Skaftafell

One of Iceland's most famous scenery, without exploring Skaftafell National Park, no trip to the island is whole. You will locate it about 330 kilometers from Reykjavik in southeast Iceland. Skaftafell was a national park unto itself before it was absorbed into the bigger Vatnajökull National Park. Covering an area of over 4,817 km2 (2,484 square miles), this nature reserve is a huge wilderness area including mountains, river valleys, glaciers and waterfalls today. Repeated eruptions of Öraefajökull volcano over thousands of years shaped Skaftafell. Glacial rivers and flash floods slink over volcanic rock, carving out many valleys and gorges. Attempts to control and cultivate the land had little success when Iceland was first inhabited. The 1362 Öræfajökull eruption destroyed the whole area, and later attempts at agricultural development were routinely hampered by glacial flooding and ash fall from Grímsvötn volcano to the north.

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