Iceland (Lonely Planet, 7th Edition) - Fran Parnell [89]
The river Öxará cuts across the rift, tumbling towards the lake in a series of pretty cascades. The most impressive is Öxarárfoss, hidden away behind the eastern lip of the fault. The pool Drekkingarhylur was used to drown women found guilty of infanticide, adultery or other serious crimes.
There are other smaller fissures on the eastern edge of the plain. During the 17th century nine men accused of witchcraft were burnt at the stake in Brennugjá (Burning Chasm). Nearby are the fissures of Flosagjá (named after a slave who jumped his way to freedom) and Nikulásargjá (after a drunken sheriff discovered dead in the water). The southern end of Nikulásargjá is known as Peningagjá (Chasm of Coins) for the thousands of coins tossed into it by visitors, a tradition started by the Danish king Frederick VIII in 1907.
BÚÐIR
On the left of the path as you walk down Almannagjá are the ruins of various búðir (booths). These small stone-and-turf shelters were where parliament-goers camped; and they also acted like stalls at today’s music festivals, selling beer, food and vellum to the assembled crowds. Most of the remains date from the 17th and 18th centuries; the largest, and one of the oldest, is Biskupabúð, which belonged to the bishops of Iceland and is located north of the church.
ÞINGVALLABÆR & ÞINGVALLAKIRKJA
The little farmhouse in the bottom of the rift, Þingvallabær wass built for the 1000th anniversary of the Alþing in 1930 by the state architect Guðjón Samúelsson. It’s now used as the park warden’s office and prime minister’s summer house.
Behind the farmhouse, Þingvallakirkja ( 9am-7.30pm mid-May–Aug) is one of Iceland’s first churches. The original was consecrated in the 11th century, but the current wooden building only dates from 1859. Inside are several bells from earlier churches, a 17th-century wooden pulpit, and a painted altarpiece from 1834. The Independence-era poets Jónas Hallgrímsson and Einar Benediktsson are interred in the small cemetery behind the church.
ÞINGVALLAVATN
At a whopping 84 sq km, Þingvallavatn is Iceland’s largest lake. Pure glacial water from Langjökull glacier filters through bedrock for 40km before emerging here. It’s joined by the hot spring Vellankatla, which spouts from beneath the lava field on the northeastern shore.
Þingvallavatn is an important refuelling stop for migrating birds (including the great northern diver, barrow’s golden-eye and harlequin duck). Weirdly, its waters are full of bleikja (Arctic char) that have been isolated for so long that they’ve evolved into four subspecies.
An unforgettable way of exploring the lake is by scuba diving (Click here) in the fissure Silfra, where the visibility is stunning.
WALKS AROUND ÞINGVELLIR
Well-marked trails criss-cross the national park, shown in the Icelandic leaflet Gönguleiðir í Þingvellir (Ikr500) sold at the Park Service Centre. Serious walkers might think of investing in the topographical map sheets 1613 I Þingvellir and 1613 II Hengill, both on a scale of 1:50,000. Most trails converge on the abandoned farm at Skógarkot. Southeast lie the ruins of another farm, Þórhallastaðir, where ale was brewed and served to 13th-century Alþing participants. The 5km walk from Þingvellir to the western rim of the continental rift takes a few hours.
Walking trails at the southern end of Lake Þingvallavatn cut south across the slopes of the volcano Hengill (768m) to Hveragerði and the Hengill ski area, just off Rte 1. Click here for more information.
Tours
Various companies offer Golden Circle tours to Þingvellir, Geysir and Gullfoss from around Ikr8600 (Click here).
Within the park, there are free one-hour English guided tours ( departures 10am & 3pm Mon-Fri Jun-Aug) in summer, setting off from the church.
Sleeping & Eating
Unfortunately, the 111-year-old Hótel Valhöll, the only hotel within Þingvellir National Park, burned to the ground in July 2009. In these troubled economic