Having acquired somewhat of a reputation for poor seasonal choice of destinations - Siberia in October and Death Valley in August both spring to mind, I managed to go one better and head to Iceland in December with the promise of an off-road ride as part of my stopover.

I was very nicely hosted by Haukur Thorsteinsson, who is part of Horizons unlimited and who, with his brother, runs Blue Mountain Motorcycle Adventure Tours, however to both our disappointment, the rain was lashing down and the wind was howling as I landed at Reykjavik. In fact the airport bus was almost blown off the road heading into town. We reluctantly concluded that actually a bike ride was not only impractical but downright dangerous.

I had to make do with a look around from the comfort of his heated van - I was particularly toasty and warm as I was wearing an extra layer of thermals (not to mention the seven pairs of knickers) all put on in expectation of bike riding in the extreme weather.

Iceland looked beautiful, unspoilt and a dream destination for bike travelling, with hot springs everywhere and the occasional volcano to look out for. I admired the photos on their website of other riders who had made the journey in more moderate conditions (though apparently I was unlucky with the timing as they'd had clear weather for a week before I arrived).

Their website is:

www.bluemountain.is

So, now I'm looking into the cost of the ferry from Scotland to Iceland in readiness for a trip there, maybe next year.