Camping in Iceland

Each summer we go camping somewhere in Iceland. We live on the north coast so our route is either east or west. Most of the time we head east because there’s more variety and the landscape is more appealing. Still, we have a lot of places left to visit on the west coast and the west fjords.

Many people travel with tents and that’s quite easy because the camping areas are usually fairly clean and dry but since my parent have a trailer we are lucky enough to be able to travel fairly easily, and with quite a luxury. During summer, June – July – august it is daylight during all hours so having a dark asylum to turn to over night is very nice.
Camping, especially with kids, requires all kinds of gear. Short pants or overalls, depending on the weather forecast. We rely on the weather forecast staff a lot and during summer it’s actually them who decide where the local people go camping, because people over here tend to follow the sun.

Clothing:

The temperature outside now in mid-summer is around 12-15°c which is not warm so it requires a nice sweater or light fleece jacket which can be taken off when the sun comes out. A raincoat is essential especially when traveling in the south, and good hiking shoes as well. I always take a knitted hat and mitts for the kids because the wind can get pretty cold. You can actually expect all kinds of weather so being on top of the weather forecast is a must.

Food:

Most of the camping areas have running water and some have cooking facilities and a washing machine. We have a grill in the trailer but I always bake something before we leave. Today I made coconut & chocolate buns and a chocolate cake. OK, not getting any slimmer this summer but this is also about quality time, camping without munchies is just not a good idea. And home made is a little bit healthier, at least I use oil instead of margarine and a little bit less sugar than intended.

Gear:

Maps and GPS is usually essential but we’ve done without it because we’ve know our track, but if you’re a newcomer a map is necessary. The road signs are not really informative so a GPS is a good choice aswell. If you have a smartphone you should use it to be on top of the weather and even download the 112 Iceland App from safetravel.is so that search and rescue is easier if you get lost in the highlands.

We went hiking last week in our trip. 4km or so in pretty rough areas.  My 4 yr old loved it, walked ahead of me and never complained one bit. The hiking trail was marked with sticks so the kids always had a destination in front of them, i think that made the journey a lot easier. The trail led up to a lake where we had our lunches and then we walked back. The scenery was magnificent, mountains being built in rhyolite which is a yellowish type of volcanic rock.