Iceland 1999
On August 21st, 1999, three intrepid young explorers began a journey that would take them through some of Europe’s wildest and remotest areas. Aided generously by the University of London Convocation Trust, University College London and the Friends of UCL, they spent a month exploring and photographing the volcanoes, geysers and waterfalls of Iceland. This website contains a detailed account of the expedition, and just a few of the 1500 photographs taken by the expedition members.
A trip to the edge of the Arctic
It’s a long way to Akureyri
Midges…
Krafla
Where?
Back at the lake
Onward and upward
Mad Viking berserker bus driver
Blowing hot and cold
A spot of intense rigour
Dodgy geysers
A spring in my step
The road to Hella
Goin’ down south
Red hill over yonder
Up above the streets and houses
Quite high
Homeward bound
Epilogue
About the trip
The participants
Roger |
George |
John |
Roger Wesson
The leader of the group: he took charge of the planning, the grant applications, the day-to-day movements on the trip, the post-trip reports, and this remarkable website. A hopeless dreamer, he hopes by the end of his days to have seen all the places mentioned in a book called the Reader’s Digest Book of Natural Wonders. He won the Explorer’s Beard contest by a considerable margin.
George Payne
George tried hard to usurp Wesson’s expeditional throne, claiming that he was the better mapreader. The sight of George wandering the streets of Heimaey with a map of Landmannalaugar in his map pocket did not inspire confidence in this claim. George came a distant second in the Explorer’s Beard contest.
John Carter
John was, on numerous occasions, the pacifying voice in the fearsome arguments that occurred regularly throughout the trip. Thanks to, or perhaps in spite of, John’s interventions, no blows were exchanged. John’s most admirable act of the trip was to donate by proxy a can of tuna to a baby puffin. He dropped out on day 3 of the Explorer’s Beard Contest.
Acknowledgements
First and foremost, we would like to thank the University of London Convocation Trust, University College London and the Friends of UCL. Without their very generous support, this expedition could not have taken place. The expedition members remain extremely grateful.
We are also grateful to those who helped us in the planning of the trip: the Lonely Planet Guide, the Icelandic Tourist Board, STA Travel, BSÍ, Icelandair, Omega Travel, and many many others.
Finally, all the friendly people we met along the way: everyone who sold us hot dogs, which kept morale up during some trying times; the folk at BSÍ for providing a shelter from some nasty weather; the warden at Landmannalaugar, for throwing us out of his mountain hut with a sense of humour; Anthony the baby puffin, for eating John’s tuna; and our cheap plastic bottles of bad whiskey - great friends in times of great hardship.
