Sledding in Thingvellir

The Icelandic sheepdog is a breed of spitz that arrived in Iceland with the first Vikings, approximately 870 A.D. A mix of Norwegian buhund, Shetland sheepdog and Welsh corgi, the Icelandic sheepdog is on the small side, with an average weight of about 25 to 30 pounds, and stands about 18 inches tall at the withers. They are loyal, hardworking, smart, tough dogs, as skilled at rounding up livestock as they are finding lost sheep. They are lovers, not fighters, and are great with kids and other animals. Icelandic sheepdogs aren’t particularly suited for dogsledding, though. For that, imported teams of Alaskan huskies, Siberian huskies, Samoyeds and Alaskan malamutes pull tourists through various well-known areas near Iceland’s famed Golden Circle. Operating year-round, teams of four to 10 dogs pull sleds of passengers on snowy trails. When there’s no snow, they pull wheeled carts over grassy flatlands. Alex joined a tour group near Thingvellir National Park on a very cold late-winter