Photo Locations of Iceland - Diamond Beach

Fellsfjara is one of the most visited places in Iceland. People may know it by a different name - Diamond Beach, however this is not a historical name, but rather a successful marketing attempt to popularize the site. It's clear to see why it worked, as icebergs from the nearby Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon shimmer like pieces of diamonds against the volcanic black sand of the Atlantic ocean. 

The lagoon itself is relatively new. Jökulsárlón began forming when Breiðamerkurjökull Glacier started retreating about 90 years ago. Before 1934 the outlet glacier reached the highway but then began to retreat. The lagoon is now only about 250 meters away from the Atlantic Ocean and around 30km² in size. Jökulsárlón is also the deepest lake in Iceland with a maximum depth of around 260 meters.There are dozens of glacier lagoons around Vatnajökull, but only one where so much ice is deposited alongside the beach.

As the tide rises, warmer ocean waters enter the lagoon, mixing with glacier water and uplifting the glacial outlet. When it retreats, the tips of the glacial outlet break off and drift out to the sea and get washed up on the nearby shore. This is a year around process, so barring very specific conditions (Strong south eastern winds that blow ice chunks away from the mouth of the river, or extreme cold freezing the lagoon) it can be observed any time of the year.

Images taken with Nikon D810, Tamron 15-30mm

Photo locations of Iceland - Hrómundartindur

Iceland has about 130 volcanoes and about 30 active volcanic systems. This is an image of one of the smallest volcanic systems in Iceland - Hrómundartindur (Hrómundars Peak). Squeezed between Þingvallavatn lake and Hengill volcano, this system has not erupted since early Holocene time about 11 000 years ago. System is about 25 km long and the central volcano is about 550 meters tall. At the foot of the volcano lies Ölkelduháls with numerous mud pools, fumaroles and warm springs. In 1994 scientists observed increased seismic activity and slow land uplift indicating magma flow into the roots of the volcanic system. It has been quiet for time being, but it's certainly still very active. In the bottom right corner of the image you can see Tjarnarhnúkur. It's a single slag crater and is the youngest in a series of mountain ridges around Hrómundartindur.

Hrómundartindur is named after viking berserker Hrómundr Gripsson. Hrómundr is said to have been the great-grandfather of Ingólfr Arnarson, the first settler and founder of Reykjavik. Hrómundr served under the Danish king Óláf, in his battles against the draugr Þráinn and the kings of Sweden. Þráinn was once a Gaulish king but became an undead draugr after he was buried, he carried the mighty sword Mistilteinn (Mistletoe) in his hand and with it he slaughtered an army of 420 people led by King Semingr of Sweden when they came to ransack his burial mound full of treasure. Óláf himself led his men to Þráinn's burial mound in order to take his treasure, but no one except for Hrómundr dared to enter. He engaged Þráinn in a battle that was long and fierce, but in the end he emerged victorious, defeating the powerful undead king with his bare hands, claiming Mistilteinn as his own sword before finally burning the corpse.

Images taken with Mavic 2 and Nikon D810.