After marking the spots with pins, I linked them with a elastic rope and I got the first version of my route. The main issue of that route was that it included doing Möðrudalur–Sprengisandur–Varmahlíð, and that was 400 kilometers off-road between gas stations. Too risky even with extra fuel, so I abandoned that idea and had to redo the whole route.
Using Google Maps, I calculated all distances and times on the actual roads to obtain the average per day. It looked like an easy plan that would allow me to rest some days.
To spare me the high prices of accomodation in Iceland, I will camp with my own tent most of the nights. I realized that if I always move forward, I would have to plant and remove my tent everyday. Also, I wouldn’t have many chances of washing and drying my clothes. Once again, I modified the route to travel in loops and stay in every place as many nights as possible. Another advantage of the loops is that if I get too tired or there is any issue, I can cancel them and still be on schedule for the next stage. So now it looks like this.
The downside of the loops is that they make riding distances and times quite longer. I recalculated this, and also reviewed the Lonely Planet guide once more to add the time that I would stop in every place. It turned out to be too much, so I shortened some routes and removed some sights from the plan.
At the same time, I decided where I’m going to stay every night. It’s not so easy as dividing hours by days, because in Iceland you may want to make it shorter or longer and stay in a place with good services. In the Highlands, there are a few places where one is allowed to camp at all.
I ended with big differences between days, so I’m still doing minor adjustements trying to balance them. But the plan is pretty much defined and I have already done most of the bookings. These include the hotels in which I will rest now and then.
You know I don’t want to share the all the details before the trip, but here are some numbers:
- 5400 kilometers in total.
- 95 riding hours in total.
- 260 kilometers average per day.
- 376 kilometers the longest route in a single day.
- 335 kilometers the longest route between gas stations.
I hope I haven’t gone too crazy. I’m sure Vacaburra can’t do 300 kilometers off-road loaded on a single tank, so I’ll fit Rotopax containers and other parts that I will show you when I get them.
By the way, the snow is gone and the motorbike is ready to be taken from storage. It’s still quite chilly, but I will start the season very soon.