We learned that in the early part of the 20th century, plans were made to use the river to generate electricity. Doing so would have created a permanent change in the falls, and thanks to the work of Sigríður Tómasdóttir, daughter of the original farmers of the land, the plans for hydroelectric power were withdrawn and the falls were spared. When Sigríður died, she left the land to the government, with the stipulation that they be left in their natural state.
We thought we saw Yoko Ono at the falls, but it was just a random Japanese woman. Yoko was in the country for the Iceland Airwaves music festival. As we made our way down into the canyon, we had to be very careful because it was below freezing and the steps were rather steep.
We had our lunch at Gullfoss at the little Visitor's Center and while at the gift shop, Stu and I both went native!
After leaving Gullfoss, we made our way to Haukadalur, the last stop on the Golden Circle and known for it's geysers.
The biggest two geysers in the area are Strokkur and Geysir (how original). Strokkur erupts about every 4 to 8 minutes on a regular basis and Geysir erupts about 4 to 5 times per day.
The two geysers were formed after an earthquake in the 17th century allowed some of the geothermal heated water to rise to the surface.
The Strokkur geyser was the only one was saw erupt. The water averages about 15 to 20 meters high, but sometimes can reach 40 meters.
After our experience with the geysers, we headed to Skálholt to see the cathedral. For about eight centuries, this city was the cultural and political center of the country. It was one of two episcopal sees (or seats) in the country.
The cathedral was rebuilt in the 1950's as part of the countries millennium celebrations of their faith.
One of the highlights is the stained glass windows created by Icelandic artist Gerður Helgadóttir. The work was commissioned by the Danish government.
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