Published August 4, 2016
It’s the cruelest of jokes: Icelanders are amongst the fattest nations in the world – the Icelandic horse is one of the smallest breeds of horse. Thankfully they have been relieved from the burden of carrying Icelanders in recent years, with them becoming ever more popular with tourists. Maybe not surprisingly, the Icelandic horse is special. It’s one of the few five-gaited breeds on earth. Other than the standard walk, trot and canter/gallop, an Icelandic horse has two additional gaits: tölt and valhopp. They also have a special pace, known as flugskeið or “flying-pace”. We tagged along with Íshestar for a short tour just outside the city limits, seeing is believing:
The may be small, but don’t let that fool you
An Icelandic palomino is gorgeous with beautiful golden fur
Tölt is an ambling gait and why Icelandic horses are known for their sure-footedness
There are some places cars can’t go
After a twelve minute drive from the city centre, you are surrounded by nature.
