Some people’s idea of a vacation is to lounge around on the beach with a cocktail in their hands and there’s nothing wrong with that. But for some of us a challenging new hike is preferred.

There are great places to hike all over the world. My personal preference is in cooler, wetter climates; I am not a big fan of deserts or super hot and humid climates. I find it easier to get warm than it is to get cool - to each their own. Anyways, earlier this year I took a hiking vacation in Iceland. I am not sure how aware most Americans are of this tiny island nation. But, the bottom line is, if you haven’t been there, you should go. It really is a hiker’s paradise.

First, a little about Iceland. I recommend going there in late spring through the summer months for the best chance of decent weather. I was there in early May and the weather was surprisingly good, with little rain and warmish weather. Even in the warmer months though, you want to bring lots of layers and good waterproof clothes and equipment.

I found a tour company online that offered a good selection of multi-day hiking and trekking tours. I chose a four day backpacking tour that started in one of Iceland’s national parks, called Skaftafell. This is a real gem of a location and it is situated near the bottom of a beautiful glacier. Our hike began in a place nearby called Nupsstadarskógar valley. This is a beautiful location with lots of arctic birch. That first day we hiked along this valley passing waterfalls and lovely sculpted canyons, some as high as 200 meters. That first night we made camp near a lava field.

The second day included more hill climbing through glacial valleys. About midway through the second day we ascended the Eggjar hill which has stunning views of a glacier lagoon with clear blue-green water and floating icebergs. We mad camp later at the north end of this large lagoon. Our campsite had views of the huge glacier that enters into this lagoon. That night was quite magical with the sounds of the glacier and soft winds.

Day three we got a chance to hike on the Skeidararjökull glacier, from Graenafjall Mountain to the Nordurdalur valley, an area surrounded by ice and high mountain ridges. It took us almost an entire day to cross about 9 miles of ice. By the time we crossed this glacier we were officially on the farthest outskirts of the national parks boundary. That night we camped in another beautiful spot with views over several glacier lakes with floating icebergs and a background of colored rhyolite mountains.

On the final day of our tour, we got to climb up a narrow mountain ridge. From the top we stopped to admire the panoramic view over the yellowish rhyolite valley. We also had a spectacular view of Hvannadalshnukur, Iceland’s highest mountain. As we descended into the next valley, the vegetation became progressively more abundant with more arctic birch and other foliage that I can’t name. By days end our group was back at the Skaftafell national park where we spent one more night before heading back to Reykjavik.

Words cannot express the experience of this journey. It was physically demanding but each night I slept well and awoke ready for more exploration. The views were stunning and I could see for miles because there’s so little pollution in Iceland.