Iceland Series
Route 1 in winter (SOLD)

oil on canvas, 40cm x 40cm, Iain White 2008, £95

Route 1 (Þjóðvegur 1) or the Ring Road (Hringvegur) runs around the island and connects most of the inhabited parts of the country. The total length of the road is 1,332 kilometres (828 miles). The ring was only completed in 1974, on the 1100th anniversary of the country's settlement when the longest bridge in Iceland crossing the Skeiðará river in the southeast, was opened.

Here we see a section of Route 1 between Akureyri and Reykjahlið and Mývatn in the north of the country under snow in October. The road is paved with asphalt for most of its length, but there are still stretches in eastern Iceland with an unpaved gravel surface. Even when paved, some portions of the road are still the original 1940s country roads, and contain hazards such as blind curves and blind summits, single lane bridges, and narrow passes. In winter, icy roads and sheer winds can make travel as hazardous as elsewhere in Iceland.

Route 1 in winter (SOLD)

oil on canvas, 40cm x 40cm, Iain White 2008, £95

Route 1 (Þjóðvegur 1) or the Ring Road (Hringvegur) runs around the island and connects most of the inhabited parts of the country. The total length of the road is 1,332 kilometres (828 miles). The ring was only completed in 1974, on the 1100th anniversary of the country's settlement when the longest bridge in Iceland crossing the Skeiðará river in the southeast, was opened.

Here we see a section of Route 1 between Akureyri and Reykjahlið and Mývatn in the north of the country under snow in October. The road is paved with asphalt for most of its length, but there are still stretches in eastern Iceland with an unpaved gravel surface. Even when paved, some portions of the road are still the original 1940s country roads, and contain hazards such as blind curves and blind summits, single lane bridges, and narrow passes. In winter, icy roads and sheer winds can make travel as hazardous as elsewhere in Iceland.