The influence of Hekla

I woke to the, as always annoying, ringing of my alarm clock. I had checked vedur.is (the icelandic weather forecast) before i went to bed last night. And it was RIGHT. THE SUN WAS SHINING. Even there was the window between me and the Ránargata I could feel the dry and considerably chilled air in my lungs. A beatiful day. Even more beatiful considering getting out of „fucking Reykjavik“.

We learned from our mistakes. Meeting point was 8 a.m. Not like the last time when we hit the road way too late and only by coincidence found a place in a hut before a bunch of minus degrees and an army of stormy, angry snowflakes would have accompanied us in the night between Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull. Short before 9 a.m we picked everybody up. Some of us were drinking yesterday. Most of the people I just asked the evening before if they would be intrested in a trip to Hekla. I really like the concept of Icelandic spontaneity.

Hekla is the second most active volcano is Iceland. In the middle ages it was also called the gateway to hell. And most thrilling: The average time span between two eruptions is ten years. The last eruptions were in 1970, 1980, 1991 and on the February 26 2000 (!). The lonely planet says: „Of course you can get up there, but be aware that Hekla is still an active volcano.“ Although on the first sight of Hekla you will blank this fact out, and the only thought whichs comes to your mind is how beatiful it must be to stand on the top.

Regardless of the consequences the convoy channeled its way along highland routes, relentless focusing Hekla. When the route was hardly visible; Hekla was. Towering up higher and higher with every meter we drove up its slope, till the point where the limit of four wheel drive was achieved and only good old feet could bring us further to the top, which looked like covered in mouth-watering whipped cream.

As we entered the whipped cream it was not mouth-watering at all. The expected sweet and creamy taste failed to appear. Instead there was this sallow taste of desorientation. Going up, normally is only a vague indicator for the right way up a mountain, but for volcanos it turned out to work. At least this one time. Wet conditions invaded my shoes, and influenced by the thin air (of course there is thin air in 1500 m.a.s.l.) I heard a ...

"Hey Klemens, maybe you haven't noticed this yet. But we are old and we are tired. It is enough. And to break it down for you: Paying 30€ for hiking shoes is ridiculous. You should be happy we even got you that far. So stop complaining and go on."

... and thought that it would be a great idea to buy new non-talking hiking boots sometime in the nearer future. If my bank account would allow me: Paradoxical Iceland cannot only be hit by financial crisis. It can also induce financial crisis. At least my very own personal 'financial crisis'. Though I can't do a pots and pans revolution against it. I can't dispel the government because of anger. I just can tighten my belt and show some creativity enjoying Iceland with less money than so far.

I sank knee-deep into a small cavern of loose snow and lava stones and hit reality again. Hiking up a mountain has an almost meditative effect on me. It is a great way to escape all the distractions which accumulates on your mind and concentrate on the thoughts which build up with every step you make, with every meter you advance to the summit. Inevitable I think about the places and people I left behind almost 3000 km away. About people who still mean a lot to me. About the constantly returning question if I will stay in Iceland for a whole year: If I want to continue this experiment or if I want to return to normal, if something like 'normal' exists at all after this journey. I am conscious that returning to normal cannot mean returning to an old state; but meeting again, moreover sharing once more the presence, the places, the feelings. Subsequently respecting and appreciating that people and places will never stay the same. They will evolve; with or without you. And this is easy to accept when you realize that change is something completely natural... like the sun, the clouds, and their relation.

As the sun pushed smoothly down the clouds we were surrounded by blue, realizing we were almost at the top. Hekla. Around us the endlessness of Iceland. The highland, the glaciers, the sea and the company of great people.

Stunned by this scenery the only thing you can do is sit down, stare at this undescribable beauty, forget about all those deep grounded stuff you just racked your brain over and think: "Fuck, I am so happy to be here in this moment".