Háifoss: the third tallest waterfall in Iceland
One of the more difficult sounds to catch – the Háifoss waterfall in southwestern Iceland. To reach it, it takes two hours by car from Reykjavik, including a dozen or so minutes on a very bumpy road, and then eight kilometers by foot through the mountains *. Although, one would like to say, these are […]
Icelandic Arctic Fox
The arctic fox is Iceland’s only native (land) animal and the only predator. It says a lot about the peace on the island, because the foxes are small and fluffy. They have white fur in winter, black in summer, but always fluffy. The sounds they communicate with each other, however, surprised me a lot. I […]
Flatey
Flatey can be reached on the Baldur ship, which makes a stop on the island on its way from Snaelfesness to the Westfjords. Baldur rarely swims, so we go to the peninsula the day before. We sleep in a tent. Although the sun is shining – all night, because it is summer – it is […]
Heimaey: Vikin black sand beach
I think I can now share with you the information that I am starting work on a new idea – a sound map and an album dedicated to one of the most mysterious – in my opinion – places in Iceland: Heimaey island in the Vestmannaeyjar archipelago. It has a dark history – in 1973 […]
Krafla Power Plant
Krafla is a typical example of a caldera volcano (as a result of a massive eruption, the surface of the mountain collapses and is currently cut by steam-vents with bubbling sulfur). There is now a power plant in its area that is drilling into magma. Iceland is the only place in the world where magma […]
Grjótagjá
“The sound doesn’t have to be clear, but it has to be interesting,” Geir Jenssen, aka Biosphere, once told me about field recording. The recording in the Grjótagjá lava cave is – I hope – not necessarily clean, but interesting. There was almost absolute silence in the grotto, so I recorded a minute… on hold. […]
Námafjall Geothermal Area – Hverir
The background noise is fumarola, or volcanic exhalation, which usually occurs on active volcanoes. There are several of them in the Námafjall geothermal area. Gases are released from the fumaroles, mainly sulfur dioxide – which causes the yellow color around the fumaroles – and hydrogen chloride. In addition, water vapor, the temperature of which can […]
Icelandic Sheep
By this time of year, sheep should have come off the mountains, pastures and other places where they roam all summer. Due to the fact that Icelandic sheep is quite insensitive to harsh weather conditions, in summer animals are released slowly and only in September they are herded into the farms. Often, all the breeders’ […]
Hotspring in Krísuvík
What Happens When You Feel an Earthquake in the Capital District? Everyone goes to the Meteorological Office website to see where the epicenter was and what the strength of the quake was. Therefore, today the vedur.is website has collapsed. Because the earthquake was so powerful that it was felt very clearly in the capital, in […]
Búrfell (Hafnarfjörður) Lava Cave
Today I am taking you to the Búrfell crater in Hafnarfjörður, specifically the lava cave, which is located in part of the lava canal (Búrfellsgjá). The crater is part of the Krýsuvík volcanic system, the same one that shook so badly a few days ago. Búrfell is an example of a volcanic cone. The cone […]
