Iceland - Documenting the Inferno
August 2022 saw a Volcano erupting on Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula, and it was an event I could not miss.
While I was hiking glaciers in Alaska, something on the other end of the temperature spectrum happened a few thousand kilometers east: Iceland recorded another Volcano eruption, after last year’s 6 months period of volcano activity on the Reykjanes peninsula not far from Reykjavik. Having missed the previous occasion, I decided to book a flight and car in a 36h window on August 15th, between other trips I had already confirmed. It was a risky plan, given the fact that the activity could slow down or even stop at any moment, and knowing that Iceland’s weather is more than unpredictable. In the end, it was the right move, since I had great weather for most of the trip, and even more so because the eruption has effectively stopped as of August 22nd.
I arrived at the country’s international airport in late afternoon and took a rental car towards the Volcano location, which is just 45min from the airport, only stopping to get some groceries as I planned to stay at the site over night.
Watching the Inferno
A few images of people hiking along the hills surrounding the volcano at night.
Volcano In Motion - Highlights
If you enjoyed the photos, seeing the spewing lava in motion adds another dimension.
Morning Vibes
I spent over 14h at the site in total on the first day, to catch these views. What made it even more worth it is the fact that I was literally the only one here around 7am, surrounded by nothing but the noise of the volcano.
An Aerial View
While flying a drone makes for amazing imagery, your own perception still stays on the ground. Only a helicopter can change that, so after sunrise I went to Reykjavik to take a look from above with my own eyes.
The flight also led us over a few more of Iceland’s beautiful landscapes.
The Last Attempt
After the helicopter flight I had planned to come back for another night before my 7am return flight, and started my trek before sunset in reasonably good weather. This was when I got to experience when they say that Icelandic weather conditions are unpredictable. 90min later, when I was just settling down at the volcano site, clouds, wind, and rain took over, making the experience of sitting on the hill completely unprotected a rather miserable one.
Since I really wanted to get a few more aerial shots, I held on for another 2h, catching a small break in the rain where I - despite heavy wind gusts - felt the drone would survive a short flight, before heading back to the car in the pouring rain for a few hours of sleep. I’d say it was worth it.
A Recap
Here is a timelapse sequence of the the evening , moonrise, and next day’s sunrise.
And that was 36h in Iceland - it was an expensive and tough journey, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Alaska - The Last (and Vast) Frontier
Alaska - endless wilderness, bear country, the largest state, home to the tallest mountain in North America.
Alaska - endless wilderness, bear country, the largest state, home to the tallest mountain in North America, and a few random surprises. There’s a lot of beauty to be discovered here, as I learnt during my trip with Capture The Atlas.
From Anchorage to Kenai Fjords
Day 1 took us along a few interesting sights on the road from the state’s largest city (which is not its capital) to Seward, gateway to Kenai fjords, a National Park.
Byron Glacier
The second stop was Byron Glacier, an easily accessible glacier with a small ice cave, visible at the bottom of the aerial photo.
Exit Glacier
We had one more stop on the way to Seward, which was the aptly named “Exit Glacier” - it’s literally receding so quickly, it may be gone within our lifetime. Signs along the trail show how its terminus moved over the last 200 years, and the speed by which it does can hardly be described as glacial - up to 100m a year.
The Kenai Fjords
A boat cruise into the smallest national park of Alaska was next on the agenda. While the size of the park may not compare to others in the state, it does contain the largest ice field in the US at almost 2000 sqkm, with almost 40 glaciers feeding from it.
Wildlife Sightings
The area is home to varied wildlife, and we spotted puffins, sea otters, harbor seals, and a humpback whale.
Our destination was Aialik Glacier in the namesake bay.
Bears of Crescent Lake
From Kenai we took a flight over the beautiful landscapes (more on that later) towards a turquoise lake across the Cook Inlet, with the goal to find and photograph brown bears. In fact, three of them acted as our greeting committee, sitting by the shorelines while the floatplane approached the lake, but quickly hiding in the bushes as we landed on the water.
Back in Anchorage, a scenic Flight, and another (attempted) Bear Tour
From Anchorage we took a flight to Chinitna Bay for another bear tour in a different environment.
Shapes & Colours
The flight to and from the location partly made up for this disappointment though, as the views of the Alaskan landscapes, volcanoes, mountains, and ground patters were incredible.
Valdez - Waterfalls and Kayaks
The next drive took us the small town of Valdez, at the head of a deep fjord in Prince William Sound. The journey is a beautiful one, past several glaciers and into canyons where one waterfalls follows the next.
Next was a full day boat trip towards the end of the Valdez arm into the Columbia bay, home to one of the fastest moving glaciers in the world.
What was very special here is the fact we switched to a smaller and more manual method of transport once we reached the glacier - a Kayak. Moving through the ice like this was a very unique way to experience and explore the tidal glacier and the many icebergs originating from the calving of its terminus.
From Above
We had the chance to fly our drone from a small beach, providing some spectacular views of the landscape - and its inhabitants.
Sea Life
Aside from some chilled otters, we also spotted Steller sea lions, a near threatened species that had significantly declined since the 1970s but is slowly making a comeback, as well as porpoises, although getting a photo of them proved to be tricky.
The Matanuska Glacier
On our way back from Valdez we crossed the Thompson pass, and on the next morning Alaska had one more glacier experience to offer: This time, we got even closer than in the kayak, since it is possible to hike on this icey giant.
Alaska’s Most Unique House
The next destination was Denali National Park, and the road northwards also leads to a rather peculiar building better seen from the air: Goose Creek Tower, or colloquially “Dr Seuss House”.
Denali - a National Park and North America’s tallest Mountain
However, the next morning we had the chance to take a (dry) walk around Horseshoe lake, which features beautiful scenery reflected in the still lake waters, and a few beaver architectural masterpieces.
Denali also had a bit more wildlife in store for us, including Moose and Caribou, commonly known as their domesticated version - Reindeers.
Watch more of Alaska’s landscapes from the air.
Thanks for making it until the end!
