Iceland has had a magnetic pull on my curiosity for years. I visited Iceland in September 2014 and immediately understood why; I experienced the feeling of being home. I felt like I had been there before, a deep welcoming familiarity. There was an ease in simply being there, the landscape was vast and impressionable.
My curiosity was to explore the land, it was nature that had called me to connect to Iceland. Looking back now I feel it was my Nordic roots that were drawing me and have since been an element of my journey of self exploration reconnecting to and understanding my ancestry.
First impressions
My first impressions were long distances of flat volcanic rock with pine tree forests, or singular rows of them, and long stretches of mossy, marshy grasslands. I remember the springy tufts of grass that provided a gentle bounce as I walked over the surface and lent in with my camera to gain a closer inspection of the flora.
The thermal baths, or hot springs, were an attraction I was drawn to experience. That was the first stop as the Blue Lagoon was on the way out of Reykjavik towards the southern part of the island I was intending to visit. The geothermal water is a mixture of seawater and freshwater and has high levels of silica, which is known to benefit hydrating, cleansing and renewing skin. My skin felt extremely pampered afterwards and stayed soft and glowing for days!
The light felt different in Iceland. I experienced capturing light, in particular the sun rays, in a distinct form. I wondered whether the further distance north from the UK up to Iceland meant that the light was perceived differently due to being closer to the Arctic circle.
A Jurassic feel to volcanic rock
As I ventured further southeast from Reykjavik the volcanic rock took on more dramatic forms as soaring mountains that jutted along a line of mountainous terrain were stark against the otherwise flat landscape. I visited Eyjafjallajökull volcano, the site where its eruption in 2010 caused disruption most notably to air travel as volcanic ash particles filled the air, risking safety to planes in much of Europe.
The volcano is right next to a larger glacier formation with dormant volcanoes which brought home the magnificence of this landscape as well as the potential of devastation and change that lay beneath those enormous, seemingly peaceful peaks.
The black sands beaches located close to Vik were smolderingly smooth. The sands are black due to historic volcano eruptions of lava that flooded out to sea.
Upon meeting the sea it cooled and formed black rock that was eroded over time and became black sand. What struck me again was the contrast of the steep volcano glaciers behind me as I stood facing the sea and the dramatic flatness of rock that seemed to end exactly where the sea came to meet it.
Giant bubbles from beneath the earth
Geysers, geothermal springs are dotted all around Iceland and stopping off in a few places to see the geysers erupting in real time was stunning. Some of these geysers were on a timed predictability scale that saw them erupt every so many minutes, which was great for the budding photographers, myself included! It’s quite a sight to watch and feel the ground beneath express itself, on cue, with bubbles of hot water that shoot into the air, leave traces of evaporation, seemingly disappear and then repeat the dance over again, much to all onlookers delight.
Although I didn’t visit Reykjavik, as my mission was nature and landscape bound, I was impressed to learn that Iceland uses their geothermal power to power the country. There felt a harmony in this knowledge that the residents of this country were utilising the available resources in an eco-friendly, sustainable way. Indeed it’s an example to be celebrated in terms of engineering to achieve this efficiency with minimal impact on the environment. It was inspiring to see people working with nature and maintaining a healthy balance of least disruption to precious ecosystems that were left to evolve and express their wildness.
Closing thoughts
Iceland captivated my senses and my heart. From the noticeably fresh, clean air, medicinal waters, softer light, dramatic landscapes and application of human adaptation to live on volcanic rock, I would love to return and spend more time immersed in all this beautiful country offers.
It was on my last night that my dream of witnessing the aurora borealis (northern lights) came true as I watched green lights dancing across the sky for over an hour. The images I captured represent the magic of the occasion more than the photographer’s skills of that time to capture them. However, I share one as a closing memento of a wondrous adventure to the land of volcanic rock and ice!
