Iceland (Lonely Planet, 7th Edition) - Fran Parnell [215]
Skriðuklaustur
The site of a 15th-century monastery, and the home of an Icelandic author feted by the Third Reich, Skriðuklaustur ( 471 2990; www.skriduklaustur.is; adult/under 16yr/student Ikr500/free/300; 10am-6pm Jun-Aug, noon-5pm May & early Sep) certainly has an interesting history. The unusual black-and-white turf-roofed building was built in 1939 by Gunnar Gunnarsson (1889–1975), and now holds a cultural centre dedicated to him. This prolific writer achieved phenomenal popularity in Denmark and Germany – at the height of his fame only Goethe outsold him. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize three times, but his books have dated quite badly; the most readable is Svartfugl (translated into English as The Black Cliffs), about an infamous Icelandic murder.
The house also contains an interesting exhibition about the earlier Augustinian monastery, demolished during the Reformation of 1550. Archaeological finds include bones indicating that Skriðuklaustur was used as a hospice. Its most famous artefact is a carved statue of the Virgin Mary, found hidden in an old barn wall. Guided tours of the excavated site (around 30 minutes) depart from the reception every hour on the hour from 1pm to 5pm.
Downstairs, Klausturkaffi (Ikr1950; noon-2pm) serves a great lunch buffet made from local ingredients (wild mushrooms, reindeer meat, brambleberry puddings). More tantalising, however, is the brilliant all-you-can-eat cake buffet (Ikr1500), served between 2pm and 5.30pm.
Kárahnjúkasýning
Just up the road from Skriðuklaustur is the visitor centre ( 861 2195; 1-5pm) for the Kárahnjúkar hydroelectric project (Click here). There’s free juice and coffee, and a 10-minute video offering a quick (though somewhat biased) overview of the project.
Hengifoss & Lítlanesfoss
Hengifoss is Iceland’s second-highest waterfall. Once you’ve made the climb up and into the canyon you’ll be blown away by the power of the water – after a rainstorm it sounds like a Boeing 747 taking off! The falls plummet 120m into a colourful brown-and-red-striped boulder-strewn gorge.
Getting to Hengifoss requires a return walk of about one hour. From the parking area on Rte 933, about 200m south of the bridge across the lake, a long stairwell leads up the hillside – Hengifoss is soon visible in the distance. It’s a steep climb in places but flattens out as you enter the canyon. Halfway up is a smaller waterfall, Lítlanesfoss, which is surrounded by spectacular vertical basalt columns in a honeycomb formation.
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HRAFNKELL’S SORTA-SAGA
The saga of Hrafnkell is one of the most widely read Icelandic sagas, thanks to its short, succinct plot and memorable characters. The tale is particularly interesting because its premises seem to derail any modern notions of right, wrong and justice served. The only conclusions one can really draw are ‘it’s better to be alive than dead’ and ‘it’s better to have the support of powerful chieftains than rely on any kind of god’.
The main character, Hrafnkell, is a religious fanatic who builds a temple to Freyr on the farm Aðalból in Hrafnkelsdalur (see opposite). Hrafnkell’s prized stallion, Freyfaxi, is dedicated to the god, and Hrafnkell swears an oath to kill anyone who dares ride him without permission. As might be expected, someone does. The stallion himself tempts a young shepherd to leap onto his back and gallop off to find a herd of lost sheep. Discovering the outrage, Hrafnkell takes his axe to the errant youth.
When the boy’s father, Þorbjörn, demands compensation for his son’s death, Hrafnkell refuses to pay up, offering instead to look after Þorbjörn in his old age. Proudly, the man refuses, and the characters are launched into a court battle that ultimately leads to Hrafnkell being declared an outlaw. He chooses to ignore the sentence and returns home.
Before long, Þorbjörn’s nephew Sámur Bjarnason arrives to uphold the family honour, stringing Hrafnkell up by his Achilles tendons until he agrees to hand over his farm