Looking for a private guide in Iceland? My notes on Kristinn, the geophysicist who took us through canyons, moss fields, and his own Iceland.
Kristinn didn’t just show us Iceland. He showed us his Iceland.
Kristinn is a geologist/geographer, which meant the nerd in me had found her person. I could ask endless questions about glaciers, volcanoes and the extraordinary landscape, and instead of politely changing the subject, Kristinn actually answered them.
He took us into canyons where there wasn’t another soul in sight, through the Highlands and across moss-covered landscapes, happily detouring whenever something was worth seeing. He indulged my desire to photograph approximately one million waterfalls—until my fellow travelers threatened to drown me in the next one.
That same instinct to notice things extended to people. At a gas station, he spotted a couple of tourists struggling to figure out the card machine. They hadn’t asked for help. He simply walked over and helped them. It was a tiny moment, but somehow it told you everything about Kristinn.
Traveling with him was also wonderfully unpredictable. An introduction to Icelandic musician Herbert Guðmundsson somehow became a Hindi-Icelandic sing-off. A Highlands provision run involved tikka masala sandwiches and Brennivín. And his attempts to teach me to pronounce Icelandic place names were persistent, if ultimately unsuccessful.
Kristinn was warm, funny and endlessly knowledgeable. By the end, we hadn’t simply seen Iceland. We’d been welcomed into his version of it.
If you want to really understand Iceland, find yourself a Kristinn.
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