Season 1
Around Iceland on Inspiration is a South African travel documentary series produced by Cooked in Africa Films which follows extreme adventurer Riaan Manser and cerebral palsy sufferer Dan Skinstad as they circumnavigate Iceland on kayaks in a 116-day expedition.
Founder and Executive Producer of Cooked in Africa Films, Justin Bonello, partnered with extreme adventurer, Riaan Manser, to produce a 13-part reality TV documentary series entitled Around Iceland on Inspiration, capturing Riaan's daring kayak around the 5,000km circumference of Iceland in 2011.
The Iceland trip, which represents Riaan's third expedition, saw him mentoring and supporting an unlikely partner: 30-year-old University of Cape Town law student and Cerebral Palsy sufferer, Daniel Skinstad.
Youngest brother of South African rugby player, Bob Skinstad, Dan was searching for ways in which to challenge himself physically and mentally when he met Manser a few years ago.
Riaan and Dan completed their excursion on 4 September; becoming the first Africans to circumnavigate Iceland in a kayak.
Iceland is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean on the Mid- Atlantic ridge. It lies just outside the Arctic Circle, and the temperature can vary from as low as -2°C (28°F) in the winter to as high as 25°C (77°F) in the summer.
The summer months (May to August) have almost continuous daylight, which decreases to three or four hours in the winter months (November to January).
Iceland is a beautiful but unpredictable land, with constantly changing weather conditions and dramatically contrasting landscapes. It is highly geologically active with many volcanoes, as well as geysers and hot springs.
The coast is deeply indented by bays and fjords, and is covered extensively by glaciers, ice fields and mountains with boiling mud pools, waterfalls and glacial rivers. In winter the northern lights illuminate the sky with undulating greens, blues, yellows and pinks.
The creatures that inhabit the land and waters of Iceland include the arctic fox, Icelandic horse, killer whale and a great many other species of whale and dolphin, as well as birds which occupy the cliff faces in their millions such as puffins, razorbills, guillemots, auks, gannets and skuas.
Iceland is a breathtaking land of fire and ice. To the filmmaker, photographer and the nature-lover, Iceland is the most visually exciting place the world has to offer.
Riaan and Dan's adventure begins in the small town of Husavik in the north-east of Iceland - the whale-watching capital of the world.
The duo travel around the north-east point of Iceland - the edge of the Arctic Circle - and then head south down the east coast, a magical region of glaciers, forests, bird cliffs, vast deserts and narrow fjords, a region rich in natural wonders and cultural history.
Heading down towards south-east Iceland, the team begins the summer months passing by small fishing villages and fertile river valleys, all set against the backdrop of the enormous Vatnajokull Glacier, the largest in Europe.
Rounding the south coast of Iceland, Dan and Riaan encounter a rich variety of natural forces such as magnificent waterfalls, geysers, simmering volcanoes and vast glaciers.
They also pass through the Westman islands, including Surtsey, a new island created during a volcanic eruption, the World Heritage Site that is the location of an extensive study on bio-colonisation.
The Reykjanes Peninsula is on the south-eastern tip of Iceland, a landscape pitted with volcanic and geothermal sites, and leads on to Iceland's capital Reykjavik.
After Reykjavik, Riaan and Dan kayak around the outstretched arm of the Snaefellsness Peninsula on the west coast, and pass under mountains and glaciers and pass numerous islands and bird cliffs.
The diverse scenery ranges from rugged lava formations and chasms to lush farmlands, river valleys and waterfalls.
The West Fjords is a vast area of deeply indented fjords, glaciers and mountains and breathtaking scenery, most of which is completely uninhabited. Towering angular cliffs rise sharply from the deep blue seas.
Latrabjarg, at the beginning of the West Fjords, is home to the largest bird-cliff in Iceland with millions of nesting sea-birds.
The team encounters this dramatic north-east section of Iceland in summer, which means the climate is not as ferocious as in winter, but the peninsulas and fjords that make up the West Fjords are the most remote and sparsely populated in Iceland.
The home stretch along the north coast of Iceland takes the team past fjords with beautiful underwater life, and mountains overhead flowing with rivers and waterfalls.
Around Iceland on Inspiration is a spectacular experience that enriched the lives of all affected, and created a partnership and bond that strengthened both Riaan and Dan physically and mentally. There are extreme highs and extreme lows; blood, sweat and tears.
This is a story about courage, friendship, determination and inspiration.