Following on from parts
One,
Two and
Three.
Another icon of the South is Svartifoss.
Falling 20m over a hanging gallery of basalt columns, this is one of the most popular waterfalls in Skaftafell National Park.
Svartifoss literally means “Black Falls” in obvious reference to the dark rock face but when it is dry you can see that it is full of colours, almost none of them really “Black”
We saw a lot of bird life in this area including a very bold pair of Ptarmigan, who were so convinced that their snow white camouflage was perfect, that they sat perfectly still in the greenery at the side of the path and did not move off until we were within 5 feet of them.
Now the weather had improved we returned Eastward to Jökulsárlón.
I’ve said all I need to say about this location already so I’ll just leave you to enjoy the photographs.
I could have taken many more, in fact Debs almost had to drag me away from the place.
The shore around Vik is another area full of photographic potential.
This is one of the smaller basalt arches at Dyrhólaey, a tricky angle to get.
As you can see, I actually set up a safety line for this shot...
For the camera of course, not for me.
According to Debs I attracted a bit of a crowd while doing this, although I was much more interested in where I was standing so I didn’t notice.
It’s amazing what people will stand and gawp at isn’t it. “We’re all standing in a fantastic landscape but let’s see if the photographer falls off the cliff...”
At the other end of the beach stand Reynisdrangar.
Petrified Trolls again of course. This time dragging a three masted ship to shore when the light caught them.
I wanted a shot from further round the shore but the sea was too high on this occasion.
Returning in the morning, the wind had freshened and the surf was throwing spray into the air all along the foreshore. Lit by the rising sun it glowed like a fine mist.
The light was fantastic and as I was setting up five other vehicles arrived and started disgorging people, tripods and cameras.
My first thought was that it was a photographic tour or course of some sort but when a man clad in a wet suit climbed out of a van with a surf board it soon became apparent that it was a film crew and it’s entourage of directors and producers.
From the dark looks and muttering conversations, they didn’t look very happy to see me there either.
It would seem that they wanted to film him surfing in this amazing location.
But I could tell there was an obvious clash of cultures going on.
The surfer wanted to ride the best waves and they were further out.
The film crew just wanted him to hit his marks and they were closer in to the rock.
Every time the surfer tried to catch a wave in the right place he wiped out and had to swim back out against the current to try again.
Eventually he made his run, to the satisfaction of the film crew at any rate, but he must have been exhausted by that point.
Of course, film crews being what they are, they asked him to do it all over again...
I had the shots I wanted so we left them to it and started back towards the West.
Some things are difficult to photograph.
It could be because there is so much spray that you have to keep wiping your lens to see anything at all. That was certainly true here.
Some times the light is just not right or coming from the wrong direction. It wasn’t brilliant here but I’ve seen worse.
It might be because you cannot seem to find the right angle to get the shot you want. That was not the problem in this case.
But sometimes, something is just so awesome you just have to be there and experience it for yourself.
I don’t think any photograph could do justice to Skógafoss.
Of all the falls we saw on this trip, I think this was my favourite.
I did try to shoot the whole thing but it does not show the real majesty of this waterfall.
I had my eye on an interesting feature near Gunnuhver that I had found in a geology report but on the way we found this contraption.
Looking like something out of a Steampunk fantasy this was obviously tapping into the huge reserves of geothermal energy in the ground all around Iceland.
This area seemed to be a particular hotspot for such extraction judging by the shining steel pipes stretching every which way across the landscape.
The steaming Earth at Gunnuhver is attributed to an unruly ghost called Guðrún that was trapped by a priest there some 600 years ago.
All I can say is if this is what she’s like after being laid to rest, I wouldn’t want to have met her in real life. This is a powerful place.
In front of the platform in the picture above is the remains of another that was destroyed in a steam explosion a few years ago.
Debs lost a glove that was snatched by the wind and came to rest on the edge of one of the steaming vents. Needless to say neither of us felt inclined to chance a rescue attempt.
Guðrún has at least one warm hand now.
We planned to spend our last night on the road near Reyjanes Lighthouse, overlooking these sea stacks.
The sea was high and the wind higher. These shots had to be taken in the lee of the van just to stop the tripod blowing over. Even then many exposures were spoiled by vibration. As the light fell and the exposures grew longer the problem got worse.
When it started snowing again we decided to head inland to avoid getting stranded at the end of a quiet gravel road.
Our last two days In Iceland were spent in Reykjavik.
I didn’t take many pictures there. In fact after lugging my gear around for a fortnight I was glad to leave it in the hotel room and just carry a compact instead.
Anyone that knows our great interest in history and archaeology would be able to predict our movements for these next days.
First the bookshops followed by the Museums. Nothing too remarkable to see in the museums, most of the Early Medieval collection I have illustrated in my own library at home but a couple of things caught my eye.
First of all, the bone ice skates. These go back as far as the Vikings and I have seen examples many times but it is the first time I have seen them with the bindings in place. This pair post date the Vikings of course but it shows that the idea had some longevity.
Next were the sulphur matches. Again not a new discovery but I had often wondered if, given the plentiful supply of sulphur in Iceland, they were in use over here. (Which may indicate they could have been used as early as the settlements.) An interesting thought.
If you ever find yourself in Reykjavik, treat yourself to a lunch at the Saegreifinn (Sea Baron) down by the old harbour. Wonderful Lobster soup and fish kebabs that take some beating.
I do admire efficiency and the transport system here is the model of that efficiency.
The shuttle bus arrived on time to take us from the hotel to the bus station. They loaded our bags while we bought our tickets and the bus dropped us at the airport within seconds of the scheduled time.
Homeward bound with the minimum of fuss and bother. Tell me.. Why can’t things work like that in England?
(Full report and more pictures
here.)
