Tom, avoiding a large hole on the Skaftá

Skaftá, Part II Day 2

Our river tent, a 2 man Quaser, is really a bit cramped with 3 of us. The night was uncomfortable, with a damp and gritty sleeping bag, and not quite enough space. We don’t hang about and the weather has not improved much.

Tom, getting the line right on a gnarly rapid on the Skaftá

The river continues to throw challenges at us, there is more braiding, and we are forced to select a route largely at random. There are some really good sections though, and the weather has  cheered up a bit so we can get the camera out.

There are a couple of drops we walk around. There is one large drop that looks mostly OK, but it is hard to see the exact line, and after a bit of speculation we all walk around it. Andy has a hairy moment when he is caught side-surfing in a nasty hole just about a section that we really don’t want to run. Tom and I miss the whole thing and are mightily releaved that he did not come out.

We struggle to find the Land Rover, and we are not exactly sure if we are in the right part of the river, but eventually we hop out of our boats and portage into a different channel and  make it back. We also meet some horses, one of which just puts us in mind of Tina Turner.

Safely back at the Landrover after 2 days on the Skaftá

As we start cooking tea, the gas bottle runs out, and although we have searched about we have not been able to find anyone who can fill it for us. We have to use the Trangia, in combination with a gas stove I have acquired from my brother. Plan to head off to Reykjavik in the morning to see if we can have more joy with filling our gas bottle.