Suðurnes or the Southern Peninsula, Iceland’s Volcanic Wonders and Thermal Treasures. This region is the smallest of the eight. Meanwhile, this region has on of the most densely populated areas, Reykjanesbær. At the moment this is the part of Iceland with has the most Vulcanic Wonders or activity. This is also the part where the international airport is, Keflavik. Most people will arrive here when coming to Iceland. Explore volcanic activity, Thermal Treasures, and Keflavik Airport on the stunning Southern Peninsula. Plan your Iceland adventure with Huginn&Muninn Travels.
Vulcanic activity
Iceland is also very interesting for its Geology. This island is on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Which is in the middle of two, moving, tectonic plates. On one side the Eurasian plate and on the other side you have the North American plate. Because the plates are moving, around 2cm a year, the country has a lot of earthquakes, volcanoes and geothermal activity. The Southern Peninsula, or Reykjanes Peninsula, is a beautiful example of these activities. You can see the walls at The bridge between Continents. When you drive from Keflavik to Reykjavík you will pas old lava field from eruptions hundreds of years ago. They are now covered under moss, Icelandic moss.
Recent eruptions on the southern peninsula
The peninsula was quite quiet for a long time, around 800 years. But in March 19th 2021, that changed. The first eruption after 800 years has started and they named the new volcano Fagradalsfjall. It wasn’t really a surprise because in the weeks prior to the eruption almost 53,000 tremors were measured. The fissure was about 700meters long and luckily the lava wasn’t flowing towards the cities in the area.
Then the third eruption started and was called Litli-Hrutur, started July 10th 2023. This one had a fissure of 900 meters and was 3 times bigger than the previous two eruptions. But, this was still a tourist-friendly eruption.
But then, there was another eruption. On December 18th 2023 Sundhnukagigar erupted. This time it was a bit more worrying. The lava flow was going towards the town of Grindavík and the people and pets had to be evacuated. No one was hurt and people got to reclaim their belongings after the eruption had ended. Luckily the town had not been hit by the lava flow and people could return to their homes. But not for long.
The next eruption was a lot smaller but opened up really close to the town. People were evacuated the night before and could only watch how homes and parts of their town was being destroyed by the lava flow. After this eruption three more, relatively shorts ones, have occurred. Expert think that the coming 80 years more eruptions will occur. With this information, the people of Grindavík might never return to their town.
If you consider visiting an eruption site do this as safe as possible. If authorities say that it is not safe to go, please do not go. They know how dangerous a site can be, thank about fast lave flow, heat and poisonous gasses. If it is not a Tourist Eruption but you do want to see is try booking a Helicopter tour. Or try to find out how the airplane will approach the airport and book windows seat on the eruption side of the plane. If you fly from the Netherlands it is probably the right side of the plane.
Geothermal areas
Some geothermal activity you can see or visit in a safe way. For example there a few Geothermal areas that you can visit like the haunted Gunnuhver Hot Springs. This area has hot water boiling and spraying up with a lot of steam. It is a great area near the coastline with a historical story about a woman named Guðrún Önundardóttir.
She was unable to pay for her rent so the landowner took the only thing she had which was a cooking pot. Guðrún went in hunger strike but the pot wasn’t returned so she starved. She was going to be buried but the men carrying her coffin felt the it getting lighter but did not dare to look in to it. When they dug her grave they heard a whisper telling them that they did not need to dig deep, it was not her intention to lie for a long time. She started to haunt the peninsula but a clever priest thought of a way to lock her in a place. The thermal area. They tricked her spirit with a ball of yarn which she followed into the deep. Some say you can sometimes hear her scream as she is about to fall in the depths.
Thermal baths on the peninsula
Another great, but more relaxing, place you can visit is Bláa Lónið, the Blue Lagoon. You need to check beforehand if it is open because of the nearby eruptions. But if it is open and you stay in the area, go and have a relaxing afternoon in this thermal lagoon. It is not really a natural spring because it is the water of the nearby thermal powerplant. It is one of the biggest tourist attractions in this part of the country.
So, if you want to explore Iceland’s Volcanic Wonders and Thermal Treasures, or you are looking to kill some time in this area and you want to know some spots? Send me an email or place a comment below. This area has some great spot to visit while you are in Iceland.
Would you like to know more about the other regions of Iceland? Check out one of the other pages like Austurland, Eastern Region.