There's a waterfall ahead of us, a herd of
horses following us, Welcome to Iceland! A magical country with stunning scenery, where
there is a small but mighty horse waiting to take you on the ride of a lifetime. I'm Alyssa from DiscoverTheHorse and today
is the start of an amazing adventure. I can't wait to bring you along, we're heading
out for a six day riding trek in the mountains and we're gonna be riding on Icelandic Horses. So if you're ready to go for an incredible
ride let's get started. Icelandic Horses are the only horse breed
in Iceland. They have been bred here for over a thousand
years, making them one of the purest breeds in the world. To start the trip I'm picking up riding gear
from Hrimnir an Icelandic company that specializes in gear for both Icelandic horses and riders. There are no contagious animal diseases in
Iceland and so the horses are not vaccinated. As an equestrian traveler it is important
to protect the horses by using new gear or making sure any used riding clothes are properly
disinfected. I'm here at the BSI bus station as you can
probably hear the buses in the background. Waiting for the bus that's going to take us
to the start of the ride. Islandshestar is owned by a group of Icelandic
farmers. Horse lovers from all around the world travel
to Iceland for their rides. Most of the farmers they breed their own horses
and they train them themselves, so they they know the horses very well, they know the area
where they are riding. So that's what we're trying to to accomplish
for our guests to to be part of the family and and take in the same message as the horses
and the land and the landscape are telling the farmers. This is our guide Ingvar. The highlands that we are riding through in
Landmannalaugar and Landmannahellir is sort of my area, my sheep, I bring them there every
summer and round them up again in the autumn, so you shouldn't get lost with me. We just had dinner at the farm and now we're
here at a guest house to spend the evening. Good morning! It is our first official day of riding here
in Iceland. I am so excited to go meet the horses and
get ready for our ride. Today is going to be about getting to know
the Icelandic Horse and their relaxed and fun way of riding. They have a smooth gate called the tolt which
we will be experiencing a lot of on this trip, but first - breakfast! We also pack sandwiches from the breakfast
table to put in our saddle bags for lunch. Hopefully we won't need this one... but better
to have it in case. All right we've got saddles, we've got nose
bands, rain gear, saddle bags, helmet... I'm missing one key item but it's over there,
so I think that's next. Although they are small with an average height
of 12.2 to 14.2 they have a sturdy build and can easily carry adult riders He's my first ride His name means "Raven." This is going to be such a fun day! We are riding in Icelandic saddles which are
very similar to dressage saddles with the addition of really cool looking stirrups. Icelandic Horses are gaited which means that
in addition to walk, trot and canter they also have a gait called the tolt, which is
a smooth four beat gait and some Icelandics also have a fifth gate called the flying pace. These added gaits are natural for the horse
and they are born with the ability to gait. We just tolted along these nice dirt lanes
now we're taking a break along here and it's just absolutely beautiful. Thank you sir. You're welcome, how's your horse? Wonderful! Well done. Leg one. We're switching to our second horse for the
day so we just put the horses away in this little paddock over here and now we are next
to this big pasture. They're heading out to bring the horses up. This part is so exciting. "Which one's mine." "Who do I get? Who do i get?" It's nice to meet you. You ready to ride? That's it for today. We're gonna let these guys go and then we'll
be back tomorrow. That is a really fun horse she like she's
just so smooth and we were flying all over this various terrain and just heading along
and she just knew exactly what to do. So much fun. Now we're bringing the saddles in and we just
have to put them in a spot anywhere along here that we're gonna remember for tomorrow
because we get to keep the same saddles, saddlebags and nosebands. So I have to pick my spot. Our home for the evening is a nearby guest
house where we get a lovely dinner and cake before heading to bed. Another beautiful day here in Iceland. We are getting ready, oh I have a little puppy
visitor, today is really exciting because we get to ride with a herd for the first time. That's the one of the main things I would
say for people to come to Iceland and ride here is because of the free riding herd. This opportunity to ride with loose horses,
it's a big thing for people to to enjoy, because for most people riding with loose horses is
just a wild dream that will never happen, they think, but we can make that happen. Our crew working hard. The daily saddle search... Not mine... Here we are. Before we continue there is something you
need to know. Around the world there are various ways of
herding animals. For example, in Sweden there is a relaxing
singing call. Here in Iceland they do things a little differently! Wow it is a sea of horses. Ingvar is working hard matching us with our
horses for the day and Hannes is making sure everyone has their shoes. This is Hyttling. She is my first horse for today. I think she looks pretty sweet so I think
it's gonna be a good day. I can't believe the terrain that these guys
can just go right over. They're so aware of exactly where their feet
are! I mean this is the way to ride, right? The rest of the herd is actually going to
be coming up soon, so we're going to get a phone call when they're on the bridge and
then the whole herd is going to come through over here. We're going to wait for them to go by and
then we'll all already be on our horses so we're just gonna head out after the herd. We just came up over this ridge and you can
see the river in a really cool way Every horse rider has to ride in Iceland at
least once! Just taking a little break to have some lunch
and hang out with my pals. This is horse number two for today horse number
four total. She likes snacks. We're heading out from our break and all the
horses are here in the paddock so they're gonna actually head out after us. There are always two groups of riders with
the herd. The front riders lead the way and the back
riders make sure no one is left behind. There's a waterfall ahead of us, a herd of
horses following us, it's so neat! And that's how we bring the horses along. Not far from the paddock are the runes of
a Viking Longhouse. In 1104 Mount Hekla erupted and it destroyed
many of the farms in the valley. Back at the paddock it's time to get a third
horse and complete the day. We stayed last night at a mountain hut. That is not where we stayed. Just a really fun community experience with
bunk beds, guitar playing, we had a nice dinner after our long ride yesterday. I'm really looking forward to today because
it's supposed to be a really unique landscape and almost like a moon-like or mars-like experience
as we head up into the middle of nowhere. I get really excited each time we get a new
horse because we get to experience all of these different types of horses and each one
has their own unique personality and different way of riding on the trail, so it's been really
fun to ride a wide variety of different horses. Never a dull moment here! There's a really neat contrast out here from
from the green to Mount Hekla in the background and we're on lava fields right now. It's lunchtime. Oh
I sat in the right spot! Our talented Icelandic riding crew. You can feel when you have free horses running
with you, the whole atmosphere just changes. All the horses get a little bit more excited,
they somehow just take the power the group into the adventure. You can feel much more energy and power and
everything clicks together when you get like 100 horses running free with you. It's just an unbelievable feel. Right where we have the horses right now we
actually have them penned in between these rocks here. We just rode through the lava fields and you
can see they just stopped right along here, it goes from just soft grass to these crazy
rocks of lava, and all of this is from Mount Hekla which is like 20 miles away from here. When you're riding in Iceland just don't forget
to take it in and give yourself time to to look around you and take a deep breath and
enjoy it. Iceland does not disappoint, especially for
an equestrian that likes to do amazing horse rides! Every part of today was so unique, interesting
and fun! This guy's my third horse for the day. He is a super smooth tolter and a nice
ground covering gait, and you're very sweet. I hope I get to ride him again. This is where the horses get to stay for the
evening and we get to head over here, where we'll get dinner in a couple of hours, which
I am quite excited about. I'm filming the luggage train. Being very "not helpful." Bad excuse
for not working. Mission successful. You take such good care of us. But the evening isn't over yet, we've been
told to grab our coats and head outside. What are we doing? The big mystery. There is a ghost in here. They just keep going in! bye-bye bye-bye, see you tomorrow! We appear to be approaching our destination. Hellir means "cave" and Landmanna means, "the
people in the area". So this is the Cave of
the People in the Area. If the weather was bad they would bring the
horses in her and -It was always bad. Of course she has lived it, so she should
actually tell the story, not me. So why exactly is Elín wearing a blue glove
in the "cave of the people in the area?" How should I put it... Rotten Shark. I was afraid of that. All right... Now I know how you guys figured out that sound
when you're herding the horses! I was going to bed last night and we're all
in this one room so we're in these bunk beds and everybody's laughing and there's banter
going back and forth and just as you're falling asleep, you're listening to just the joy of
the people around you, and uh then once people fall asleep you're listening to a little bit
of snoring, but I love seeing how we are all connected because of our passion for horses. This trip is unlike anything I have ever experienced. Saddles are ready to go, horses are getting some new shoes. It is a little bit chillier today so we have
all added a few extra layers. I think one of the really interesting things
about these horses is how well they know their job. You've got these horses that are like ready
to go and just charge out there and go full speed ahead and then when you get to a place
that you need to you can just ride on a loose rein, walk through difficult terrain, they
also stop and just stand anytime you need, when the whole herd is getting together, or when
you stop for a break they're so easy to handle. When we take the saddles off and have lunch
we can just stay there with the horses and it's so interesting just to see how this breed
has been developed and how they use them as these working horses. Pretty cool It's also interesting when you feel how you
can bond with your horse and trust your horse and we are we are used
to it because here in Iceland we have used horses for a hundred
years to survive and for transportation and for agriculture and everything. We have
put so much trust in the horse, for example we use the horse to gather
the sheep in the autumn and get them down to the roundups and I have done that
many times and I remember more than one or two times that I have just been in a fog,
just completely lost somewhere in the highlands and I have just let the reins go
and the horse has just taken me to the to the right path. It's amazing. And so that's
how I think Icelanders look at the Icelandic Horse, that it's an animal that we just
trust and is reliable and has always helped us through the centuries. Here we are in the
Landmannalaugar, which is a very popular place in Iceland because of the multi-colored mountains
and there's also a hot springs here. This is the farthest point in our ride. We've ridden
for four days to get here and the mountains are absolutely beautiful! There's different
colors all around us we've got grays and greens and browns and reds and tans. I have to be
honest though, my favorite part about it is just getting here on horseback. End of day four of riding and we seem to have
acquired the Icelandic tan... We've heard that it looks pretty good on us
let us know what you think in the comments below. We've all been staying in this hut right here. It's
one room it's got bunk beds and a little kitchen, two bathrooms and it's been a very cozy experience. I think when we get to the next place where we're sharing some rooms it's gonna feel like
we're all so far away from each other. We have to clean the horses off before we tack up
and I was shown this really unique way to get the dirt off of them. You pick up a
rock and instead of using your hand and if you
don't have a brush it actually gets these little chunks of dirt off of the horse's back. Little Icelandic... uh... lava rock horse
grooming trick! I can't stop gawking. We are getting a little bit of Icelandic weather. A little
bit of wind, a little bit of cold, a little bit of drizzle. But we're almost to lunch. We're here at our lunch break. Not too much around here just a lot of rocks and lava. Here we go. Many people are coming just because they are
horse people and want to see how it is to ride in Iceland. Many people
have Icelandic horses at home and really like to to come to Iceland and feel how it
is to ride the Icelandic horses in their, you can say, their their real nature. So there's
a lot of people that are coming because of that. Then you have a lot of people that
just come here for a new start in life or maybe they have a illness or sickness
that they're trying to get over and so sometimes it can be really emotional, this
trip, for people, so it's yeah, its.. of course, I get emotional when I'm talking
about it because there's a lot of things, that have helped other people,
just to to get over something, just being with the horses and the animals
and the landscape and also just good human people in a group, trying to do something
together. This paddock is a little bit unkempt and so
we're all standing around the outside of it when we get the next horses, just to make
sure that all the horses stay inside instead of heading out before we're ready to go. We took a break, the gate is opened, and off
you go! Oh my goodness. This is so much fun! We just
had an awesome ride, just flying along, horses are running along with us. This mare 'Ala
is a rock star. I don't even know how we made it over half the stuff we did and she just
took it all in stride. You're amazing, yeah you're very very very fast! So fun. Good girl. Oh my goodness, it is our final day here on
the ride. We are heading back down out of the Highlands but we'll be stopping at a place
that was used as a filming location for a popular TV series. Wow, here we are at an absolutely magical
place! Game of Thrones fans might recognize this location as well. You can watch for it in Season
4. Look we found your friends. I'm so excited. I get to ride Hamar again today. He's one of my favorites, he's such a sweet horse. He'll do anything and
he's so smooth, so comfortable. Our last ride, last horse of the day, last
horse of the trip, I cannot believe how fast it's gone! I feel that the a "Quest" is a little bit
good word for it. Because there's so many elements that come into this tour. There is of course, the horse, and the nature, and then there's also the food, and all
the people that you are that you are riding with, the group that you are going to be part
of. At the first day you have absolutely no idea anything about each other and
in the end of it they've accomplished something together, and can
be proud of it to finish the job and then take the experience with them home
so they can relive it. So I would just say to anyone who is thinking about
adventure and it happens that the person is also a horseman, I would say that's
just the perfect opportunity to let go, let go of everything and just get into
the pool. Six days of riding. We are back! There's the herd that carried us through. Thank you for Discovering the Icelandic Horse
with me. If you enjoyed riding along please give the video a thumbs up and subscribe to
the channel. Make sure to check out Islandshestar if you are looking for your own riding
adventure in Iceland. Happy riding everyone I'll see you at the next breed!
