Skogafoss

July 26, 1999

Skogafoss lies just 1/2 km off the highway.  For obvious reasons it is a popular stop.  The falls are 60 meters high.  There is a campground right where this photo was taken.  The Skogar Folk Museum is a 1/2 km east of here.  A hiking trail starts from here and follows the river crossing a pass inbetween Eyjafjallajökull and Myrdalsjökull into þorsmork.  The Skogar Folk Museum is excellent.  It features a large collection of fishing gear, including the 17 man fishing boat, Petersey, viking age relics from the area and the usual household items from the past. The Petersey is a twin masted open boat.  It was built in 1855 and used until 1940 on fishing trips between Vik and the Vestmann Islands.  It is a tough and tubby boat as Vik has no harbor and the boat would have had to be beached.  Outside of the main museum are several historic buildings that have been relocated to the site.  The turf building below is a mid 1800's farmhouse, stable and workroom.  The sunny weather was a treat; this area is the rainiest in Iceland.

Eyjafjallajökull and the larger Myrdalsjökull have active volcanoes underneath their glacial caps.  The Katla
volcano under Myrdalsjökull has is overdue for an eruption.  Earthquake and subglacial heating have been on
the increase in the last year.  Katla can cause extremely large flooding when it erupts and melts the
surrounding glacial ice.
For more information see the Nordic Volcanological Institute.
 
tomorrow yesterday the contents home page

 

Copyright © Scott Schuldt, 2000
Last updated; January 2000

Hosted by www.Geocities.ws

1