Fire Mountain Erupts!

This is Eldborg, “Fire Mountain.”

It used to lie on the main road to the East.

Now it’s out of the way and forgotten in a barren land.

But don’t drive past. It’s beautiful on Fire Mountain.

At Midsummer, the mountain erupts again.

And comes to life.


Or life comes to it.

Hard to say which.

Both at once, perhaps. Note how just for a couple weeks, every glob of stone develops a body and lives.

It is a fantastical riot of life. Everything is alive.

And then the mountain goes back to solemnly watching the Grindavik Road.

All kinds of people.

All kinds of watching.

Never Throw Anything Away

This essential Icelandic principle, seen at play here in the Vatnsdalshólar (the Uncountable Hills of the Valley of Water),will see you through good times and bad.

Some day, everything can be used again. Until then, it is the future. It’s good to have a thing like that tightly joined to the past. That’s the Icelandic way.

The Great Icelandic Forest Renewal Project

100 years ago there was scarcely a tree here. Then Jónas Hallgrimmson wrote a poem asking Icelanders to throw off the chains of Danish domination and go back to their roots.

Syðra-Miðgil, Looking South towards the Jökullsá à Follum and Vigabjargsfoss. Dettifoss is further upstream, but without trees.

When you want something done, find a poet. Thanks, Jónas.