This blog is not really about part 6 of the dreamtour in particular. It is more about the Saltvík / Riding Iceland experience in general. Written by Pat from the USA, who joined part 6.
Enjoy!
To say I left my heart in Iceland is an understatement. My daughter and I first experienced Iceland in 2019. We were fortunate enough to do the Diamond Circle tour with wonderful Saltvík Farm. We were unable to return in 2020 but came back in 2021 to do the last leg of the dream tour.
Where can you go to experience what you are able to experience here? Where can you splash through crystal clear mountain streams, ride through terrain that looks like you are on the surface of the moon, travel ancient trails through the hills and mountains, past herds of sheep and fields of blueberries? Where can you go and see the living earth bubble up through the cracks in the rocks? Where can you sleep in the loft of a mountain hut while your horses graze nearby? Where can you go to meet the most wonderful, warm and loving people from all over the world who you will meet as strangers and leave as friends? Where can you find horses as sure footed as a mountain goat, strong and fit but as loving and gentle as your dog? Where can you go to ride different horses every day, see different things every day, have different experiences every day, all on the back of a horse?
I have done all of these things with the wonderful people and horses at Saltvík Farm and I treasure the memories that I have made there. I have soaked in a hot tub by the Arctic Ocean while the sunset over the mountains. I danced with an incredible man name Siggi who I met on the tour, a friend of Bjarni’s, beside a hot tub with all the friends that I met on the tour. A wonderful Icelandic man and his wife who rode with us on the tour, their zest for life was something that you rarely encounter and it moved me to my core to meet such wonderful people.
I am not a brave person, I am 69 years old, I’ve had surgeries, I’ve had injuries, I have fears, but coming to Iceland was the best decision I ever made and I hope to return many times in the future.
Here’s to the next ride… and the next… And the next…!
Text by: Pat Francis
Pictures by: Pat Francis & Emely Nilsson
Your blog is so inspiring, even if you’re not physically young, but you are young at heart and brave to try new adventures at any age. Thank you for the inspiration!