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Where I live, winter took its time this year and only really arrived in March. As a result, the snow has only just started to disappear a few days ago. It’s a strange experience. The day already lasts 15 hours, the sun is high and warm, birds are singing, and everything is still white. The light reflected from the snow is so strong that it’s hard to function. I love winter, but I’m really looking forward to summer, which will oficially begin next week, on April 23. I can’t wait for the day when I’ll walk along the streams again, looking for those bright green patches of moss. Warm air, birdsong, and the smell of the season bring back memories of last summer. I spent it wandering around nearby places and a bit further away. I want to recall one of those simple June walks here. Its charm is in how ordinary it was. That day, I parked by the side of an old road that hasn’t been used for years. It leads into a rocky, empty landscape surrounded by rough hills.

At the turn of June and July, lupine blooms across Iceland. It’s beautiful, but also controversial because it spreads so easily. At that time, even the harshest rocky areas get covered with soft, fragrant fields. At the foot of this almost Martian landscape, a purple carpet appears every year. A grassy track runs through it, making the walk very easy. You can just keep going. In summer, you will reach a distant farm before you ever see the sunset. That’s what I love about summer here. Even at 8 pm, it still feels like there’s plenty of day left.

So I walk into the lupines.

Moving through the sea of flowers, I looked at the rocks and mountains around me and wondered which of them could be climbed. Even the ones that seem uninviting at first often have gentler sides and hidden ways through. You just have to find them.

Even the rocky and unapproachable Kerlingarfjall (not to be confused with the Kerlingarfjöll range in the highlands), near where I parked, showed me its gentler side a few months later.

Ahead of me, beyond the lupine field, rises the yellow and red Drápuhlíðarfjall. It doesn’t look dangerous, but it is quite demanding because of the loose, rocky ground. I got to know it better in May last year, and since then I respect it, even if a bit reluctantly

Behind me, the view keeps pulling me back again and again. I know this landscape, and still I don’t get tired of it. From this path you can see two of the four extinct volcanoes that created the Berserkjahraun lava field several thousand years ago. I feel connected to this place. When I’m there, I sometimes have the feeling that I’m touching something bigger, something I don’t fully understand. Maybe that’s why I keep coming back.

Looking a bit to the north, you can see a farm and a small church under Helgafell. Behind them there is a fjord with small islands, and further away, the Westfjords.

When I walk in Iceland, I mostly meet sheep. They always look at me as if they are surprised and slightly annoyed. Something like: “who would even come here?” Or: “it was peaceful before you showed up.”

During the lambing season, I always have a small concern that one of the more protective mothers might decide to chase me away. What else is there to do on a walk like this. Just watch and take it in. No action. No drama. No adventure. A full reset.

On the way back, I climbed a small rise near Kerlingarfjall. Once, I saw this place as nothing more than a pile of rocks. With time, I’m getting to know more of these mountains, craters, and hidden valleys. I feel at home here.

_{--- Thanks for stopping by! --- @astinmin}_{I'm the only author of the text and photos}

_{Icelandic stories:}
_{A year of transition - small trips and moving to Iceland}
_{Where my home is - "Iceland in miniature"}
_{Winter at my place - not as scary as they said}
_{Chasing spring in Grundarfjörður}
_{Wolf Beans: purple beauty or invasive species? A trip to Ingjaldshóll}
_{Welcome to Mars: Kerlingarfjöll Mountains}
_{Katla's tongue – Sólheimajökull Glacier}
_{In the shadow of the glacier: the stunning Þakgil campsite}
_{Moss and ice: the road east}
_{Basalt and turquoise: Stuðlagil Canyon, East Iceland}
_{Cracked earth - driving to Stykkishólmur}
_{Off the beaten path: Hafrahvammagljúfur Canyon and the hot spring shower}
_{The road to Mývatn: through rain and wilderness}
_{Around Lake Mývatn (1) - Víti Crater and the Hverir geothermal field}
_{Around Lake Mývatn (2) - the monochrome world of Hverfjall}
_{Around Lake Mývatn (3) - Leirhnjúkur: a walk on warm ground}
_{On the way home - Goðafoss, the waterfall of the gods}
_{North Iceland - a small harbor and a basalt coast: Hauganes and Kálfshamarsvík}
_{West Iceland - two unusual waterfalls framed in autumn gold}
_{Beyond the postcard - a summer evening at Búðir and Arnarstapi}
_{Around the Westfjords (1) - first impressions}
_{Around the Westfjords (2) - Dynjandi Waterfall}
_{Around the Westfjords (3) - on the way to Norðurfjörður}
_{Around the Westfjords (4) - secrets of Kistuvogur cove}
_{Around the Westfjords (5) - where the road ends}

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@astinmin

Waiting for Summer: along the lupine road