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The project to climb the highest peaks in all Nordic countries started in 2012 and has taken us to fantastic hikes and climbs; Kebnekajse and Akka in Sweden, Galdhöpiggen and Glittertind in Norway and Halti in Finland. This year Icelands highest summit Hvannadalshnjúkur 2110 m was our goal.

The planning and preparations have been ongoing for almost a year and first week of June we flew in to Reykjavik and set a base camp in Hof below the impressive Vattnajökul glacier. After waiting two days for decent weather conditions we finally met with our guide Fannar at Sandfell 100 m above sea level, 4 AM and started our ascent.

The first slope took us to 400 m and the last water fill. For the remainder of the climb all water had to be carried. The forecast said -10 deg C and strong winds at the top so warm clothes also added to the load. Half of the climb is on the Hvannadalshnjúkur glacier, so at 1300 m we tied in and continued up a steady rise "the slope of death" to 1800 m. Along this slope we also saw the weak morning sun rise behind the dark clouds.

Fannar sensed a guiding record within reach (10 hours back and forth vs more normal 15 hrs) and kept a quick pace. After 1800 m the climb leveled out and we crossed the huge glacier plain in very strong winds and snowfall. Finally the summit was visible and we took a short break to prepare crampons and Ice axes. The last 200 m were steep and heavy for tired legs.

After 5 hrs and 50 mins we reached the top and we were rewarded as the wind calmed and even the sun broke through the clouds. Ten minutes later we started the descent.

Back on the glacier plains we were hit by a snow storm and got a bit disoriented, with the result that we were in a zone with more cravasses. In two minor incidents team members fell down into cravasses covered by a thin snow layer. We were still tied in of course and all went well. Back to 1100 m we had the first meal, weather conditions calmed and we made the final rush down to reach the base in exact record time 10 hours!

See all photos from this, the most adventureous of the Nordic summits here.

Iceland is also a fantastic landscape for outdoor life and in particular very photogenic. In early June the intense green moss has not yet developed, but still I captured some great landscapes, see them here.

See the finale of our Nordic summits project