The road ahead would be the last leg where the electric cars could rely on the few-and-far-between fast-charging stations in rural Iceland. After staying the night at Blönduós in cottages at the banks of the river Blanda, they would venture on and stay the night in Húsavík which is the furthest north they will go on the trip. Húsavík is a detour off the ring-road around Iceland thus lengthening the total distance of the road-trip.
This leg of the road-trip would take them over three mountain roads. Though these roads are not as dramatic as they sound (at least not for natives) they are a steep climb for the electric vehicles which would be put to the test.
The group picked up a fellow traveller and EV enthusiast, Michael Nevin who is the British Ambassador to Iceland. He got to drive the KIA from Varmahlíð to Akureyri.
Met up with Stuart & Chris on #chargearoundiceland as they drive around #Iceland in electric cars. They let me drive in to Akureyri. pic.twitter.com/MfwBKSiUdn
— Michael Nevin?? (@MichaelNevinFCO) October 2, 2017
It turns out that Stuart, Mark and Anita aren’t the only things Made in the UK participating in CHARGE around Iceland. Let the ambassador explain:
Stuart was the first to drive around the UK in an e-car. We both agree that UK innovation has a lot to offer the e-car revolution. pic.twitter.com/CNkrqnUwAn
— Michael Nevin?? (@MichaelNevinFCO) October 2, 2017
While the travellers renourished over lunch with the ambassador, the cars got their electrons at the last fast charging station for a long time.
From Akureyri they ventured off to the picturesque village of Húsavík which lies further up North in the bay of Skjálfandi. There they charged up at the mid-speed charge point provided by the municipality.
The next leg of the journey will be a challenging one – they will venture up to higher altitude to a landscape thought to be so much out of this earth that NASA trained astronauts for the Apollo missions there to help them prepare for the moon.
