Waterfalls and canyons

Monday, August 07, 2023
Ásbrandsstaðir camping, Vopnafjarðarhreppur, Iceland
Monday, August 7, 2023
Fortunately the sun is back. There is blue in the sky, and we can pack the tents dry. I did laundry last night and hung it in the bathroom and it is dry as well. 
After breakfast we pass the store we saw yesterday and get diesel and food. We are ready to go.
It’s an hour to drive to Dettifoss falls. The landscape keeps its lunar aspect. Flat lava fields, some meadows, smooth mountains green at the bottom.
And then suddenly we see mist or smoke rising from the ground, and just like Godafoss it turns out to be the waterfall that has worn out the rocks below the level of the plains. 
This waterfall is called the (second) most powerful waterfall in Europe (after the Rhine falls) based on water mass and height.
A 20 minute walk through a rough volcanic field brings us to the falls, and they are impressive indeed. They do not cross the river perpendicularly but diagonally. They are longer than the river is wide. 
They are over 40m (120 ft) high, but you can’t see the river below, because the mist  and spray are so overwhelming that even on top of the falls (we are standing on the edge of the canyon) we get wet.
And a beautiful rainbow appears along the side of the cliff.
The water is dark gray from the silt it carries. It has the same color as the gray basaltic stones that form the walls of the canyon.
A deep roar comes from below.
We stand and stare for a long time. What an unbelievable amount of water keeps tumbling down. This could really be the world shortly after its creation. No vegetation yet. But the earth’s crust is still forming. And water roars through the bare rock.
Finally we follow the river upstream where there is another waterfall, in a horse shoe shape. This one also is very high, but harder to reach, so we take pictures from a distance.
When we are finally satified we return to the car and start driving. But half an hour along the way we see a parking lot beside the road, and we decide to stop for lunch.
The roads are so quiet here. We have seen maybe five cars since we left the Dettifoss. And now we stand on an empty parking area. And all around us we see the brown-green plains until far away the suddenly transfer into steep high mountains.
We eat our sandwiches and talk quietly while looking at the amazing landscape. When we are done we continue driving until we reach the canyon of Asbyrgi .
I think the word canyon is not really correct. As we approach, massive rock walls appear. Very impressive. At some point they appear on both sides, but far apart. Trees appear until we are in a forest. And then we reach a parking space in the forest where the canyon walls meet in a half circle. There is no way out.
We park the car and go for a walk in the forest. There are nice trails here.
The forest is really quiet and on three sides we ser the high rock walls rise sheer above us. The sky is blue and the sun powerful. Had this been ancient Greece, it would have been a health resort, or a place where poets would meet.
Here it is silent, except for a few other tourists.
Then we leave and follow the coastal road to the East shore of Iceland. We find a camping on a farm. Lots of wind, but a cute little kitchen and bathroom.
We eat outside where Didi uses the barbecue to roast some lamb ribs. Excellent meal.
Now sitting in the tiny kitchen. Outside the windows loom the massive mountains. Almost time to go to bed. But Sisi’s asked me to prepare the batter for pancakes for tomorrow’s breakfast.
PS: I read that Iceland was covered with dense forests for about a third of its surface when the first settlers arrived around 879 AD. But most of the timber was cut down for fuel, home and shipbuilding, while clearing the remainder of the space for agriculture—typical for all agrarian societies. Fortunately they are starting some reforestation.
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