Under the south hills of the Langjökull Glacier, are many spectacular places that are easy to visit in a 4×4. One of those places is Nýjifoss (New Falls) and the river that hosts it, Farið (The Mark). The best way to get to this place from Reykjavik is by going through Thingvellir National Park…

Uxaklyftarvatn

From there the mountain roads lead up to Bláskógarheidi on Road number 52. After a while one drives by a pretty dried up lake called Uxaklyftarvatn, from there it´s a short way to the junction where the mountain road F338 goes to the right under the south hills of the Langjökull glacier. This road is spectacular, with black desert sands contrasted by green grass patches and all the way littered by huge pylons, moving electricity from the electric dams in the highlands. These pylons are certainly not for everyone but they do make an impression and sometimes the lines form interesting forms against all the nothingness.
This area is criss crossed with interesting paths leading south towards the Thingvellir area and north to the roots of the Langjokull glacier. Around Hlöðufell mountain and up to the shoulders of Skjaldbreidur mountain. One of the tracks leads from Hlöðufell and to Laugarvatn (Bath Lake) through a very interesting terrain.

As we approach the manmade lake Sandvatn (Sand Lake) made to stop the sand and mud storms that swept across this area and down into the farmlands south of here, we cross a small river easy to cross in any truck or SUV and hit the Kjölur Mountain Road. Heading north for a few minutes we turn left onto F335 that leads to our final destination, Hagavatn and Farið.
This road is rather featureless goes through rock covered ground, flat all the way to the mountains surrounding the Langjökull glacier to the south.

As soon as we traverse the small pass through the Jarlhettur mountains (Earl hats mountains) the landscape jumps up in scale from boring to amazing. Green hills, big rocks, glacial river and the looming glacier all surrounded by majestic mountains and in the midst a small rescue hut with a lone birch tree to chalk up a perfect picture.

After crossing the river, the way is pretty straight forward to Nýjifoss (New Falls), besides the falls is a very steep hill- that is hard to travel even in heavy duty trucks, so the best bet is to walk up the short but steep hill to Hagavatn.

Hagavatn – Images by Snorri Gunnarsson

Edit: Title change after observations from reader

Snorri Gunnarsson is an Icelandic Photographer based in Reykjavik Iceland. Focusing on Landscape, commercial, wedding and editorial photography.

Barnafossar are close to Húsafell in the west region of Iceland

Rapids in glacial creek Geitá (Goat Creek) at the foothills of Kaldidalur

The Icelandic summer night yields interesting light

Hraunfossar (Lava Falls) is just down the river from Barnafossar

Hraunfossar (Lava Falls) in Hvítá

The second day was much better with a mixed bag of glaring sun, thick fog and everything in-between. The area around Landmannalaugar is very beautiful, and so different in winter with snow covering everything. I went as a passenger with a friend as I do not yet! own a Land Rover – After this trip the Land Rover virus has spread and is now a full blown disease!

Gallery

To continue the good spirit of giving, here is a wallpaper with a 2011 february calendar. Just click on the image that corresponds with your screen resolution, wait for it to load and save it to your desktop.

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All images are ©Snorri Gunnarsson 2011 – above images can only be used for personal uses, no commercial use allowed. All rights reserved.

Snorri Gunnarsson Photographer

Some photos from a trip in August from Laugarvatn, through Rótarsandur around Högnhöfði and ending at Gullfoss and Geysir. Small circle in the foyer of the interior highlands. Pretty good gravel roads most of the way but the gully between Högnhöfði(Tomcat-headland) and Rauðafell (Red Rock) was very rough and steep.

Rótarsandur with mountain Hlöðufell in the background

The entry into Rótarsandur With Rauðafell on the right side.

From there on dirt path that could be trouble in heavy rains. Gullfoss and Geysir are one of the main tourist attractions in Iceland, and there were more people there than downtown Reykjavik. That´s not really saying much though as downtown Reykjavik is a pretty desolate place.

GALLERY

MAP

Phototrips in January are always refreshing, rinsing of the stale state of Christmas and new years and taking in fresh air and fresh views at the beginning of a new year.

Kleifarvatn Lake on the Reykjanes Peninsula, South West Iceland

Hotsprings in a frozen lake

January has thus far been very cold and windy, which usually means that the grey cloud soup that hangs around the south west of Iceland in winter, is lifted. Often displaying clear skies or interesting cloud patterns that really come alive during sunrise and sunset. Those two not so far apart during this time of year maybe 5 hours between them, a very good thing for landscape photography.
These photos are from the Reykjanes peninsula and the south west coast a spectacular area for photography and sightseeing, only minutes away from the Capital region.

Knarrarós Lighthouse near Stokkseyri on the South Coast of Iceland

Photography by Photographer Snorri Gunnarsson All rights reserved ©2011
Ljósmyndun Snorri Gunnarsson Ljósmyndari ©2011

On the way up from Innstidalur

Hengill is a beautiful area east of Reykjavik, popular as a hiking destination. It´s famous for it´s vivid colours and geothermal activity. There are two power plants that harvest the energy from the Hengill area, one at Nesjavellir by Þingvallavatn National Park and one on Hellisheiði. Even though the area is very active, there has been no volcanic eruptions here in the last 2000 years.
The highest point is Vörðuskeggi aprx 800 meters high. The hike from the Hellisheiði power plant to Vörðuskeggi is relatively easy, around 12-14km long. From Vörðuskeggi there are great views in every direction, Þingvallavatn, Reykjavik, and Hveragerði can be seen and on a good day the south coast and the Atlantic ocean are visible.

Getting closer to Vörðuskeggi

Rainbow over Hveragerdi

Geothermal areas in Innstidalur

Snorri Gunnarsson is an Icelandic photographer – currently residing in Reykjavik

It is truly a spectacular place to visit, with craters, strange mountains, lakes, and colours one would think impossible in nature.
In June I drove there with my family and a friend, we stayed for one night and spent the evening exploring the crater area, driving along dirt and gravel roads through the lava fields and up hills with vast views in every direction. The day after we took the eastern route back, a less travelled road and much harder. The road was washed out in a couple of places but nothing could stop the Land Rover Defender, he chugged along slowly but surely, great vehicles.
The Laki craters area is a National Park and has a dedicated camping spot in Bláfell. The official website is here.

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Green moss like a carpet in the desert

Lambavatn Lamblake

Laki mountain

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