Skaftafell National Park

Skaftafell National Park is situated between Kirkjubæjarklaustur and Höfn in the south of Iceland. It was founded on September 15, 1967, and enlarged twice afterwards. Today the park measures about 1700 km² (656 mi²), making it Iceland's second largest national park. There you can find for example the valley Mörsárdalur, the mountain Kristinartindar and the glacier Skaftafellsjökull. The landscape is very similar to some of the Alps, but it has been formed in thousands of years by different influences of fire (volcanic eruptions of Öraefajökull or Hvannadalshnjúkur) and water (the glaciers Skeiðarájökull and Skaftafellsjökull, the rivers Skeiðará, Morsá und Skaftafellsá. Skeiðará has a bad reputation because of the glacier runs (isl. jökulhlaup), the last one took place in 1996. Skaftafell is well re-nowned for its agreeable climate and the sunny days in summer - which are not so common in the south of Iceland. There is a bigger birch wood (Bæjarstaðarskógur). Since sheep are no longer allowed to be kept in the park, vegetation is prospering. There are also a lot of different birds to be seen in the park as well as foxes. Not too far from the visitors center, a very interesting waterfall is flowing over a step of about 12m, the Svartifoss. Its name (black waterfall) comes from the black basal columns behind it. In the Middle Ages there had been some bigger farms in this area, but they had to be given up due to volcanic eruptions and the ensuing glacier runs. The two surviving farms are now living mostly from tourism. The park has also an information center and a camp ground. A lot of hiking trails are crossing the area. See also: Waterfalls of Iceland

External links

\n*Svartifoss - Photo gallery\n*Official park Web site\n*Photos, French text \nCategory:National Parks of Iceland \n