Route-66

I have planned an early rise but I don't expect to be woken at 03:00 by someone going about their morning ritual. If you do have to get up at that ridiculous hour of the day, you should be aware that you are very much in a minority and not be crashing around doing whatever it is you are doing. Fortunately I do nod off again quite quickly and, before I know it, it is 05:15 and time for me to get up and start crashing around.  That's if I was a selfish arsehole, of course, which I'm not. I shower, dress and do my final bits of packing and I am out the door by 05:45. Although it is only 2°C (that's around36°F for those of you who speak English funny) it is a beautiful morning and I'm more than happy to take my second of two taxi avoidance walks with just a t-shirt. The last thing I want is to turn up at the airport dripping in sweat because I've worn all my warm kit All mornings should be like this It takes a mere 50 minutes of leisurely strolling to make it to the...

It is a five hour drive to the airport but I want to detour to a waterfall called Seljalandfoss, which has very good reviews. I won't be ticking off any of the so called Golden Circle attractions but I feel should see something other than Grimsey before heading home. Seljalandfoss has the bonus of being able to walk behind and, technically, underneath. I realise that this will give me another item on the 60B460 list. I still plan to actually get under Aber Falls one weekend at home but this will do for starters. I am awake and out of bed .5 minutes before my alarm. I pack and ready myself for the journey and am in the car by 07:00. I am then out of the car 5 minutes later to top up the fuel tank for the journey and my first exposure to the expense of fuel on the island - almost £2 a litre. I put the thought of having to fill the tank completely before handing over the car at the airport. The potential cost of that is too much for my Scrooge-like money brain to deal with! A 6hr plus...

Arctic Circle Day News flash! I gave in and went to bed at 23:30. It was still very light and when I woke for a gentleman visit at 3:00 a.m., it was still very light. So I can only assume he never really went dark at all.  Feeling extremely grateful that I brought my sleep mask to block out the light, I wake refreshed 5 minutes before my alarm is due to go off. I have a hasty check of my ferry ticket to make sure I have got the date and times right!! Satisfied that I haven't got things mixed up again, I have a leisurely fruit breakfast and get dressed ready for the ferry. Google tells me that there is a good chance I will see whales and dolphins from the ferry. I have seen numerous excursions for whale watching advertised at far more cost than I am laying out for my crossing. The Sæfari has the appearance of a working fishing boat that has been converted to take passengers and freight to and from Grimsey Island. The crossing each way is ISK4000 (about £24) so I'm not expecting ...

The title of this blog has absolutely nothing to do with the mystical highway that crosses America. In this case, route 66 is my journey to the 66N line of latitude that marks the Arctic Circle and crossing it is one of the 60 things to do before I'm 60.  www.downinflames.co.uk Of course I could have achieved this many years ago if I had ever got around to participating in the 6633 ultra in Northern Canada. However, that would have cost me significantly more in terms of wealth and health. So I think this is the wisest option! As with practically all my journeys an early start is involved and it has been getting quite boring trying to make an early start interesting to the reader. However, for this trip, I subconsciously decide to throw some jeopardy into the early start. I had set my alarm to give me enough time to shave, shower, get dressed, make a cup of tea and be in the car in plenty of time to get to the airport for 6:30. I had gone to bed quite late considering that was the t...