the trip? Or do we bus a bit, allowing us to stay on schedule and not take any time away from the east and south? We ended up busing. Inevitably, your plan will go awry on this trip in some form. If your schedule ends up changing, it is important to spend the time where you are most passionate about.
The traffic is heaviest going counterclockwise from Reykjavik to Vik. Then will ease up a bit after Vik to Hofn, although it’s still pretty busy. It really won’t let up until after Hofn. So by going counterclockwise, you battle traffic at the beginning when you are mentally fresh and the rest of the trip will feel like a holiday, in regards to traffic!
The south is more populated. The towns are larger and more well stocked.
It is important to note, that regardless of the direction you cycle, there is an incredibly remote section of Iceland with limited resources between Reykjahlid/Myvatn and Egilsstaðir. 104 miles of nothing. There are no gas stations, restaurants, supermarkets, or towns to restock or to stay at. The one exception to this is around Dettifoss, ~30ish miles outside of Reykjahlid, there is a guesthouse and a campsite. However, it is 5 miles off of the ring road, which will add 10 miles to that section over all. While that doesn’t sound significant, depending on wind conditions, it can be incredibly significant. Luckily, you can wild camp in Iceland under the condition that you physically cannot make it to the next campsite, so our plan was to go about halfway and wild camp. Of course we practiced leave no trace. The last thing to note in this section is that the landscape is really barren. Because of this, it can get dangerously windy. We kept an eye on the weather and were fortunate to experience our normal troublesome winds, but nothing extreme.
Lastly, there is also a larger gap between Hofn and Svinafell, where you have 80 miles with no campsites. There are small towns and businesses between the two towns, just not a place to camp. If you get the right wind conditions, the 80 miles would be a breeze because of how flat the ride is. That being said, this section also contains Glacier Lagoon, Diamond Beach, and many other points that you might want to stop and spend some time at. Matt and I didn’t want to rush this section, so we were originally planning to wild camp about half way. However, another bikepacker told us about Guesthouse Gerdi, a guesthouse that allows you to camp on their property. This just so happens to be halfway between Hofn and Svinafell. We emailed them and they were happy to let us camp! Additionally, this was our favorite place to camp at: it was quiet and remote. They allowed us a private shower in the morning, before the rooms were cleaned. They were happy to assist us with laundry and they have a delicious restaurant on their property.
For those interested, here is a detailed map of our route, supply points, campsites, and their accommodations. Feel free to make a copy or download each day to import into your GPS of choice:
Getting Your Bike In + Out Of Iceland
Keflavik airport has a bike pit for you to set up and break down your bike on airport property! It is decent sized and comes equipped with various tools you need as well as an air pump. This was our first time flying with our bikes. We had a lot of questions when we were initially planning this trip and had a hard time finding information. In case you are in the same boat, I thought I’d lay out our original bike and bike box plan, and then what we had to do instead after SeaTac airport thwarted our first plan.
We packed our bikes in bike boxes, which were easy to obtain from a local bike shop. We went with bike boxes as opposed to bags because not only was it far cheaper, it would leave us additional room to pack our equipment. We ended up with two bike boxes packed with not only our bikes, but sleeping bags, our tent, sleeping pads, clothes, cooking equipment, etc. This allowed us to travel through the airport with a pannier each as our carry on item. It also provided a little extra cushion for our bikes.
There is no official bike box storage at Keflavik airport. After some research, we discovered that many people leave their bike boxes in the bike pit. There is an unofficial leave a box take a box system. But this does come with some risk: airport staff are known to clean out the bike pit from time to time. You also run the risk of there simply not being any bike boxes to choose from.
That was not a risk Matt and I felt comfortable with, so we were left with trying to find storage for our two bike boxes. We found that there are some car rental places right near the airport that are happy to store your bike box for around $10 a day. All you do is walk in and ask. We considered that a solid plan B, as we were hoping not to spend $210 on bike box storage. We planned on staying at Kef Guesthouse the evening before our flight, so we thought we would take a chance and email them to see if they would mind storing our bike boxes. To our pleasant surprise, they were happy to help us and wouldn’t accept any payment as a thank you. We were thrilled to have a safe spot for them, save some money, and a chance to break down our bikes before we got to the airport the day of our flight.
To actually get our boxes from the bike pit to the guesthouse proved easy enough as well. After assembling our bikes, we were going to order 1 XL taxi from the airport. There are always dozens of taxis waiting in various sizes.. I was going to ride in the taxi with both boxes and my bike while Matt biked to Kef Guesthouse to meet me. I would drop off the boxes and when Matt arrived, we would be on our way.
Unfortunately, SeaTac Airport TSA absolutely SHREDDED our bike boxes. Like completely destroyed them. One of them was ripped completely down the middle. Since they weren’t usable, we tossed them at the bike pit and said we would figure something else out later.
Towards the end of our trip, we came up with a revised plan. Neither one of us wanted to risk getting to the airport and discovering there were no boxes, so we decided to pick some up in Reykjavik. We took a city bus to Makid, who informed us that they always have bike boxes on hand, so we stopped there and picked up two. From Makid we ordered a large taxi to take us back to our hostel. The certainty of having boxes did come at the sacrifice of an easy trip to the airport however, as we were no longer able to just bike to Keflavik. We ended up breaking our bikes down and packing everything up at our hostel. From there we took an XL taxi to BSI bus station, the Fly Bus to the airport, and an airport taxi to the Kef Guesthouse. Kef Guesthouse drove us to the airport the next morning.
For what it’s worth, Beppe, a bikepacker we met on the trip and who flew out a day earlier than us, informed us that there were a ton of boxes to choose from at the pit. Unfortunately he texted us as we were on the Fly Bus heading toward the airport. Additionally, another bikepacker we met, Weronika, arrived at the airport for her departure two weeks after we left. We’ve been following her story on Instagram, and she also mentioned getting to choose from several bike boxes at the pit on one of her insta stories. We probably would have been fine risking it, but with us needing to return to work the day after our flight, it wasn’t something we wanted to mess with.
Gear + Packing List
Here is a detailed list on what Matt and I packed on our 21 day trip and who packed what. We typically run a tubeless setup at home and did the same for this trip. We had zero issues with our tires and no flats.
Both our bikes run a 9 speed derailleur and a 11-42t cassette. This was what our bikes originally came with, and it was doable, but if we were to do this trip again, we would want to expand our cassette to offer more support on the climbs. We plan on upgrading this for future trips!
I will link any products that worked flawlessly and that we both recommend. If something isn’t linked— it is either a very general item or there is something better out there! These are not affiliate links.
Liv’s Bike Set Up
Bike:
Michelin Power Gravel Tires - Tubeless Black - V2 -700x35 (x2)
Ortlieb Ultimate Six Classic Handlebar Bag 5L (Will need to purchase the handlebar mount)
Really hard to find online— but this was the exact one!
EVOC Hydration Bladder 1.5L (Sat in my frame bag)
2 tubes (original ones my bike came with)
Sleeping:
Sea to Summit Sleeping Pad (I originally had the same one as Matt until it got an irreparable hole halfway through the trip)
Clothes:
Ortovox 185 Rock’N’Wool Sports Bra x2 — it was very comfortable and all merino wool. It doesn’t offer a lot of support for larger chested folks!
Pants x3 - I brought a mix of leggings and hiking pants
Sleep Shirt
Casual Shorts
Warm Jacket
Warm Water Resistant Gloves — they are NOT waterproof!!! But they are warm and lightweight
Ortles Powertex 3L Overmittens —waterproof!
Padded Biking Gloves
Baseball Cap
Knit Cap
Toiletries:
Toothbrush
Travel Size Toothpaste
Deodorant
Contacts
Glasses
Dr. Bronner’s Soap Bar
Lume (IYKYN)
Skin care products (I brought a wash, serum, and moisterizer)
Hair products (We both have curly hair so we brought gel and leave in conditioner)
Electronics (Minus Camera Equipment):
Cooking:
Fuel Canister
Utensils
All Snacks & Meals
Matt’s Bike Set Up
Bike:
Michelin Power Gravel Tires - Tubeless Black - V2 -700x35 (x2)
Ortlieb Ultimate Six Classic Handlebar Bag 6.5L (Will need to purchase the handlebar mount)
Really hard to find online— here is a link to a similar one with a different top
Wolf Tooth Components 8-Bit Pack Pliers Multi-Tool — it was okay. Kind of a pain to use.
Extra Michelin Power Gravel Tire — just in case!
Sleeping:
MEETPEAK Camping Sleeping Pad — we weren’t super happy with this product.
Heavy Stakes— for wind
Clothes:
Pants x3 — Matt brought some lightweight hiking pants
Sleep Shirt
Casual Shorts
Warm Puffer Jacket
Warm Water Resistant Gloves — they are NOT waterproof!!! But they are warm and lightweight
Ortles Powertex 3L Overmittens —waterproof!
Padded Biking Gloves
Hat
Knit Cap
Toiletries:
Deodorant
Glasses
Contacts
Toothbrush
Shampoo
Conditioner
Eye Drops
Comb
Electronics (Minus Camera Equipment):
Phone Charger
UGREEN 200W Charging Station — this is amazing
Anker 737 Power Bank (Emergency/Backup Block)
All charging cords
All camera equipment
Feel free to reach out if you have any questions— I’d be more than happy to help!
olivia.defay1102@gmail.com
