And You Think This Is Cold? Dunedin Boy Scouts Explored A Glacier

DUNEDIN, FL – If you think it’s cold right now in Florida, just imagine how the members of Troop 422 of Dunedin felt over the summer during a six-day trip to Iceland.

Troop members dug into their closets to retrieve their parkas and Frogg Toggs, and headed to the northernmost national Scout center in the world July 20-26.

Not only was the climate a major contrast to Florida, but the landscape, food and culture were new experiences for the Scouts.

The boys stayed the first few days in a youth hostel in Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland, eating local food, which consisted mainly of fish.

Harrison Groetsch, 15, tried the octopus at an all-you-can-eat buffet.

“It was rubbery,” Groetsch said. “I didn’t like it that much, to be honest. It was really hard to swallow, too.”

Exploring the city of Reykjavik, embarking on a whale and puffin boat trip, hiking to waterfalls, taking a dip in Blue Lagoon and climbing a glacier are not activities the Scouts are used to participating in. But that’s why they came.

Their first day, they stopped by the Bridge Between Continents, a small foot bridge that crosses a sand-filled fissure and connects two lava plates. The bridge was built as a symbol of the connection between Europe and America.

“It is a man-made bridge,” said Tyler Miller, 17. “And it was really weird because everywhere you looked there was nothing, just bare rock.”

On the second day, the boys visited the Blue Lagoon, a geothermal hot spring outside of Reykjavik. It is Iceland’s spa, registering 102 degrees Fahrenheit all year

“It was like a very hot day here in Florida,” said Tanner Leuellen, 17. “It’s like if you add humidity and then somebody chucks steam in your face.”

“It’s like breathing water,” added Miller.

The local joke is that it only rained twice in Iceland -- once for 25 straight days and again for 20 days.

Nevertheless, the sun finally came out for the boys’ whale-spotting trip. They saw a humpback whale as well as some marine creature that were familiar to the Floridians – dolphins.

On the same day, they participated in a puffin-spotting trip. One dad said the adorable birds looked like a cross between a penguin and a parrot. The boys thought they looked like mini penguins that could fly.

The troop searched out locations that weren’t populated by tourists. One of the hidden gems is Brauerfoss Falls.

Here’s a fun fact. The television show, “Game of Thrones,” filmed scenes there.

They took a trail that led to the bottom of the falls. Due to the constant rain falling on the rocks, the boys said it was like trying to walk on a Slip n’ Slide.

But, once they got to the bottom, the spring was so crystal clear that Chris Gustafson, 17, couldn't resist dunking his hair in it.

The Scouts’ next challenge was ice climbing on Solheimajokull Glacier, an adventure that required helmets, ice axes, climbing harnesses and crampons (metal spikes attached to shoes for traction).

Alec Parlapiano, 17, and Tyler quickly learned that crampons aren’t effective if your shoes aren’t on tight.

Parlapiano was able to make it to the top of the glacier while displaying his single-shoe climbing skills.

Miller lost both shoes on the descent.

“They came off and I went backwards,” he said.

He flipped upside-down, demonstrating the importance of a helmet, which protects the head when it hits the ice.

The glacier is the fourth largest in Iceland. It is covered in volcanic ashes from a volcano that erupted in 2010. One guide wiped a little bit of ash on 15-year-old Aiden Howell’s face like a mud mask.

The next destination -- Little Girl Cave – doesn’t sound like much of a challenge until you begin exploring it.

Also known as Canyon Cave, it is part of a lava tube created 9,000 years ago.

The guides geared them up before they went into the lava tube with helmets equipped with battery-powered light mounts.

The cave is very dark and the ceiling of the tube is filled with “baby stalactites,” tapering structure hanging like icicles.

“They looked like tiny needles from the boiling lava,” said outdoor coordinator Todd Miller.

They were 15 to 25 meters below ground.

“We had to climb over stuff (boulders) because parts of the cave were falling in due to past earthquakes,” said Leuellen.

At midpoint in the cave, the guide had the boys and dads turn off the lights on their helmets.

“It was so dark. Usually, if your whole house is dark, you can still kind of see,” says Miller. “Your eyes adjust. But down there, your eyes can’t adjust.”

The boys also completed a service project during the trip.

Troop 422 is based out of Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Dunedin. The troop members spent a year doing fundraisers to raise money for the trip including selling water at Wine the Blues, working pancake breakfasts at VFW Post 2550, washing cars at Advanced Auto Parts and selling candy at local Publix locations.

Images via Troop 422

Information provided by Nadine Parlapiano, adult committee member of Boy Scout Troop 422

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