Iceland
July & August, 2001
We flew directly from Reykjavik to the northern capital of Akureyri (pictured to the right) with a population of 20,000. We found that, saying rural Iceland is redundant. Most of the population is scattered throughout the countryside, along the coast.

While the scenery may seem very similar we encountered many new sights in the north.

The people of Akureyri are very proud of their city and flowers adorn many a street corner.
Jökulsárgljúfur National Park is the "Grand Canyon" of Iceland. The formidable name means "glacial river canyon."

This canyon is just one of the many examples of how rock just doesn't stand a chance when water works its might over time.

We toured along both sides of northern part of the park, visiting Dettifoss, with the greatest volume of any waterfall in Europe. It was not the prettiest falls in Iceland, but it was impressive.

We did see a beautiful rainbow and the river appeared to flow from above us to a quick turn down over the cliff.
If you have never been to Iceland, the picture to the left may seem rather ordinary, but this scene is extremely rare.

This birch forest is in a protected part of the Jökulsárgljúfur National Park. It is protected both from the elements and from the sheep. It is believed that Iceland had forests like this throughout the coastal area, but the Viking chopped down all the trees to use for fuel and building material.

Many birds call Iceland their home. Top left if a godwit sitting on a fence post. Just above is the noisy and defensive Arctic tern. This one almost hit Bob in the head after he took this picture. To the right is a Fulmar soaring off the cliffs along the shore. Bottom right is a Ringed Plover, walking along side the road. Bottom left is a Wimbrel also in the middle of the road.
Myvatn, is a lake of strange beauty. A combination of an icecap and volcanic eruptions caused these strange and mysterious shapes.
Of course, we had to go whale watching and we were treated to this Minke breaching over seven times.

The Icelanders are heavy into genealogy. They all know their family tree back many generations and each year get together for huge family reunions. We got tied up with one family that had 198 people for the dinner and that did not include the many children that were playing outside.

The Icelanders also maintain vast records on the genealogy of their horses. The area where we worked on the project is known for its horses.

The long manes and distinctive colors make some beautiful specimens.

It may be hard to believe, but there were no color filters on Bob's camera when he shot this picture. We were at the house that we stayed in for the project and it was 11:30 p.m.
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