2020 Wilderness Travel Catalog of Adventures

Winter Adventures in Iceland SNOWSHOEING, HIKING, AND SKY GAZING

Winter is a magical season in Iceland, with far fewer visitors, a snow-dusted landscape, and the chance to see the northern lights! Our winter adventure brims with outdoor escapades, and we’ve timed the journey to give us plenty of daylight hours to enjoy our activities. We’ll snowshoe along lava fields with

ancient crater (no snowshoeing experience is needed—it’s just like hiking), and we’ll hike to Skógafoss, a waterfall that emerges from the mighty Myrdalsjökull Glacier and plunges 200 feet off a sheer rock shelf. At night, we’ll be on “northern lights alert.” Our countryside hotel gives us great viewing prospects far from the city lights, and its restaurant serves some of the freshest fish imaginable. Days 3-4 Thingvellir National Park We watch for the spouting plumes of Great Geysir, which gave its name to all the world’s geysers, then hike and snowshoe in Thingvellir National Park, a World Heritage Site located on the dramatic rift zone between the North American and European continental plates. Days 5-8 Húsafell / Snowshoeing / Mt. Strútur / Vidgelmir Lava Tube / Reykjavík From our hotel in Húsafell, we can snowshoe right from the door, and by night, enjoy soaks in its geothermal pools (the hotel’s Northern Lights Lounge, with floor to ceiling windows, is our cozy viewing spot). Snowshoeing brings us up Mt. Strútur and onward to a lava field with a 1.5-mile-long lava tube filled with stalagmites and stalactites. When conditions allow, we also hike to hidden Glymur Waterfall, one of Iceland’s highest. Our hotel’s location has the clearest skies in Iceland, perfect for our prospects of seeing the lights. Depart on Day 8 via Reykjavík.

HIGHLIGHTS • Search for the elusive northern lights in Iceland’s prime viewing locations • Snowshoe and hike in Iceland’s otherworldly landscapes—glaciers, waterfalls, volcanic craters, moss-covered peaks • Explore the geological wonders of Thingvellir National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site • Savor fresh Icelandic cuisine DETAILS • 8-day trip begins and ends in Reykjavík • 7 nights hotels • All meals included

“ This was certainly a trip for the memory books. What great fellow travelers and absolutely first class leadership.” Robert C. Corrales NM

sweeping vistas across the coast, cross an icy glacier with crampons (no experience necessary), explore World Heritage-listed Thingvellir National Park, soak in thermal pools, walk down into a giant lava tube, and

DATES Nov 9-16, 2019 Jan 25-Feb 1, 2020 Feb 29-Mar 7 Nov 7-14

hike to some of Iceland’s most legendary waterfalls, including Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss. As night falls, we search for the spectacular blue, green, and violet arcs shimmering across the sky above us. We’ve selected hotels in the best spots for seeing the aurora!

TRIP COST $6895 (8-12 members) $7495 (3-7 members) Single supplement: $890

TRIP LEVEL 1 2 3 + 4 5 6 Moderate to steep snowshoeing and hiking, 3-7 hours a day

Days 1-2 Reykjanes Peninsula / Skógafoss / Glacier Walk Heading to the Blue Mountains outside Reykjavík, we snowshoe across an

The northern lights are a great show, but Iceland is also the place to snowshoe in some of the most spectacular landscapes in the world. PHOTO: IVAN KMIT

ÓSKAR HELGI GUÐJÓNSSON CATHERINE KARNOW

COMBINE ANY TWO EUROPE TRIPS FOR A $400 PER PERSON DISCOUNT! 81