UKC

Heading out to Iceland in a few weeks on an ice climbing trip , we fancied somewhere slightly of the beaten track but from what I hear there's not much printed info on areas to climb and routes and its mostly chatting to locals to get beta . Any info about the best areas and conditions would be appreciated .

In reply to Nadir khan:

Hi Nadir, Try getting in touch with Davy Virdee ( http://www.mountainactive.co.uk/contact.htm ) He's done a few trips out to Iceland and should be your best bet.

In reply to sneaks:

Thanks , I'll drop him a line

In reply to Nadir khan:

Perhaps Ramon, Neil or Ian might be able to help as well...
http://www.neilgresham.com/iceland-2008.php

In reply to Nadir khan:

I've a Pdf guide that has some info in it if you PM me I'll send you it.

In reply to Nadir khan:

hey Nadir, email me, I can give the beta I know. I don't know much about off the beaten track, but I can put you in contact with the right people over there

In just messaged you so might be in your spam filter eply to Ramon Marin:

In reply to Andy DB:
Just sent you an email

In reply to Nadir khan:

There's some information on winter climbing here:
http://www.edinburghjmcs.org.uk/pdfs/iceland.pdf
There's also long glacier climbs on the SE side of Vatnajökull and endless amounts to do in the Interior. Most places can feel off the beaten track in winter, even 5 minutes off the Ring Road.

On our trip across the interior this summer we were told that taking a satellite phone would not be excessive. In the end we took Personal Locator Beacons, and if you are heading anywhere remote (esp in winter) without backup, they're definitely worth considering. A friend who is extremely experienced in Iceland was immobilised when he put his back out whilst pitching his tent when attempting a solo winter traverse of an icecap. Fortunately he had a PLB, but he reckoned the 12 hours he waited for rescue were the scariest of his life!

It's worth keeping a bit of an eye on the traffic webcams: they will give you a pretty good idea of how fickle conditions can be in the south in winter. http://www.vegagerdin.is/english/web-cams/

I've not been north in winter, but access would be a fair bit more tricky than the south, but it's much more likely to provide decent conditions.
http://www.vegagerdin.is/english/road-conditions-and-weather/the-entire-cou...

We have found this Norwegian website more reliable for weather in the interior (if you can get a signal) than the Icelandic Met Office - though the latter has a nice seismicity page which could be useful!
http://www.yr.no/place/Iceland/
http://en.vedur.is/

HTH

In reply to Solaris:

the top link is the one I have but had forgotten where I got it from.

In reply to Nadir khan:

In addition:

isalp.is - Is the local Alpine club website and forums, lots of knowledgeable people to ask for beta.

climbing.is - Is a blog from a couple of guys.

klifurhusid.is - A small bouldering gym called Klifurhúsið. Busy during week nights.

In reply to Nadir khan:

Thanks for all the info , plenty of good sites to follow up on , very much appreciated.

In reply to Nadir khan:

Post us some pics when you get back, please! Hope you have a good trip.

In reply to Solaris:

Will do , looking forward to this trip as its been on my radar for ages but just never managed to get something organised till this year when Colin , one of my climbing partners suggested it instead of Cogne/ecrins/rjukan. now Colin is tighter than a pigeons arsehole when it comes to spending money so was a bit surprised by this suggestion but kept schtum , thinking any minute he'd realise he'd have to sell a kidney to afford the prices there but no , true to his word ,flights are booked and a merry time shall be had. hoping for some aurora action and maybe finding some ice caves to climb in , have seen some amazing images from Iceland so expectations are high : 0

In reply to Nadir khan:

Well, I hope you have a great trip. Even if you don't get much climbing done, it's an amazing country and the magic hour lasts all day!