TR - Arctic Heli Skiing in Iceland, March/April 2016

[Vets]

Arctic Heli Skiing in Iceland
Living a dream come true.

I was very fortunate to be the winner of Arctic Heli Skiing’s Lucky Leap Year Giveaway. The prize was a 4 Day Classic Heli Skiing Package. Besides amazing heli skiing, the package also included lodging at Klængshóll Lodge (true luxury in a rustic setting), all meals (delicious gourmet food prepared by a full-time chef), morning Yoga classes, full use of Lodge Spa facilities, as well as complimentary beer! Included in the many beer choices are a light and a dark beer with Arctic Heli Skiing’s private label made by a local brewery.

Some people may say that getting there is half the fun. I wouldn’t say this about a seven hour overnight flight to Iceland, but riding up in a helicopter for each scenic ski run to more untracked powder comes close.

Iceland, March 27, 2016
Reykjavik

I arrived a couple of days early and spent some time in Reykjavik. I spent my first night at the Sunna Guesthouse which is across the street from Hallgrímskirkja Church.

Hallgrímskirkja Church


There are elevator rides to the top.
Here is one of the views

Check out the patchskiing possibilities.

When I poked around inside I found an awesome Hallgrimskirkja made from Lego

I wonder if they used Kragle?

I walked through the city down to the Harpa Reykjavik Concert Hall and Conference Centre


It looks even cooler from the inside


Look closely at the reflection to the left of David Bowie and you'll see me


I was glad that I got to see the photo exhibit


To see more from Reykjavik on March 27th click here.

[Vets]

Iceland, March 28, 2016
Reykjavik-Akureyri-Klængshóll Lodge



It felt good to get to sleep at night. (The previous night's overnight flight wasn't the most restful experience.) I was able to explore Reykjavik a bit more before heading further north.

I had the opportunity to visit one of Reykjavik's museums. Here is the biggest attraction at the Phallological Museum from a sperm whale


I made sure to book a window seat for my flight to Akureyri.
The view


Since I arrived early, I had the opportunity to walk into town on a path along the water.
I saw a departing flight


A ship in the harbor


On the shuttle ride to Klængshóll Lodge I noticed that Akureyri has loving traffic lights


Here is my room with a view at Klængshóll Lodge


I enjoyed an Arctic Heli Skiing beer with our delicious gourmet welcome dinner

Beer was actually illegal in Iceland from 1915-1989. Tasting the locally brewed Arctic Heli Skiing Iceland beer made me realize that they have caught up in a delicious refreshing way.

To see more from March 28th click here.

It snowed 70 centimeters in the days before I arrived. The forecast was cold and clear for the next few days. I was excited about making my first turns in Iceland the next day.

[Vets]

March 30th
This was the first day of heli skiing. In the morning we went over safety procedures. This included checking our equipment which included beacons, shovels, probes, Pieps Jetforce airbag backpacks, and helicopter procedures.

Our ride


A panoramic view above one of our morning runs


A mountain view from the heli


Tracks


Our guide Einar getting ready for an early evening run


An amazing first day. After feeling the initial excitement of the first few runs I found that I was able to take in more of the experience - the vastness of the mountains, the still and silence after the heli leaves, the diamond like sparkle and shine on the surface of the snow, rhythmically floating on untracked powder runs, and then realizing I get to do this again and again.

Click here for more from March 29th.

[Vets]

Iceland, March 30, 2016
Day Two of Heli Skiing

My first Gopro edit. The camera is aimed too low, so I'm mostly skiing with my shadow
https://youtu.be/iExG65fhjPQ

View from the top of one of the runs


Spray and tracks


Vets' Arctic Ocean stylin' and profilin' - WOOOOO!


Video of Vets skiing toward the Arctic Ocean
https://youtu.be/vAAv-VLZV6Y

Icicles on cliffs along the Arctic Ocean


Click here fro more from March 30th.

[Vets]

Iceland, March 31, 2016
Day Three of Heli Skiing

Taking in the view before starting another amazing day of heli skiing


I did a quick video edit from this amazing day of heli skiing


There is a Youtube link above.
Here it is on Vimeo:


A few stills from the day




Click here for a link to March 31st.

[Vets]

Iceland, April 1, 2016
Ski Day Four, Tour on Lower Horse Run

After three bluebird days of heli skiing a storm rolled in overnight. Wicked winds were blowing a dusting of snow. Visibility was poor at best. Flying up would be replaced with skinning up. I would get to earn my turns to start my 150th consecutive month skiing. Unforgettable fun.

I'm happy after skinning up


Video of skiing Lower Horse Run
https://youtu.be/tVsuUgQaM1E

After skiing we went on another tour, this time to a fish factory.

The owner with a cod eyeball

Then after a couple of home made schnapps, me too


After a lunch of fish stew, we went on another tour, this time to the Aviation Museum in Akureyri.
Here is helicopter from the Iceland Coast Guard


A memorable day that made me want to stay in Iceland.

Click here for April 1st.

[Vets]

Iceland, April 2, 2016
Ski Day Five, Akureyri, Hlidarfjall, Flight to Reykjavik

After three amazing heli skiing days and one ski touring day, I had a chance to see what resort skiing in Iceland was like. Akureyri has a resort, Hlidarfjall that is about a 15 minute drive from town. They also sell lift tickets by the hour. This allowed me to get in a couple hours of skiing before my mid-afternoon flight to Reykjavik.

A "view" from the top of the mountain

When the clouds roll in visibility isn't the best. Even at 11 AM they had lighted runs with orange poles to mark the runs

Video from one of my runs
https://youtu.be/K8djdPYnnIs

Looking back toward Northern Iceland on my flight to Reykjavik


Click here for more from April 2nd.

[Vets]

Iceland, April 3, 2016
Ski Day Six, Skalafell, Pingvellir, Geysir, Gullfoss, Seljalandsfoss



I had a full day to explore Iceland some more. I noticed that Skalafell Ski Resort was on the way to Pingvellir National Park and other sites. The also offered lift tickets by the hour, so I was able to ski for an hour along the way.

Looking up at Skalafell from the base


View from the top

From here you can see Pingvallavatn Lake and Pingvellir National Park.

Video from skiing Skalafell
https://youtu.be/6rHhfbjk7JU

Next stop, Pingvellir National Park.
The Pingvellir National Park Visitor's Center has a hiking trail. Here you can see signs of previous volcanic activity.


Then on to Geysir

Check out the patchskiing possibilities.

Geysir video
https://youtu.be/xbf2ZIvQD4I

I saw many horses along the drive.
This horse was very friendly


On to Gullfoss


From one waterfall to another.
On the way to Seljalandsfoss I saw a rainbow


Seljalandsfoss is a waterfall that you can walk under


Video of Seljalandsfoss from three angles
https://youtu.be/DWpfL0gD4ek

After all of that driving I needed to fill up with gas the next day. The gas station I stopped at also had a little restaurant. I was surprised to see a name for their burger special that was so close to home.


I had a great time. Iceland is a wonderful and amazing place.
Heli skiing in Iceland is at the top of my to-do again list.

[rsknight1]

Outstanding! Great trip report!

[abraham]

Very cool trip! I'd love to get there for skiing sometime

Did you look for a patch of snow and ask for some heli assisted patch skiing? You could have been the first

[powdrhound]

What a fine trip.

[mtnbiker/boarder]

Superb thanks for sharing

[spindrift]

That's some sweet stuff there!

Some great guides too. Very nice!

[Tri-Ungulate]

Wow, Arctic Heli Skiing couldn't have chosen a better winner. Well, except for me. Awesome TR, cheers.

[mcski]

What about the hookers?

[TahoeBC]

Man I don't think anyone deserved to win more than you Vets, so stoked for you!

I would like to hear more about the Dick Museum you visited though

[Vets]

rsknight1, Thank you!

abraham, I hope you make it to Iceland soon. The heli patchskiing sounds good to me.

powdrhound, Yes!

mtnbiker/boarder, You are welcome!

spindrift, Thank you again for your input, suggestions, and encouragement. Yes, the guides there are a lot of fun to ski with.

Tri-Ungulate, Thank you!

[Mike Pow]

Cracking. One day. Soon

[peds]

Incredible stuff, thanks so much for sharing.

[Cruiser]

Brilliant! Way to make the most of it, Vets!

[snapt]

Looks like a rad place to win a trip, nicely done. Not a slight, but terrain in some of the pics looks kinda flat? Limited due to the dump just before arrival? Or just harder to bust out the camera on steeper stuff? Irregardless, looks like a hell of a time.

[whyturn]

Looks like fun. New experiences and sights are always cool

[406]

Nice, I didn't realize anyone actually won any of those contests that are always being promoted.

[Danno]

Nice, I didn't realize anyone actually won any of those contests that are always being promoted.

Ha, I was thinking the same.

[NW_SKIER]

Make that three of us. I never enter those because the only thing I ever win is lots of spam emails.

Strong work op. Love it.