At its northern end, the deep, jagged canyon of Fjarđrágljúfur flattens out into a broad, shallow valley.

One of the running conversations Rachel and I had while in Iceland was "If this were in America, it would be…" We concluded that if Fjarđrágljúfur were in the States, it would likely be a national park. It would have paved paths along both sides, with iron gates lining the whole canyon and corporate-sponsored lookout points at the most dramatic features. There would be facilities of some sort - souvenir stands, ranger stations, food shacks. There would be signs everywhere. Probably a campground, too, perhaps overlooking the valley north o the canyon. There would, at the very least, be a lot of people about.

In Iceland, there were none of these things at all - no forms of legal protection such as park status, and no development of any kind. And no people, either. (At least not at 10:45 pm on a late May evening.)

CloudsEveningFjarđráFjarđrágljúfurGrassHillIcelandLandscapeOutdoorOutdoorsRiverSpringValleyWater

From Iceland