Iceland is an amazing country. It truly is the land of Fire and Ice....and rain. In planning our trip, I knew I wanted to take my hiking backpack, which meant I was going to be severely limited on space. I am a notorious over packer. For some reason when I go on vacation, I think I need 3 shirts for everyday and every pair of shoes I own. I blame this on living in Texas, where you wake up in the morning needing a sweater and pants without a cloud in the sky, and finish the day in a tank top, shorts, and an umbrella because it is raining so badly.
That being said, this time I was determined not to over pack. I started with my Magellan Summit Hiking Backpack that I bought back in 2005 at Academy. This pack has lasted forever, it has seen me through 6 months of living in Europe, traveling Australia, another Europe trip, and several small trips. It looks like this:
It comes with a built in rain poncho to cover the entire pack in case of rain, and is nice and padded so it doesn't hurt your back. I like taking this over a suitcase because I am able to move around a lot faster, don't have to worry about dragging it behind me, and there are no problems with lugging it up or down any flights of stairs. Plus it has several outside pockets for additional storage. They no longer sell it at Academy, but there are several new ones just like it. This North Face Terra being the most similar if you are looking to buy a pack.
We went to Iceland at the end of June/early July and the weather was comparable to Texas in December. Around 40 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit, and rainy.
Shoes
Hiking boots are a bit much for me due to the arches being really really high, they hurt my feet. These KEEN hiking shoes on the other hand were amazing! The arch wasn't super high, and gave my feet the perfect support. They also kept my normally cold feet warm, had a good grip to them, and the best part, they are waterproof! I was able to hike without worrying about falling off of the steep trails or getting my feet wet. I wore these shoes about 90% of the time on our trek around Iceland's Ring Road. I put about 50 miles of hiking on these bad girls and they were just as comfortable at the end as they were at the beginning.
Sandals
Yes, you read that right, sandals. There were 3 instances where these came in very handy: when showering at the guest houses we stayed at, walking around/in the thermal baths, and on and off the plane. The pair I have looks like a knock off pair of Chaco's. I also use them when I float the river or go out on the boat. They float, and the velcro straps make sure they don't fall off when walking around in the thermal baths.
Tennis shoes
I wore my sneakers around Reykjavik and Akureyri (the 2 major cities), partly to give my KEEN's a bit of a rest, and partly because they (the KEEN'S) were dirty.
Pairs of shoes taken = 3
Clothes
Three words: WATER. PROOF. EVERYTHING! Waterproof outerwear is going to be your best friend in Iceland. Besides the mist and rain, the wind is enough to freeze you to your bones in some places. I lucked out in that my waterproof stuff was also windproof.
Outerwear
I took the inside liner of my Columbia Ski jacket (because it has a thermal fabric lining that traps your body heat and bounces it back to you) and a North Face Rain Coat with a hood that I picked up on sale at REI. It looks like this one.
I wore this rain coat every time I stepped outside. On the warmer days it was light enough to keep me protected from the rain and wind, and on the colder days it was big enough that I could wear my jacket liner underneath and was perfectly warm and comfortable. This jacket also folds up well and fit inside my purse when I didn't need it at all...which was only sparingly. I will most certainly be wearing this again and again.
Coats taken = 2
Gloves = 1 pair
Beanie & Ear wrap = 1 each
Pants
I didn't want to take jeans as they are uncomfortable to hike in, and wear for the long hours on the plane and in the car. I made the mistake of taking mostly leggings, which let me tell you, don't fare well in the cold and rain. I did however take 1 pair of hiking pants and they were my savior. I wish I had taken 3 more pair as I wore the heck out of these pants almost every day. I bought them big enough so that I could wear my leggings underneath them, they are also water proof and wind proof. Occasionally the amount of rain was a bit much for them, but they dry out very quickly. The only place I could find them (for women) was at REI and the REI and Columbia outlet stores. The pair below is the one I purchased at REI, you can find them at REI here.
Naturally, my husband was able to find several pair at Academy for about $20 each. If you need some for the men in your life, you can find the them here. They didn't have any for women when I went.
Ladies, ditch the leggings, and take these pants instead.
I also took one pair of silk long johns that I got on Amazon. The silk is less bulky and holds in more heat than traditional cotton long johns. I wore these under my duck suit when we went snorkeling in glacier water. The tops can be found here, and the bottoms here
Leggings = 3
Hiking Pants = 1 (Take more of these and less leggings)
Thermal Long Johns = 1 pair
Shorts to sleep in = 2
Tops
I took enough undershirts for each day. My thought process is always that I can change out my undershirt each day and rotate my outer shirt. This saves a lot of room in my pack. As we were gone 8 days, I took 8 undershirts and 5 long sleeve shirts ranging from typical sweaters to sweat wiking and long sleeve wool hiking shirts. These can all be found easily at Academy, REI, Columbia, Target, etc. I didn't bring many short sleeve shirts, the 3 that I brought were for sleeping. I actually wore 1 during the day when we were in Akureyri as it was warm up there.
Undershirts/tanktops = 8
Long sleeves = 5
T Shirts/sleep shirts = 3
Underthings
I'm willing to cut a lot of corners when it comes to packing, but my underthings are not one of those. I always take more than I need.
Socks = 10 (8 normal and 2 pairs of wool) pair
Undies = 10 pair
Sports Bras = 5
Other Things to Take
*A Travelon travel purse with multiple pockets. I got mine on Amazon, you can find several here
*Wallet for your passport, money, and credit cards
*Microfiber towel - I purchased this one on Amazon. I'm glad I did as some of the places we stayed didn't have towels, we used them on our hikes, and when we went to the thermal pools. I got a large and it was just the right size for my husband who is 6'2" and perfect for me as well.
*Swimsuit for the thermal pools
*Trash or plastic bags for dirty or wet clothes and shoes
*Compression socks for the long plane ride so your feet aren't swollen when you get there
*Float strap for an underwater camera (we used this for snorkeling the Silfra so I didn't lose it)
*First aid kit - I put my own together for cheaper than I found it online
*Guide book and map of Iceland also from Amazon because I love Amazon.
If you would like a copy of the packing list that I've created and tweaked over the years, you can find it here as a PDF attachment. It also gives more detail as to what I take in my first aid kit when I travel!
Hope this helps those of you going to Iceland in the near future!!
If you want see what we did and where we went in Iceland, check back shortly. I'll be posting all of our waterfall, lava tube, hiking, snorkeling, and Beer Spa (yes beer spa) adventures soon!!
-Until the next adventure!