DAY 32 – SATURDAY 5TH JANUARY 2019
Today we
decided to head out to the Thingvellir National Park - Sunlight was forecast
for today so we thought we should make the most of it as most days were
forecast for rain or snow whilst we were to be here…
This is
perhaps the most famous of the National Parks in Iceland. It is the oldest National Park and it is the
only UNESCO World Heritage listed site in Iceland. It was at
Þingvellir - which translates directly to ‘the fields of parliament’ that the
first national parliament was established in 930AD and it continued to convene
here yearly until 1798. Many crucial events in Icelandic history took
place at Thingvellier and it is the heart of the Icelandic identity. This is world’s oldest parliament.
The other significant feature of Pingvellir
National Park is that it is situated between two tectonic plates, the North
American and the Eurasian. It is actually quite easy to see the
continental drift between the two tectonics, there are visible cracks and
faults traversing the area. The biggest one,
Almannagja being a veritable canyon.
Interestingly, this waterfall is actually a human
made waterfall. As
strange as this may sound geologists and historians have discovered that the
river Öxará was moved hundreds of years ago, to channel the water into the
ravine Almannagjá in the ninth century. The purpose was to provide water for
the members and visitors of the Icelandic parliament Althingi in the 9th
century. This was documented in the saga Sturlunga written in the 12th and the
13th century. The name, according to folklore, came from an Ax that
killed a notorious
and a very unstable female troll famous for killing and terrorizing visitors.
We were fortunate to see the waterfall in sunlight with a large volume of water
flowing over it. Apparently, this can
change with the seasons. Quite spectacular, and definitely worth the visit….
For Game of Thrones enthusiasts, this is also home to where a
lot of the filming for this series took place and I can see why, particularly
with its blood thirsty history. It was
a very interesting day where we learnt heaps.
Weather wise, we also experienced the extremes, from sunshine, to hail
and then snow on the drive home.
Before heading home we stopped off at a lookout to admire the view of a lake below. We happened to hear a tourist guide telling the tourists that were also there info on the tetonic plates, and how this particular spot was on the European tetonic plate, where when we were at the waterfall, we were actually standing on the North American tetonic plate. So of course we took some photos there also.
We came home to find the cabin dotted in ice and snow, it
looked so pretty.
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We came home to snow on the road |
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A dip in the hot tub... 40 degrees, whilst the outdoor temperatures were below zero |
The ideal
conditions to see the Northern Lights are when it’s cold and dark outside and
the Aurora activity is high. The cold per say is not a factor but the sky has to
be clear which it usually is on very cold nights.
Pete had an app on his phone which indicated that the
conditions tonight were ideal for seeing the Aurora Borealis. So, after dinner he would periodically go
outside to check the night sky. At
around 10pm, he came in quite excited to say that he could see the northern
lights. At first none of us believed him
until we stepped outside ourselves. It
was pretty cold, down to 0 degrees, so we weren’t in a hurry to go out there
unnecessarily.
Both Pete and Steve took off to grab their cameras to capture
this phenomenon. They really weren’t prepared
and had to set up their tripods and work out how to leave their shutters open
to capture it all. Maria and I just
totally enjoyed being in the moment and watching the Northern Lights dance
across the night sky.
The day couldn't have ended more perfectly. We were in for an
amazing treat, with the heavens clear, the stars shinning and a good three-hour
display of the Aurora Borealis. It started snowing around 1am, so we decided it
was time to head to bed.
We felt so very
privileged that we got to see them, as after all, they come and go as they
please, with no promise of overstaying their welcome and with no apparent
consideration for the money you spent trying to find them. We spoke to several folk who had come to
Iceland specifically to see them, and never saw them. For us to witness them
for a staggering three hours and so
early in our visit to Iceland was somewhat a miracle.
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When the snow started falling around 1am we finally called it a night and went to bed... |
What a way to celebrate our 39th wedding
anniversary. This is one anniversary we
won’t forget. It was made even more
special in that we could share it with Pete and Maria…
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