We had to cross a bunch of rivers, and in the absence of bridges driving through was one way to do it. Next to the ford in the following pictures is a hut which has a large collection of photos picturing failed river crossings by car - very educational. This bus and many others made it through safely though. Here, it was not recommended to cross the river on foot, but some people tried it nonetheless. We went by tractor.
Buses cross rivers all the time, sometimes going as deep as the tires are high.
On other occasions, though, there was no ford or street anywhere nearby and we had to cross on foot. This was actually very nice for many reasons:
It was thrilling, especially the first time. The water was fast and dirty, the ground rocky of varying depth. The worst that could happen was stumbling and falling into the water, getting oneself and one’s gear soaked while still having a large part of that day’s walk in front of one. Less serious but still annoying would be losing a shoe. Or a flip-flop in my case. Having seen a quickly disappearing Adilette (Adidas slipper) I made sure this wouldn’t happen to me.
Better safe than sorry, or Everything’s better with tape.
Also, it was fricking cold. Especially the one quite wide river coming directly from a glacier. I had to force myself to go slowly as to not lose my footing or flip-flops, even though my feet screamed “run” at me from pain, as did I once I successfully arrived at the other side. Quite funny when a minute later a car crossed the same ford and gave some other hikers a lift over the river. But. After a river crossing on foot the feet are nicely refreshed and due to the increased circulation so hot that they dry very quickly on their own.
Furthermore, whenever a river has to be crossed, you need to take some time and prepare. Take off your boots, socks and pants (trousers for you Brits), find your river crossing footwear, decide whether or not to use the walking sticks for more balance, and if not, store them away. Secure camera, phone etc. as to keep them dry in the worst case scenario. Loosen backpack straps. Find best spot to cross. Since all these things take a while you meet other hikers at river crossings. People getting prepared, or people getting dressed again on the other side. They help each other, point to crossing spots that worked for them, and of course watch each other to see how deep it is going to be. It’s a bonding experience, and really good fun.
And lastly, you can tell all your friends that you had to walk through rapid glacial rivers in Iceland!
Daniel crossing a river.
English girl helping me out. Photo taken by Daniel K.
This one was the deepest and scariest. Photo taken by Daniel K.
I made it anyway. Photo taken by Daniel K.
Comments
Mit’m Auto is für Luschen! (sorry, this one had to be in German) - der Erich
:-) Yeah, I am a Lusche.:-D - Kat
Kat, I saw you cross a river on foot! - Maike
Yeah, because there was no car I could have had hopped on and the river was only knee-deep.:-D And it was just a burn really and not a river.:-D - Kat
Comments