Driving into Þingvellir National Park - Where You Walk Between Two Continents
Beautiful building near Lake Laugarvatn
Nick at the entrance to Þingvellir National Park
Ken and Sharon at the entrance to Þingvellir National Park
Panoramic view of Þingvellir National Park a place where Iceland’s stark geological processes are playing out right in front of you; it is where the history of…
It was at Þingvellir - which translates directly to ‘the fields of parliament’ - where most of the major turns in Iceland’s history then started to occur. For…
The name Þingvellir literally means “Assembly Plains,” and the place symbolizes the history of Iceland. The Alþingi, or Iceland’s parliament, was founded there…
Iceland’s settlement by the Norse started with the arrival of Ingólfur Arnarson in 874, and for the next 56 years, the era was called ‘The Settlement Period’.…
District assemblies began to form, but the majority of the power in the island was concentrated in the south-west, around Reykjavík, in the hands of the…
A man called Grímur Geitskör was given the tasks of gathering representatives from each clan and finding a suitable meeting location. As is often the case with…
This location would become Þingvellir. While still clearly more convenient to reach for the wealthy individuals of the south-west, it took no more than…
Sharon and Ken follow one of the many trails in Þingvellir National Park
The meeting was such a success that the chiefs returned each following year. The institution, called the Alþingi, developed to be a place where disputes were…
Sharon in front of the vast open area of Þingvellir
The magical landscapes at Þingvellir are formed in the unique geographical setting of a rift valley in the divide between the North-American and Eurasian…
The beautiful spring river Öxará flows partly in the Almannagjá gorge on its way to the lake, producing a stunning waterfall where it enters.
The lava fields at Þingvellir are torn apart by tectonic forces, leaving admirable gorges and fissures. The most impressive of them, Almannagjá, is the focal…
Nick having some fun
Nick and Sharon on the path to a charming waterfall called Öxaráfoss
Harlequin Duck hanging out on the river
