Tuesday, March 18, 2014

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

As we approached Haukadalur on the Golden Circle of Iceland
we could see steam clouds in the distance and the smell of sulfur was getting stronger.
We parked the car at the welcome center and crossed the road.
There are walkways marked off through a field of water and steam. Such a fantastical place!

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

Geothermal activity of this sort is a pretty rare phenomenon and only seen in a few places in the world.
It's usually associated with a nearby volcano and activated by earthquakes, a pretty volatile combination.

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser



They say a watched pot never boils, but this one certainly does!

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

This is home to the mother of all geysers.  It's where the word originated from, however, the Great Geysir
now sits dormant and hasn't erupted since since 2000. Of course, she could awaken at any time. 
The nearby Strokkur is very active with eruptions every 5-8 minutes.
It's incredible to watch.  

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

The first clue is this large dome of water that rises from the opening.
It's the water below the surface being heated by the hot magma below and
the pressurized bubbles rising to the top.

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

Then it explodes into the air, water and steam.
Everyone oohs and aah's and the cameras all start clicking.  It's incredible to see.

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

The water goes rushing back into the hole in the earth and the wait starts all over.

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

There are massive pools of water throughout the field.
You wouldn't think that life would survive in such extreme conditions,
but the vibrant colors that you see are from bacteria and other forms of microbes.

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

There are signs everywhere warning you that the water is HOT!  Obviously.
But, not one of us could resist dipping a finger into the run off to see for ourselves.
Next came the exclamation in a shocked voice... "It's hot!"
It was as if we were being controlled by some other force.
Following along after two others, Matt and I both did it.  "It's really hot!"
Then we had to get out of the way for the people behind us to do the exact same thing.  

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser

After walking around a bit and exploring the fields, it was time to turn around and capture
Strokkur do her thing once again.  It would be easy to spend hours just watching her erupt.

Iceland's Strokkur Geyser



Didn't I tell you?  Iceland is such a drama queen.

What do you think about all this hot water?


17 comments:

  1. I love visiting the Geyser, you capture it beautiful in those photos!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow - those pictures quite literally took my breath away. At first I thought the colours were some sort of filter! Absolutely need to see Iceland, it seems like a whole other planet sometimes.

    ReplyDelete
  3. It is so great, and I can totally see why people just stand and watch for ages, and feel the water to see what it is like! I would love to go!

    ReplyDelete
  4. So amazing! Iceland is on my bucket list of places to go and I am really enjoying reading about your travels. All of your photos are beautiful as well!


    xoxo, Elena
    the20-somethingproject.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  5. I could just watch it do it's thing over and over again! Such a fascinating phenomenon!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love geothermal places. The first one I ever went to was Yellowstone national park, and saw Old faithful erupt. Apparently it's not a faithful as it once was! We also went to a few places in New Zealand.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh my gosh Selena, I knew that Iceland must be awesome but... dang... that place is amazing! I seriously need to get my buns on over there!
    I hope you're having a great week, I hope you're interview goes well, much love, Tammy

    ReplyDelete
  8. Selena..I'm loving your Iceland posts! Jim and I are going this summer. I hope we don't have to be quite as bundled up as the people in my fave photo above...awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks, Kaelene. What an amazing place!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Thanks, Sophie. It absolutely felt like another planet. I've never seen anything like it! Thanks so much for reading & commenting. I've followed you on Bloglovin. Looking forward to reading about your adventures!

    ReplyDelete
  11. So much anticipation. It was fun to listen to everyone while they watched.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Thanks so much for connecting, Elena :D I've followed on Bloglovin so I can read about your adventures. Iceland should be at the top of every bucket list!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. It feels like the earth is alive in Iceland. Does that make any sense? I know everything on the earth is but in Iceland it's like the rocks and ground is alive. Crazy wonderful.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Oh, I would love to go to Yellowstone! It must be fantastic! I imagine New Zealand to be very much like Iceland. Dramatic and wonderful. Bucket list!!!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Thanks, Lovely! It was so wonderful to meet you in person! I owe you an email. I promise to do that soon. Iceland would be a great layover on your way to the UK next time, just sayin' xoxo

    ReplyDelete
  16. I did think a few times that we should have visited in the Summer. lol Especially when Matt slipped on the ice & dislocated his knee cap! You won't have to worry about that. I can't wait to see the photos that you get!!!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Do you need a loan,We are Legitimate and Reputable money Lender.
    We are a company with financial assistance.We loan funds out to individuals
    in need of financial assistance,that have a bad credit or in need of
    money to pay bills,to invest on business. I want to use this medium to inform
    you that we render reliable beneficiary assistance as I'll be glad to offer you a
    loan. Services Rendered include,
    *Debt Consolidation
    *Business Loans
    *Personal Loans
    Please write back if interested with our interest rate
    of 0.2%per annual. Upon Response, you'll be mailed a Loan application
    form E-arabfinancialservice@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting. I love to hear from you!