UKC

We're off to Iceland for a fortnight in late summer. We won't be up for big hikes, but would be interested in exploring places of geological interest. If anyone has any recommendations of places to visit I'd be grateful. Particularly keen to see the divergent plate boundary running across the island north-south. Saw some great shots on a TV programme recently with a gorge you could walk through with the Eurasian plate one side and the Laurentian plate on the other. Looked fascinating, but TV programmes are never good on telling you how to get to places.

In reply to Rog Wilko: Thingvellir national park.

If you snorkel or dive Silfra is supposed to be exceptional. Some divers i know say it has the clearest water they've ever dived in worldwide

In reply to Rog Wilko:

The plate boundary forms a rift valley which is now part of the Thingvellir National Park which you can walk about in. It was also the former sight of the Icelandic parliament (many centuries ago) where they would meet up once a year to sort out business.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%9Eingvellir

More generally you don't have to look far to see geology in Iceland, you can't escape it. I used this book for finding walks in Iceland
https://www.rother.de/rother-english%20titles-iceland-4802.htm
Its not specifically about the geology but skimming through the walks you will find ones that take you to many places of geological interest, waterfalls, lava flows, gological faults and folds, bubbling mud pools, steam vents and so on.

For example : walk 33 is to some sulphur pools, steam vents and bubbling mud pools and 34 to a recent and still warm lava flow
https://www.rother.de/uekarten/4802.htm

In reply to Rog Wilko:

Look at route of Golden circle tour - it's all geological.

Blue lagoon is good, in a weird black and white lava landscape too.

In reply to Rog Wilko:

Thanks for the ideas, folks.

In reply to Rog Wilko:

Reykanes Peninsula, Thingvellir National Park and skaftafell and Vatnajökull glaciers.

In reply to Rog Wilko:

Laki eruption area. You can get daily bus tour there I think.

We also enjoyed a visit over to Heimaey. You can walk up the volcano that erupted back in the 1970's. Second week in August is a festival you can take in too!

In reply to Rog Wilko:

The plate boundary is actually quite spread out across western Iceland - it's not really one single gorge, though there's a few sites that claim it is! This is one of them: https://www.visitreykjanes.is/en/what-to-see-do/reykjanes-geopark/geosites/...

I'd really recommend this guidebook for Iceland's geology: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Iceland-Second-Classic-Geology-Europe/dp/178046021...

I'd also second the recommendation for the Laki eruption site (although I'm biased, having done geological fieldwork there for my PhD!) Bus tour would be a good plan if you don't have a 4x4. Another cool spot is the headland at Dyrholaey, with its lava pinnacles and black sand beach.

In reply to Rog Wilko:
Hi Rog,

I was there in April (it was bloody cold - couldn't actually get to our planned AirBNB in the north-west due to the snow).

My recommendations of a geological nature:
- Head south down route 42, passing amazing thermal mud springs at Seltun, some good small hills with excellent views, lakes and a dusty desert landscape to the lava fields on the south coast.
- Snaefellsnes NP is incredible, with caves, lava fields, Hellnar sea cliffs and the amazing cave/gully/fault behind Arnastapi. Vatnshellir lava cave is there too, although we didn't visit.
- The small flat-topped mountain of Spákonufell above Skagastrond in the north might tickle your fancy.

Other things:
- Iceland's much bigger than I'd realised! I wish we'd driven less, and stayed in single places for longer
- A four-by-four will be very useful for seeing off-the-beaten(tarmacked)-track stuff
- The municipal thermal baths/swimming pools in Rekjavik are great fun - not touristy, but cheap and very interesting
- This is the best guide of its type that I've ever come across: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Iceland-Crossbill-Guide-Guides-x/dp/9491648039
- It's an amazing country.

Have fun,
Danny

In reply to Rog Wilko:

Great set of recommendations there. I'd add a mention for Thorsmork, mind-boggling in a Mordor kind of way. Need to take the bus or a high-body 4x4, big river crossings.

My one caveat would be to take a good look at the website for the Blue Lagoon, and at the prices. Many Icelanders regard it as their equivalent of Disneyland. Definitely a Marmite attraction, definitely not my scene personally. Plenty of other appealing, informal, scenic, cheap or free thermal pools elsewhere in Iceland.

In reply to Rog Wilko:

UKC comes up trumps again! Great source of information on so many things. Thanks for all the recommendations.

In reply to Rog Wilko:

It may depend a little on whether you have some education in geology (and specifically vulcanology) or not - if so then there's something of interest around every corner. If not and you need something "obvious" then I'd agree with the various recommendations above (Thingvellir for sure, not often you get the chance to straddle two tectonic plates!)...also maybe Hveravellir on the Kjolur route (summer only and basic 4x4 needed). Another vote for the Snaefells peninsula in the West, and if you are pining for fjords then Seydisfjordur and surrounds are beautiful.

In reply to Rog Wilko:
Roger, go to the secret lagoon, its fantastic. See if you can spend less than an hour in, I reckon its impossible. Head for the stones, they're the warm bits.

In reply to Rog Wilko:

The basalt columns are worth visiting

http://www.theculturemap.com/geology-rocks-basalt-columns-iceland/

A word of warning though be very careful about going round the headland at high tide. The atlantic waves here can be huge.

Re the Blue Lagoon - yes it's very touristy, but still an experience particularly if you take cool beer in with you - there is a bar there.

The fault near the old Parliament site is amazing to walk through.

The geysers are worth seeing.
,
Loads of waterfalls of all shapes and sizes throughout the island.

Loads of glaciers. When we went they were all black being covered with ash from Eyafjallajokull, and were not glistening white like Alpine glaciers. Horrible to walk on because our boots kept breaking through the crust into pools just below the surface, and once wet your socks get clogged with ash which is like sand paper on your feet.

Be prepared to be shocked at the very high cost of everything. It's a tongue twisting language, but fortunately pretty well everyone speaks English.

In reply to Trangia:


And – to the OP – it's really worth learning to pronounce it and learn some vocab (especially if you are interested in geology): opens all sorts of new dimensions. (And it's probably easier than English for non-native speakers to learn to pronounce, too!)

The geology book recommended by Cat22 is excellent.

In reply to Solaris:

Thanks again to all who replied. Much appreciated.

In reply to Solaris:

It's really quite close to the English spoken in England before, and for some time after, those poncy Normans came over.

In reply to streapadair:

Exactly – linguistic archaeology is part of the fun of getting to grips with it. Toponyms, too. And then there's being able to make sense of maps.

In reply to Rog Wilko:

I would recommend a place called Lanmanalauger (google maps spells it Landmanalauger). Its on the western edge of Vatnajokull so within reach of Reykjavik. The landscape here is spectacularly coloured - weathered basalts. We went there because there was a mountain made of obsidian. When we got there it was more a ridge of obsidian (a few miles up the hill from the road end) but spectacular at that. What we were not expecting was the hot springs: a steam flows out from under the lava flow. There are platforms to get in and when accustomed to the heat you can move upstream where its hotter. Repeat this until its too much then let go and drift back downstream to cooler water !

If you had more time then Askja and Herðubreið is wild and stunning. I think we came in on the F88- whichever road there was a massive river crossing which a normal car would not have coped with. We were in some great big high sided bus but it was deep.

Give the blue lagoon a miss!
Have fun