Stay on these Roads
15.10.2007
Without exception people are always fascinated by Iceland and tend ask a lot of questions. I find it very flattering. In fact that is one of the reasons why I keep this blog. To answer some of the questions I get and also to collect all the tips I used to collect in lenghty e-mails when I'd get asked for tips.
One thing always sticks out. People want to know where they can rent a beast of a 4x4 and go off-road all over the country. And as sorry as I am to disappoint you all, this is a big no no. Driving off-road is first of all illegal and the consequences are always tough should you be cought. Seccond, the vehicle you may have rented, no matter whether it's a mother of a monstertruck: will under no circumstances be insured once you leave the road unless its by accident.
But most importantly it's just wrong. Off-road driving is hurting the country in a big bad way. This may be a bit of a give-away, but Iceland is a cold country. It's way up north in the hemisphere and on top of that, alone in the middle of the Atlatic Ocean. To top off the cold climate, its windy as hell. So what little we have of vegetation in Iceland grows very slowly in the short summer months. The conditions are harsh and the soil in many areas is somewhat volcanic and not very nutritios. So when someone starts ripping things up he'll leave the country with wounds that will take decades to heal. And that is if they heal at all, because in so many areas the wind will get a grip of things and the soil starts to errode.
Iceland has a big errotion problem and all the viagra in the world won't make any difference. If drivin a big truck gives you a hard-on, then I'mm sure you'll be able to find plenty of rough mountain tracks that will satisfy your needs. We don't need to expand erroded territories.
The picture above shows how horrid the effects are. There is absolutely nothing cool about the damages this inflicts. So please stay on the roads, and enjoy the view. And if you want to get up and close. Use Moe and Joe, a bit of an a-ha experience that!
One thing always sticks out. People want to know where they can rent a beast of a 4x4 and go off-road all over the country. And as sorry as I am to disappoint you all, this is a big no no. Driving off-road is first of all illegal and the consequences are always tough should you be cought. Seccond, the vehicle you may have rented, no matter whether it's a mother of a monstertruck: will under no circumstances be insured once you leave the road unless its by accident.
But most importantly it's just wrong. Off-road driving is hurting the country in a big bad way. This may be a bit of a give-away, but Iceland is a cold country. It's way up north in the hemisphere and on top of that, alone in the middle of the Atlatic Ocean. To top off the cold climate, its windy as hell. So what little we have of vegetation in Iceland grows very slowly in the short summer months. The conditions are harsh and the soil in many areas is somewhat volcanic and not very nutritios. So when someone starts ripping things up he'll leave the country with wounds that will take decades to heal. And that is if they heal at all, because in so many areas the wind will get a grip of things and the soil starts to errode.
Iceland has a big errotion problem and all the viagra in the world won't make any difference. If drivin a big truck gives you a hard-on, then I'mm sure you'll be able to find plenty of rough mountain tracks that will satisfy your needs. We don't need to expand erroded territories.
The picture above shows how horrid the effects are. There is absolutely nothing cool about the damages this inflicts. So please stay on the roads, and enjoy the view. And if you want to get up and close. Use Moe and Joe, a bit of an a-ha experience that!