Here, Winnie tries to get a first photo of Seljalandsfoss. Unfortunately it was a very crowded day out here in the boonies, and she had to walk… yes, walk I say… almost thirty meters to get a pic without the hoards of tourists that abound in Iceland. Will it be worth the hike? Okay, how ’bout 10 meters?
I went around the right side of the falls… most direct route. My camera shooting finger just itching for a chance… Winnie went over the bridge and around the left side of the falls… Can you see which way the mists are drifting? To the left, haha? Anybody? Ferris?
Winnie makes it behind the foss, the fun way!
What a cool place to live. Ultra rich volcanic soil in front for your hay, mountains behind, and it’s all topped with a huge ice field. Ice fields up top form where the snow never completely melts, building deeper and deeper as the centuries wander slowly by. Time and gravity push the ice downward in the form of outflow glaciers that completely encircle the Iceland ice cap.
While this place is scenic beyond words, there lurks a monster within the ice fields. The Eyjafjallajokull volcano awakened one sparkling day in April, 2010. Unfortunately it was beneath several hundred feet of solid ice cap. The volcano blew it’s guts out with much of the molten lava expanding sideways under the ice field. Then some things started going bad… the ice rapidly melted forming water and steam. Think really high pressure building in a stopped-up pressure cooker with the burner turned up way past good sense. Next, the lava flow ebbed and water started falling back towards the molten lava. That’s when the you-know-what hit the fan with a spectacularly explosive eruption. If you remember, it’s 30,000′ ash cloud paralyzed air traffic in the North Atlantic and eastward across Northern Europe.
The Eyjafjallajolull eruption also threatened those living in it’s shadow. Icelanders never give up, though. Farming continued and crops and animals were tended and cared for. Man and nature have learned to coexist through good times and bad in the land of fire and ice. My hat’s off to ya, Iceland.
There’s a major volcanic eruption somewhere in Iceland every three years. Let’s see, when was that last one again? Uh oh, the island is already a year overdue for another “big one”.
We’ve been home about a week. Look what I just saw in the WSJ: http://online.wsj.com/articles/iceland-evacuates-people-living-near-bardarbunga-volcano-1408536550
That must be why they call Iceland the land of fire and ice.
The middle of day three finds us heading for yet another waterfall. Sigh. It couldn’t possibly be as pretty as Seljanlandsfoss. Or could it?
Skogafoss is considered to be one of Iceland’s most beautiful waterfalls. (Ed note: I haven’t seen an ugly one yet.) Some are small and intricate, some are large and majestic. For Iceland, I’m going to have to rate this one as (SPOILER ALERT) “majestic” by Icelandic standards.
Drive up, park, and walk to the falls, or anywhere you’re brave enough to venture. Remember, this is not America, or even Europe. There aren’t any fences between you and cliffs, waters, or even eternity. Your choice. I hope that you make a wise choice, Grasshopper.
The Skóka river above opens to a wide flat rocky area on the moor before rushing off the edge 25 meters wide and falling 62 meters to the pool underneath the falls. Are you getting comfortable with the metric system now?
(Visually, 62 meters = about 2/3 of the length of an American football field).
The waterfall generates a huge amount of spray and noise. As I approached the tempest, I drank in the roar of the falls, the super-coolness of the wind in my face coming off the falls, and the irony of being able to look upward through the swirling mists to see a bright sunny day just above. And I know that most of you will consider this odd, but the thought came to me that the place… smelled fresh. A clean scent. No chemicals added, no Pine-sol, just Mother Nature doing her thing. Ahhh, peace.
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Gullfoss and the surrounding area were made a nature preserve in 1979. The area’s ecosystem is also protected, and it’s vegetation remains pretty well untouched. Attempts are still being made every single day to minimize man’s footprint, to keep man-made structures to a minimum, and to not disturb the land and geological formations.
Toss your camera rig on your shoulder and let’s head up the creek to see what it looks like looking back toward the Northeast…
Never would I have ever dreamed that I’d be taking vacation snapshots in Iceland… but I’m sure glad I made it to the party.
Time to pack up and make a run for the Hotel. We heard that it was a 4 Star hotel. I hope so.
Ooh, check out that second shelf from the top. They’ve got some, um… adequate scotches there. I started my flight on the right side of the second shelf and only made it as far as the Monkey Shoulder Single Malt Scotch Whisky. And the cognacs on the top shelf? Righteous. Their ‘little wine fridge’ had started off with names like Chateau neuf du Pape, Dom, Bollinger (champagne, Mr Bond?).
While I was drooling on the floor in front of the scotch bar, Winnie (the Beer Hunter) found an interesting local bier that I thought, btw, was pretty darn good.
