Nature Scenes from Iceland

"Iceland? Is that up in Canada?" I was in a taxi in New York City back in 1994 when the cabdriver asked me this question. I may not remember exactly how I replied, but I think it was something like: "No, it's actually a large island in the North-Atlantic Ocean". So now you know too, in case you were wondering. There is however a place called New Iceland in Manitoba, named for the Icelandic settlers in the 19th century (which is another story though). So, as I was saying, Iceland is a large island in the North Atlantic, 103,000 square km to be more precise. There are however only about 320 thousand inhabitants, which means that there are only about 3.1 Icelanders per square km (in comparison, the population density in the USA for example is about 34/km2, and in China it's 140/km2). Because of this scarce population density, and since a vast majority of the population in Iceland lives close to the sea, the land is mostly unspoiled by man. Unspoiled nature is, as we know, becoming more and more difficult to find on this planet of ours, and is the reason I think, for the increased number of travelers to Iceland in recent years. I've collected a few photographs to give you a sneak preview of Iceland if you're planning a trip, and if you're not, I'm hoping you'll enjoy them nonetheless.

Akureyri is Iceland's second largest urban area (after the Greater Reykjavík area) with a population of about 18 thousand. It is situated in the Eyjafjordur fiord in N-Iceland. The mountain you see is called Vadlaheidi.

There was an eruption in 2010...

The island of Flatey (Flat island), situated in the Breidafjordur fiord, W-Iceland.

I planted this little pine tree in Akureyri in 1993. Behind it you see Vadlaheidi.

Hlidarfjall is a ski-resort ten minutes drive from Akureyri.

Holar in Hjaltadalur valley, N-Iceland. Hólar was founded as a diocese in 1106 by bishop Jón Ãgmundsson and soon became one of Iceland's two main centers of learning (Wikipedia).

Someone told me that there's a whiskey-bottle up there. You'll have to do the climb to find out if that's the case. Maybe someone finished it already.

It means Cold back mountain (sort of like Brokeback, but not quite).

It means Church mountain.

There aren't many trees in Iceland (yet). I managed to come up with a few though.

One of the most beautiful places in Iceland.

The red "A-house" with the green roof is called Jonshus, (the house of John) after my great-grandfather. It belongs to my family, and was built by family members in 1973.

One of the fascinations in Iceland is the aurora borealis (the northern lights). It is very beautiful up here because there aren't any big city lights (unless you're in Reykjavik) interrupting it. The winter nights in Iceland are very dark, making this a truly magnificent spectacle.

One of the most beautiful mountains in Iceland in my opinion. And fun to climb as well!

This picture of Sulur I took from the rooftop of my grandparents' house in Akureyri. For those who have read my lens "Icelanders of the 20 century", the house in front of you is the same one that was destroyed in the explosion in 1974 (and successfully rebuilt as you can see).

A sunny glacier is a happy glacier!