Our Week in Iceland
Our Week in Iceland
Our fabulous week in Iceland has sadly come to an end. What a fabulous array of fantastic geography this country has! Although the weather has not always been kind, with rain or overcast conditions and strong cold winds on many days (yes, it IS mid-summer!), the fact remains that Iceland is a very special place with great people, amazing sights and unique experiences to offer.
Since I wrote the mid-week blog a few days ago, we have travelled by 4-wheel drive bus to Lakagígar (a vast lava field and crater row from the 1723 eruptions that were so severe they almost led the population to abandon Iceland), then along the south-east coast through Skaftafell National Park to Höfn, and north along the east coast through the fjords to Egilsstadar, out to the east coast to Seydisfjördur, and then overland via Jökulsárgljúfur National Park to the town of Reykjalid on Lake Myvatn. Reykjalid was a real highlight of the trip, being the centre of geothermal activity and home to Krafla, centre of a huge volcanic eruption in 1984 that has left a still-steaming black lava field and rows of craters and fissures that mark the rift zone of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. From Reykjalid we drove north-west to Husavík and then to Akureyri, from where we flew back to Reykjavik.
By the way, not one of these place names sounds remotely like the way it is spelt!
I think the best way to share our sensational experiences of the past week is through pictures, and I have uploaded several galleries that I hope you will enjoy.
There is a gallery of 30 images of south-east Iceland HERE.
There is a gallery of 30 images of northern Iceland HERE.
I have uploaded some extra images to the gallery I uploaded a few days ago of south-west Iceland, making a total of 48 images that can be accessed HERE.
Finally, for family members and friends with the password to the Family Galleries section of the website, I have added an extra 22 images to the 18 images that I uploaded a few days ago, making a total of 40 images that can be accessed HERE.
I do hope you enjoy the images. Please be sure to run them through the ‘slideshow’ option to see them in the glorious detail that does justice (I hope) to the wonderful country of Iceland.
POSTSCRIPT: For those of you who are in Sydney (Australia) on 29th July, you may be interested in attending my lecture on the geography of Iceland entitled “Iceland: Land of Ice and Fire”, to be presented to the Geographical Society of New South Wales Travellers’ Club. Details can be seen HERE.
Sunday, 8 July 2007