Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
lasted until the region was hit by a catastrophic earthquake in the late eighteenth
century. The bishop subsequently shifted to Reykjavík, and Skálholt was largely
abandoned, though a chapel was maintained until the cathedral and school were
restored and reconsecrated in 1963.
The cathedral
Daily 10am-5pm • Free
Today, Skálholt's
cathedral
is elegantly underplayed, the sober black-and-white
building unusual only for its size and hilltop isolation. Inside, a mitre over the door
identifies Skálholt as a bishopric; there are abstract stained-glass windows and a
tapestry-like
mosaic
of Christ behind the altar. Reconstruction work in the 1950s also
uncovered a thirteenth-century stone
sarcophagus
belonging to Bishop Páll Jónsson, a
charismatic churchman who added a tower and sumptuous decorations to the original
building. A wooden crook carved with a dragon's head was found with his remains, and
the sarcophagus itself is on view here in the summer.
Ongoing
excavations
alongside the church have revealed the foundations of the
original bishop's residence - there's a site plan which explains what each area was for.
Some 100m away, a rough-cut stone monument commemorates Iceland's last Catholic
bishop,
Jón Arason
, who was executed here in 1550 whilst attempting to prevent the
Danish king from forcing Lutheranism on the country (see p.322).
2
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
SKÁLHOLT
Café
Coffee and light meals - lunchtime soup and bread is
1500kr - with a pleasant, sheltered courtyard and indoor
terrace covered in vines. It's attached to the school, just
next to the church.
Daily 10am-5pm.
Campsite
Laugaras
T
486 8809.
The closest campsite to
Skálholt is 2.5km away at the tiny hothouse town of
Laugaras. There are the u
sual on-
site facilities, plus a
nearby café and petting zoo.
1000kr
Skálholtsskóli
T
486 8870,
E
skoli@skalholt.is.
Next
to the church, Skálholt's school offers year-round
accommodation, either private doubles (rates include
breakfast), self-contained summerhouse cabins or
sleeping-bag style in shared rooms. During school holidays
at least, it's a quiet place wit
h plenty
of easy wal
king in the
area.
Sleeping-
bag dorms
6400kr
; doubles
18,000kr
;
cabin
16,000kr
Geysir
Visible from miles away as a pall of steam rising above the plains,
GEYSIR
's hot
springs bubble out over a grassy slope at the foot of
Bjarnfell
, studded with circular
pools atop grey, mineral-streaked mounds. The area has been active for thousands
of years, but the springs' positions have periodically shifted as geological seams
crack open or close down; the current vents appeared following a thirteenth-
century earthquake.
Just what makes geysers erupt is subject to speculation: some theorists favour gaseous
subterranean burps; others believe that cooler surface water forms a “lid”, trapping
superheated fluid below until enough pressure builds up to burst through as an
eruption. What nobody doubts is just how hot the springs are: underground
temperatures reach 125°C, and even surface water is only just off boiling point - under
no circumstances should you wander off marked paths (there are no protective barriers
to speak of ), step anywhere without looking first, or put any part of your body in the
springs or their outlets.
The geysers
The large, deep, clear blue pool of
Geysir
- the Gusher - is, of course, what everyone
comes to see, and in its heyday it was certainly impressive, regularly spitting its load
70m skywards. After decades of inactivity, an earthquake in 2008 seems to have got
things going again, though eruptions are extremely irregular and you'll probably
have to be content with the antics of nearby
Strokkur
, the Churn, which fires of a
