Reykjanes Peninsula volcanoes
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In 2021 an eruption started on the Reykjanes Peninsular in Iceland that ended a dormant period of some 800 years. More eruptions followed in 2022 and 2023. The first one lasted for months, the other two were shorter. More eruptions in the area are expected. But of course it’s unpredictable. Witnessing an ongoing eruption with lava fountains and red-hot lava flows is of course exhilarating, but this sort of thing cannot really be planned long ahead.[UPDATE 12 November 2023: powerful earthquakes are suggesting another eruption in the south-west of the peninsula is imminent. And unlike what I predicted in the summer, this new activity is not further away still from any roads or infrastructure, but instead so close to the town of Grindavik that this was evacuated yesterday. The nearby tourist attraction of the Blue Lagoon and its hotels were also closed, along with the earthquake-damaged road that connected Grindavik with the main road to Keflavik and Reykjavik.
UPDATE 16 January 2024: lava from the latest erruption has now reached Grindavik and set houses on fire ... so this is no longer just a "tourist volcano", but has caused serious damage.]
More background info: The Reykjanes Peninsula south of Reykjavik is the geologically youngest parts of Iceland, resulting from lavas that are between 14,000 and 800 years old.
This is one of dozens of volcanic areas that run through the country roughly in a south-west to north-east direction along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (see also under Iceland in general). While some more centrally located volcanos such as Hekla or Grimsvötn have erupted with some regularity in modern times, those on the Reykjanes Peninsula had not erupted for almost all of Iceland’s inhabited history, i.e. since the 9th century. The systems on the peninsula were thus regarded as ‘dormant’.
This changed in March 2021 when a new fissure opened up inland north-east of Grindavik in the western half of the peninsula. This eruption lasted until September that year before dying down. Then in August 2022 another eruption started just north of the first site but this lasted for only a few weeks. These eruption sites at Fagradalsfjall and Geldingadalir left large new lava fields and now dormant spatter cones.
I had already planned my Iceland trip for 2023 when on 10 July yet another eruption began, this time at Litli-Hrutur yet further away to the north-east of the previous two sites. That got me excited and I quickly made enquiries about what my options for witnessing the eruption might be – see the report below and the general details of access.
As all these eruption sites are of a nature (with slow-flowing lava and no explosive components such as pyroclastic flows or lava bombs) that makes them quite safe to observe from a short distance or hillside, they all proved instantly popular with both locals and tourists who flocked to the sites in large numbers. The guide at the Lava Show in Vik even said that they call such eruptions “tourist volcanoes”.
The Icelandic tourism industry also quickly adapted. New paid parking lots were set up at the trailheads to the eruption sites, and guided tours were offered, also scenic flights by small plane or helicopter over the erupting volcano. The latter afford bird’s-eye views of the craters and fresh lava fields. These flights are of course extra-special, but they don’t last long. Those who want to witness the activity for longer and especially keen photographers therefore prefer to make the hike to the sites, take their time to enjoy the spectacle and perhaps set up tripods for better photography. Many even stayed until after dark for even more spectacular views/images of the eruptions.
Of course, volcanic events are unpredictable, and eruptions may cease as suddenly and quickly as they began. But if you’re lucky enough with the timing and have a chance to witness a live eruption, grab it.
Since the Litli-Hrutur eruption ended on 5 August 2023 no new eruptions have occurred – at the time of writing in early October 2023, that is. But it is expected that further eruptive episodes will come somewhere in the area at some point. How quickly (or if at all) can of course not be predicted with any accuracy. If the pattern of the three previous eruptions continues, the next eruption is more likely to be even further inland and hence yet more difficult to hike to. And of course you have to be lucky to be in the country at the right time – or be very flexible and travel last minute and hope the eruption is still ongoing by the time you make it there. There are no guarantees. There are even specialist tour companies offering such spontaneous trips, at a price, of course. But even these cannot guarantee that the eruption won’t suddenly end and you’d be disappointed. You need luck … and when I was in Iceland in the summer of 2023 my luck ran out.
What there is to see: I booked a scenic helicopter flight over the eruption sites when Litli-Hrutur was still active (see above – and practical details below). I thought it was worth the serious investment, also because my itinerary was such that I wouldn’t have had much of a chance to do the hike to the eruption site since I had already made other plans for parts of the country further east and north before the eruption started.
Originally the flight was scheduled for 30 July while the eruption was ongoing. However, at the time the flight was due a layer of low clouds prevented any visibility, so the helicopter couldn’t fly there. We waited for ca. two hours for a chance the clouds might lift, but they only got thicker. So we agreed to reschedule the flight. I checked my itinerary and decided that driving back to Reykjavik for it was doable on 5 August (as a side trip en route from Hella to Gullfoss).
Then on 4 August the guide at the Lava Show in Vik mentioned that the Litli-Hrutur eruption that he had been following closely was beginning to die down; and he predicted it to be over possibly as early as the next day. My inner voice was screaming “no!!!” But I still had hopes to see some activity that next day. As the flight was scheduled for 2 p.m., I had time in the morning to visit the LAVA Centre in Hvolsvöllur. There was a screen in the atrium that showed footage from a live cam at the Litli-Hrutur crater … and on that I could already see that there were no longer any lava fountains coming from the crater.
Thus I was forewarned that I might not see the spectacle I had been hoping for. And indeed at the helicopter hangar we were told that no more lava was being ejected … but that you could still see the red glow inside the crater opening – and of course all the still steaming recent lava fields. So we decided to go along with the flight all the same.
When we got to Litli-Hrutur it was indeed clear that the really impressive spectacle was over. Yet we did see some remnants of red-glowing lava inside the crater. That was only possible from flying directly over the crater. The hikers that we saw atop a nearby hill would not have seen this and must have been much more disappointed – also given that they had hiked for hours to get there for so little to see.
Still, flying over Litli-Hrutur as well as the lava fields and older craters and spatter cones from the 2021 and 2022 eruptions was still a fantastic thing. The pitch-black new lava fields are quite something to behold – as are the already changing colours of the lava fields of the previous eruptions. See the photos below.
Since I missed the fiery phases of the eruption I cannot provide photos of that show of destructive force by Mother Nature. But if you navigate to the eruption sites on Google Maps (see links below) and activate photos you can see plenty of lava and lava fountain images. For myself I bought a superb photo book about the 2021 eruption at the Lava Show’s souvenir stall in Vik – partly because the guide had predicted the end of the then current eruption at Litli-Hrutur. It’s a consolation prize only, but still nice to have.
Now I wonder whether I’ll ever have the chance to witness such an eruption with my own eyes. It was so close this time, but in the end it was not to be. Oh well. The overflight was nevertheless cool – though I’m not sure I can recommend paying what it costs just for the non-erupting sights you get. But if money isn’t an issue for you, I’d say still do it. For everybody else it’s probably not worth the price without an eruption.
Location: All over the Reykjanes Peninsula in the west of Iceland, just south of Reykjavik. The recently begun eruptions took place in the western half of the peninsula towards Grindavik.
Google Maps locators:
Litli-Hrutur: [63.9161, -22.2062]
Geldingadalir and Fagradalsfjall: [63.8915, -22.2593]
2021-2023 trailhead and parking: [63.8660, -22.3165]
Volcano helicopter hangar: [64.1252, -21.9407]
Access and costs: varies a lot, can be comfortable and expensive or strenuous but cheap and sometimes there’s little reason to go at all.
Details: When there’s an eruption ongoing, Iceland’s tourism industry quickly adapts and tour offers spring up, from helicopter or small plane flights over the volcano to guided hikes on the ground. But many people just drive up as close as possible and then hike to the eruption site on their own … except you won’t be on your own. Watching a live volcano eruption is popular with both locals and tourists, so there’ll be dozens if not hundreds of others about. The paid car parks, swiftly set up when the eruptions started in 2021, can fill up at peak times. The fee for parking, though, is the equivalent of just a few euros. Often you have to pay via an app you have to download to your smartphone.
When attempting the long hike to such a site you have to be reasonably fit, wear appropriate hiking gear and sturdy shoes and take plenty of water, ideally some food as well. And if staying after dark, you’ll need to take a good torch/flashlight with you for the hike back in the dark.
Helicopter flights are naturally expensive and should ideally be booked in advance. I chose the company Volcano Heli who fly from Hangar 5 on the south-western side of the domestic airport in Reykjavik. They use a small chopper with excellent views through the very large-area perspex cabin windows. There are four passenger seats, one next to the pilot and three in the back, so there will be a middle seat, which obviously does not provide the best views. You cannot ask for specific seats. Allocation is decided on by the pilot on the spot, going by the height and weight of the respective passengers. I was lucky to get the front seat and my wife had the seat by the window behind me; there were no other passengers on this last flight of the day so one of the ground staff went along and sat by the other window seat. We paid in the region of 800 EUR for our two seats.
Of course, when there’s no eruption ongoing there is less of an incentive to go on such a flight. The new lava fields still look impressive, but I’m not sure whether they’d warrant booking a helicopter flight or embarking on the strenuous hike. The hikes to the eruption sites also got progressively longer and harder since the first eruption in 2021.
Oh, and when I looked up private guided hikes, I found that they were also very expensive, not so much less than a helicopter flight.
Time required: Helicopter overflights take something like 40-60 minutes. The hike from the car park to the Litli-Hrutur site takes 2-3 hours serious hiking each way, plus time spent at the site. The previous eruptions in 2021/22 were somewhat closer to the road and car park. Where the next one might be is anybody’s guess, but if the pattern so far continues it may be even trickier to access and hence take longer still to hike to. We’ll see.
Combinations with other dark destinations: see under Iceland in general and in particular the Inside the Volcano chapter.
Combinations with non-dark destinations: in general see under Iceland.
One of Iceland’s most popular and fabled attractions, the Blue Lagoon thermal baths, lies just six or seven miles (ca. 10 km) west from the most recent eruption sites.
