Iceland's Golden Circle - Þingvellir

October 17, 2016.  Þingvellir

On Day 2 we explored the Golden Circle.  It is about a 300 km loop from Reykjavík into the southern uplands of Iceland and back. The name Golden Circle is a marketing term that has no roots in Icelandic history.

The first stop is Þingvellir National Park.  

Lake Þingvallavatn is the largest natural lake in Iceland, about 84 square km, at an altitude of about 100 m above sea level. The deepest part of the lake measures 114 m, which means that it reaches below sea level.

The lake is particularly fertile and rich in vegetation, despite the very cold temperatures. A third of the bottom area is covered by vegetation, and there is a large amount of algae. Low-growing vegetation extends out to a depth of 10 metres while higher vegetation forms a large growing-belt to 10-30 metres deep.  A total of 150 types of plants have been found and 50 kinds of invertebrates, from the shore to the center.  

On the way to the over look, we saw one of the fissures (this is not the main one) that is a result of the park lying in a rift valley that marks the crest of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the boundary between the North American and Eurasion tectonic plates.

Central in this photo is Þingvallakirkja, which translates to the "church at Þingvellir".  Þingvallakirkja is one of Iceland’s first churches. The original was consecrated in the 11th century, but the current wooden building only dates from 1859

Close up view of the Almannagjá which is a 7.7km long rift, as much as 64 meters wide and marks the eastern boundary of the North American plate.

View of Almannagjá rift and the path through it.

Walking along the path to Öxaráfoss

Öxarárfoss meaning "Axe Falls".  Öxarárfoss is formed as the river Öxar plunges 37 feet over the Almannagjá rift and then cascades of another 7 feet.

Cairns are historic landmarks.  They were built in earlier times as way-markers along routes for travelers to find their way in fog or snow storm.

Moss covered lava seen all over Iceland especially in the park

Moss covered rocks on  the Almannagjá rift