Barðardal LetterBox Trail – BLBT
THIS IS A WALKING TRAIL ONLY !!
BACKGROUND
Barðardal is a valley stretching from Fosshóll around 40 km south until the great desert Sprengisand takes on. The valley is not densely populated and mainly sheep farmers live here. This is therefore an ideal place for placing caches where you can be on your own while walking and enjoy the landscape, have great views. In good weather you see not only Vatnajökull to your south but also Dyngjufjöll (Askja) aswell as Herðubreid to your east. The waste desert Utbrúni with its many different lava fields lie in between these mountains too.
This walking only trail contains 53 letterbox caches and is for those who perhaps find the BNAPT series too demanding but still want to do some trail walking in Iceland. Possibly you are out for the numbers too ?!
To make the trail a little bit different it consists only of letterboxes meaning that there is a stamp in every container and it is also in the form of a very simple but relevant geoart too since there is none of this kind in Iceland - yet.
You will have to bring your own ink pad though if you want to collect the stamps.
Unlike some other letterbox caches coords here point exactly to the cache location,
PLEASE LEAVE THE STAMP IN THE CONTAINER ! THIS IS NO TRADING ITEM !!
So, why put a trail in a not inhabited area and not just along the road ? The simple answer is that you will here find the freedom of being completely on your own while still having nice sceneries to inspire you while walking. In contrary to BNAPT where distances between caches are up to 1km here it is typically 170-400 m only but still giving you time to think around to whom you have not sent a letter recently.
There are no rivers to cross and the walking is mostly very easy - when the altitude is reached. Caches 01-06 are best reached from walking at little higher altitude and branch of eastwards close to the cache.
In total from the given parking coords the walk is around 20 km which is around half of the BNAPT trail. So do not expect as much variation in nature here compared to the much more scenic and adventurous BNAPT. Instead you will have a glimpse on what to expect if you had walked on Sprengisandur.
Is this trail then for everyone ? I must say no but it is still very far from hardcore. It is demanding in its ascent and length but that is actually what you wanted also – a small challenge ? Right ? In case you enjoyed then the trail BNAPT is waiting for you too !
After agreement with land owners there is only one way uphill allowed for access from Barðardal. Start is at P coords and left side of the canyon aiming at the big lonely rock. From there branch slightly left uphill and cross the big block rock part !
Do not try to enter up the canyon, it is not only more difficult but also dangerous too !!
Violation of this area entry term can lead to archiving of the series. There is only private land surrounding the caching area and farmers do not want trespassers over their fields.
So PLEASE RESPECT this and use the waypoint parking and procedure so that the series may survive !
Access from Fnjóskádal is also possible but a bit more tedious. The last farm house there, Sörlastaðir, is not permanently inhabited but is used as a summer house so do not park your vehicle there without asking for permission. The climb from there uphill is easy initially following the track made for the phone line. It is a much longer approach and may require a 4x4 for the last part of the road track to the farm house too.
CACHE INFO
Every container is a 13 cm long PET tube with a light green cap that should be easy to find. Due to landscape and the geo art it might in a few cases be hidden in stone block fields where it is a bit harder to find.
It contains a logg strip of RITR paper together with the mentioned stamp and also a drying agent in a small bag in the bottom. The drying agent should be left in the container too !
Please close the container well after logging so that it stays dry and rehide the container with enough stones so that animals or hard winds do not drag it away.
For the FTF hunter the cap is of ”virgin” type meaning you will have to break its sealing when opening it making a small sound.
THERE IS NO PEN IN THE CONTAINER SO PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN AND LEAVE THE STAMP IN THE CONTAINER !!
To help you find the container faster some spoiler photos will be provided even if they normally not should be needed.
PLEASE LEAVE THE STAMP IN THE CONTAINER. IT IS NOT FOR TRADING AND NEEDED FOR FINDING THE BONUSCACHE TOO !!
It is fine with me if you leave all your experiences in cache number 01 only and write simpler copy and paste loggs for the other caches only. As CO I am very interested to share your experiences and read your story. This is not a must be highly appreciated.
PRACTICAL
Please note that you are completely left on your own here ! At over 600 m of altitude above sea level (it goes up to 730 m above sea level) there is no or poor GSM mobile phone reception. Possibly even earlier already.
If you are walking alone it is wise to alert someone that you are up the mountain. For instance at Kiðagil hotel or at a farm house. This is for your own safety since some parts you have to cross are rough containing large block rocks and falling there can be fatal.
Under good weather conditions this trail can be made without any previous training or excercise if you take good care and choose safe approaches. Take your time to relax, reflect and enjoy ! Under bad weather conditions you should not do the trail at all for your own safety.
Do not enter the mountain if there is northern wind with visible fog coming into the valley !
Even if it looks fine from the river level you see only a few meters ahead at the higher elevations.
Check weather forecast before taking the approach. http://en.vedur.is/weather/forecasts/elements/ Also note that weather can be very local ie rain in one place and 5km away there is sunshine. Make your own observations also.
Weather changes rapidly and when fog is approaching it is time to descend. It quickly gets windy and cold !
Walking sticks are fine to use and will help you to pass rough ground. Note that there are always some wet areas to cross also so use good sturdy watertight walking boots only.
Take a warm pullover together with rain clothes in your backpack ! You may need it even if everything looks great at start !
Bring some snacks or any food that will provide you with much energy especially if you get cold. Nuts, raisins and chocolate are always good. Drinking water you will find in any creek, it is fresh water coming up from the ground.
Caches are very hard or more likely not possible to find when there is snow since they all reside on the ground under or behind stones (where else could they be ?) Check with CO or even better directly with the locals on snow conditions. You are not able to see that from the river level.
There is a camping site and hotel named Kiðagil close to the bridge in case you want to stay overnight. Book well in advance since rooms are often fully booked.
If your car needs some service then the next garage is at the farm Engi some km south from the given parking coords.
There are no food shops in the valley. Next larger shop for food is in Husavik, Akureyri or Myvatn so bring your own supplies.
Drinking water you will find along your walk so bring an empty bottle.
These caches have been placed with the full consent of the land owners in concern in Laekjavellir, Littluvellir, Halldórstaðir1&2 and Engi.
I hope you enjoy your walk and the magnificent sceneries but be careful !
Feel free to contact me if you have questions in front of a planned visit to the series.
Ingabo