Iceland: Echo Rock

We are shaking on the dirt road number 862 in northeast Iceland. Within a radius of several tens of kilometers, not a single house or a single small tree is observed. Only huge lupine fields and heavy clouds hanging over them. From here, to the nearest city of Husavik 70 km, to Reykjavik in general 550.

The path leads to Vesturdalur, a valley on the west bank of the glacial Jökulsá River. This valley is a favorite destination for hiking enthusiasts. There are six routes (V1-V6), all of varying complexity and length; there is a stand with a detailed map in the parking lot.

We were interested in the V3 circular and an hour and a half route to a very unusual rock formation with the unpronounceable, as usual in Iceland, name Hljóðaklettar, or Echo Rock.

Its surface is very unusual and consists of strange patterns - twists, spirals, sockets and even pseudo-bee honeycombs. And all of this is a lot, a lot, "honeycombs" rise tens of meters above your head. Good idea for a photo: put someone at the bottom of a cliff to assess scale.

What is it all made of? Of course from basalt! Basalt is a widespread volcanic rock that is formed as a result of rapid cooling of lava. Amazing columns are usually hexagonal in cross section (“basalt needles”), but sometimes you can find basalt polygons with three, twelve or more sides. The diameter of the columns varies from a few centimeters to several meters.

"Icelandic trolls are not responsible for the formation of the basalt pillars found on the island," is from an article recently published in the Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research ("Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research").

It would seem a serious publication, and then suddenly the trolls. According to a 2016 survey of the country's population, 54% of Icelanders believe in elves, trolls, witches, gnomes, and fairies. 54 percent! They even have a saying: “Fear the stupid troll. Do not be afraid of the smart troll. The smart troll is a fictional creature” :)

"Now that the world has changed so, there is no place for trolls in it, but still in the form of high mountains and forested hills, they see if everything is in their possession" (from the book "In the Country of Trolls. Who is Who in Norwegian Folklore ").

My daughter immediately accepted the idea of trolls and then walked for a long time and pressed the ends of the basalt columns - what if it was a secret door that opens the entrance to the cave ...

“Daughter,” I tell her, “trolls are usually three meters tall.” Need to push higher!

What a child with a clever look objected:

- Mom, there are still little trolls, they should have their own doors.

So if we lived in Iceland, then the percentage of people who believe in supernatural beings would have been even higher :)

Another unusual factor in this place is a powerful echo. You’ll whisper a secret in your ear, and how it will scatter on all four sides. Secret to the whole world.

The area is also rich in caves, the most impressive of which is called Kirkjan, that is, the "church". Do not expect bells or a Gothic facade, instead of them there is an almost perfectly symmetrical arch, indicating the entrance to an amazing cave.

Those who are not afraid of pebbles falling from the ceiling can look inside and fulfill the Queen’s aria of the night. Or if you have enough range, then something from the repertoire of the Hands Up group ;-)

Strange acoustics are not limited to this: the echo flies from one wall to another, like a ping-pong ball. Now it calms down, then it spills into full power, rolling "echo wave". "Everything is more wonderful and wonderful!" - as Alice would say.

From parking it is best to move counterclockwise. Along the way, it will be possible to examine in detail interesting, separate cliffs, and, having walked along the riverbank, rise to the Rock-echo.