Himnaríki á jörð/ Heaven on earth

Himnaríki á jörð (@Skaftafell) [myndasafn]

Skaftafell

Special memory of the past

The Öræfi district was one of Iceland's most isolated until the bridges to its west were completed in the early seventies. Before this sudden launch into the twentieth century, inhabitants had developed their own co-operative fishing and farming culture, which they have retained. To this day, the acute observer will notice the cultural differences between this community and others further afield.

Here, too there are breathtaking natural contrasts of black sand beaches, white glaciers, and desolate wastelands, intermixed with oases of fertile green meadows.  Just such an oasis greets you at Skaftafell, beside the broad wilderness of the Skeiðarársandur sands and the raging Skeiðará river.