Our story and mission

Founder’s Mike and Ryan met by complete chance back in 2014 on the other side of the world. In a remote village in Japan, Mike was teaching english at a local school while Ryan happened to be passing through on a walk across the entire country. After Mike noticed a big bearded westerner wandering through the streets, they introduced each other and, as fellow adventurers, instantly became good friends. As fate would have it, three years later Mike would come to Iceland and became a glacier guide, while Ryan, now a professional landscape photographer, would soon follow.

Together these two crazy Americans decided to start Ice Pic Journeys as a passion project. Through their previous experience guiding with Icelandic companies, Mike and Ryan knew that they wanted people from all over the world to understand the glaciers and how they are changing. What better way to understand them than to create a personal experience combined with the visual elements of photography. This way, when you hike with us, you will learn about the glacier first hand, but will also have a professional photographer making unique, personal images for friends and family to see.

It is our mission to reveal to the world, ourselves amongst these natural wonders as a first step towards awareness and preserving the only glaciers that we have.

The Team

Ryan Newburn
Co-founder Ice Pic Journeys

Originally from Omaha, Nebraska, Ryan moved to Iceland in 2018 to become a glacier guide for another company. Over these years, Ryan would develop his skills as a photographer, constantly shooting the landscapes that he was guiding in. Eventually he noticed that clients would always be happier when he would bring his camera on the tours while subsequently sending them the photos. Realizing the demand for having a photographer as well as a guide on a tour, he founded Ice Pic Journeys to give them just this.

Michael Reid
co-founder Ice Pic Journeys

Mike, a 3 time Guinness World Record holder and expedition athlete, has been guiding in the industry for over 5 years and has over 1000 glacier hikes under his belt.  He is certified to the highest level for both glacier and alpine trekking guiding in Iceland under the Félag fjallaleiðsögumanna á Íslandi (Association of Icelandic Mountain Guides) and also serves as an instructor to aspirant glacier guides. He can either be found climbing in the deep blue vertical ice caves or planning his next 9-day  Vatnajokull Ice Cap crossing.

Ladislav Skala
Adventure Photographer

Ladislav is a professional photographer hailing from Czech Republic. He came to Iceland 7 years ago and fell in love with its amazing and fierce landscapes. Ladiv has been able to travel to every corner of Iceland and capture some very unique images. Most recently, images from his many glacier expeditions have been featured by Olympus. 

Florent Irion
Adventure Photographer

For the last 3 years, guide and photographer Florent has been exploring and shooting some of the most remote parts of Iceland. Stepping away from his environmental engineering career, Florent now dedicates his life to adventures and photography. His technical skills allow him to capture all the action happening in the Icelandic Mountains. No doubt he’s the photographer to capture your gnarliest adventures and create unforgettable memories for you.