I spent about an hour writing a blog, then OffExploring signed me out and it all got lost. Angry. Not writing it all again. We went to Sólheimajökull and walked on a glacier. I climbed an ice wall with two axes and my crampons. It was incredibly hard work. I saw Skogarfoss again. It's cold.

First job of the day is now to fetch the bag from the door handle. Today I was visited by Askaleikir, Bowl-licker, who had also brought gingerbread. Let's have no more of "the characters", by the way. This is an Icelandic Christmas tradition dating back centuries (far longer than Father Christmas, I'm told) and these are the thirteen Yule Lads, who are trolls from the mountain. Their mother is Grýla, a witch and she owns the Christmas Cat, who eats children who ...

I felt like a zombie when my alarm went off this morning - all red eyes. Last night, my face had been red and yellow where the cold had got it but the damage wasn't permanent. I checked my door - hanging from it was a red and gold bag. This time Pottaskefill, Pot-Licker, had visited and left me a gingerbread troll and tree. At least, I assume it's gingerbread. I haven't eaten it yet. I put on my warmest clothes and brought more with me, made some rolls (I bought...

My flight was delayed yesterday, so I didn't arrive until around midnight - didn't get to my hotel until 1.30/2am. I saw the Northern Lights from the plane - not very bright at first, so I wasn't sure whether I was seeing the last of the sunset or the reflection of the plane's lights off the cloud below us but eventually they brightened and the cloud faded and it became very obvious that this great arc of pale light in the sky was definitely the Northern Lights. ...

Having been out until 2am last night, I didn't wake up permanently until quarter to ten this morning. Of course, it's hard to tell. There are three beds in this room. One of them is next to an accessible plug. This is not the bed I chose. That means if I want my phone as an alarm, or just as a clock since my watch doesn't glow in the dark, that I can't have it charging overnight. So with the phone on the other side of the room, I have no idea what time it is wh...