Travel: Iceland's Golden Circle - Haukadalur Geothermal Area

October 17, 2016

Our next stop on our Golden Circle tour was Haukadalur Geothermal Area. It was first mentioned in written sources going back to 1294, when the local hot springs were activated by an earthquake.

As you enter the area, Litli Geysir (Little Geysir) is the first geyser you come to. It just looked like a hole in the ground but. these small geysers can be activated by earthquakes. In the old days, locals who lived nearby activated geysers by throwing soap in the hot spring which eventually damaged and “killed” some of them.

The Great Geysir was one of the few known geysers in the world during the 18th century and garnered a lot of interest. The word “geysir” came from the Icelandic word, geysa, meaning to gush or to rush forth. This Icelandic geysir originated the English word for every geyser in the world. This geysir used to erupt every hour. But, it has slowed down to every 8-10 hours.

In addition to the geysers, there were several hot springs here. This one is Konungshver.

Konungshver translates to "the king's hot spring".

One of the most beautiful hot springs we saw was Blesi (the blazer). It had two ponds next to each other divided by a narrow wall, In the foreground, the pool is colored in deep blue color by colloidal silica and is 40 - 5° C. But in the other one, which you can see the steam rising from is around 100°C hot.

The hot portion of Blesi is crystal clear. This spring started vigorous boiling after the earthquakes in June 2000, reaching 0.5 - 1 m high. Earlier travellers washed their clothes here.

The main attraction of this area was Strokkur meaning “churn”. It was formed as result of an earthquake in 1789. Strokkur erupts every 5-8 minutes. The hot water rises 60-100 ft. up - as seen from a distance.

My series of Stokkur getting ready to erupt. At the very beginning, it sucks the water down, creating a depression in the water and noise associated with it.