Friday July 8th - The first day a good success

Friday July 8^th  - The first day a good success

We had a later start on the day than planned and departed on our bikes from Gullfoss at 12:20 instead of 9:00 AM as originally intended. The weather was very good clods at the beginning but it cleared up as the day progressed. The wind was against us but it was not strong so it did not play a role. The first 15 km were paved but we were in for a shock when we entered the gravel road or should I say the sand road. For some reason the Road Authorities had used sand to fill the potholes a very futile process since the wind blows it away in a matter of days. There was no way we could cycle in this material. I saw a look of despair in my sons face. Is this what awaits us? Fortunately the part was only 3-4 km after that the road became harder but pretty rough. Then the obstacle of the day – Bláfellsháls. We had to climb 313 meters over this mountain pass but the road was excellent and the weather good. The road was good all the way to Hvítá river but the last 15 km were on rough roads. The statistics for the day are: we biked 43,95 km in 4 hours and 40 minutes which gives the average speed of 9,3 km/h. We rested for 1 hour and 25 minutes and our maximum speed was 33,8 km/h. Greatest elevation was 620 m.a.s.l and our total ascent was 581 m.