STORY AND PHOTOS BY STACEY NEDROW-WIGMORE
Now ask your horses to tölt,” instructed Björk Jakobsdóttir, our Icelandic guide. I took a deep breath, lifted my hands and took more contact, scooped my seat under and closed my legs. Klængur, the fi rst of many delightful Icelandic horses I would ride over the week-long adventure, rewarded me with a few steps of this mystical gait unique to the breed. I played around with my aids, hunting for the perfect formula to sustain the natural, fl owing gait, which has four beats like a walk but can match the speed of a gallop. The sturdy chestnut (a color the Icelandic people call “red”), with his easy-going attitude and clear paces, was the perfect partner for my experiments.