Treking in Iceland

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ajn1610

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I'm off to Iceland next Tuesday (whoop whoop) and want to ride some Icelandic ponies. Any recommendations? We have a car and will be driving around the island so location is not a problem. There are 4 of us, two experienced riders and two total novices.
 
Soup Dragon said:
Have a look at http://www.ishestar.is/ They were who I went on a week's trail ride with, it was a long time ago but they were good then.
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I went with these too - only for 2 hrs as my OH wasn't coming with me and I just wanted to give it a go as I was there. They're very near Reykjavik and will do minibus pickups at the hotels there so if you do have time there without a car, you can still go then and make the most of the car when you're travelling around rather than leaving it parked up for a while.

The horses (never call them ponies, they take it as an insult!) were well cared for and a decent range for all abilities. I was desperate to try tolting and I was glad I mentioned it beforehand as they don't all tolt so they have to give you one that does. I was put on a different horse first - I think they were checking I could ride - then I swapped with the guide for the one who could tolt. She was quite lively though! It's a strange feeling, much smoother than trotting as they alwys have one foot on the floor so you dont get the bounce.

I wouldn't bother taking your own stuff as due to bio-security (all horses in Iceland are born there and aren't allowed back when they leave, so have poor immunity to horsey diseases) you have to wear giant orange waterproof gear and their wellies. You can wear your own jods as long as they're freshly laundered and boots if they're new (so if you're doing a week it's probably worth it but not for a few hours unless you need any anyway) but you still have to put the trousers on top.

Iceland is amazing, literally like nowhere else on earth. You'll love it. The natural landscape is so weird and everything seems to be on a giant scale. The Gulfoss waterfall is awe inspiring, just the sheer volume of water.

In Reykjavik, go to the Laundromat Cafe, very laid back friendly cafe, but lovely atmosphere. There's also a restaurant near the parliament (can't remember what it's called sorry) that's run by the "Icelandic (female) Jamie Oliver" it's a sort of Icelandic-Japanese fusion place and the food is amazing as long as you like fish! We also went to the world's most northern curry house, which was nice but very expensive (even for Iceland!) and had Icelandic tapas (minus the whale, they'll give you an alternative if you don't want it) Puffin is not nice and I didn't even manage to eat the putrefied shark - the smell was bad enough. The hot dog stand in the port is also a must - apparently the world's best hotdogs!

Whale watching was also brilliant, although don't go if you're not a good sailor - the seas are pretty rough, even on a still day.
 
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The one we went to the other week weren't so strict on riding wear and if you had your own stuff or not ... You could basically wear what you wanted so long as you wore a hat. They were called the Fire Horses (Can't remember how it's spelt in Icelandic!) and was about 45mins out of Reykjavik. Nice place, about 150 ponies and whilst they were well enough cared for not 1 of the 5 guides or workers there that I asked knew my ponies name! Poor critter probably didn't have one but he was well cool! Ok he was a head shaker but when he got tolting he was offski! If you don't mind going for a nice quiet plod then stick with your OH's but if you want some fun leave them behind, they'll be fine in the string and go have some fun!
 
I had a weeks trail ride across Iceland many years ago too. Ended up buying an Icelandic soon after I got home. I took my own (clean) waterproofs with me so I didn't have to wear the orange suit.
I rode with Íshestar who were great but it's so long ago I can't give any current recommendations. What I will say though is have your trek with the novices and then have another ride by yourselves where you get a chance to ride the horses at speed through the countryside :) You won't regret it.
 
No advice to give but I am officially VERY jealous! :) have riding Icelandics in Scotland but never in Iceland, have a great time and remember to take lots of pics to show us, won't you? :)
 
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