Jökulsárgljúfur National Park
| Jökulsárgljúfur National Park | |||
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| Location: | Iceland | ||
| Next city: | Húsavík | ||
| Founding: | 1973, existed until 2008 (today: part of the Vatnajökull National Park ) | ||
| Address: | see Vatnajökull National Park | ||
The Jökulsárgljúfur National Park is located in northern Iceland on the west of the Jökulsá á Fjöllum river and stretches from the horseshoe-shaped Ásbyrgi gorge in the north to Europe's most powerful waterfall, the Dettifoss , in the south. The southern part was established in 1973, the northern area around Ásbyrgi was added in 1978.
It has been part of the Vatnajökull National Park since June 7, 2008.
Attractions
The national park fascinates south of Ásbyrgi with a bizarre system of gorges with very distinctive volcanic mountains. About 8,000 years ago a volcano erupted directly under the mighty river. The meeting of fire, gases and water led to enormous explosions, which in part literally tore apart the surrounding mountains. The area is known as Hljóðaklettar (Echo Rocks).
On the other hand, you can also find beautiful lava rosettes or shapes with imaginative names like Karl og Kerling (man and woman) or Kirkjan (church). The highest mountain in the wide area is the Rauðhólar .
The mighty Hafragilsundirlendi gorge joins further south , the walls of which are sometimes over 100 m high. The glacial river Jökulsá á Fjöllum , which is colored gray by the suspended particles , has numerous fresh water inflows here, which cause an impressive play of colors when they meet the gray masses of water.
literature
- Sigrún Helgadóttir: Jökulsárgljúfur. Dettifoss, Ásbyrgi and allt þar á milli. Opna, Reykjavík, 2009
See also
- List of national parks in Iceland
- Geography of Iceland
- Volcanoes in Iceland
- List of mountains and elevations in Iceland
Web links
Photos and videos
Scientific contributions
- Steffen Bender, LMU, a. a., Combined determination of the origin of the waters of Jökulsá á Fjöllum (PDF file, 660 kB) (Springer Link)
- Off. National park website (English; PDF; 261 kB)
