| Photo Information |
Copyright: Ari Halfdan Adalgeirsson (rildin)
![Silver Star Critiquer [C: 21 W: 1 N: 7]](http://i1.treknature.com/misc/s-n-n.gif) (115) |
| Genre: Landscapes |
| Medium: Color |
| Date Taken: 2006-10-21 |
| Categories: Trees, Mountain |
| Exposure: f/11, 1/100 seconds |
| More Photo Info: [view] |
| Photo Version: Original Version |
| Date Submitted: 2006-11-07 18:15 |
| Viewed: 1263 |
| Points: 4 |
|
| [Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note |
Many travellers who come to Iceland, as well as most Icelanders, know the name Skaftafell. If you don't, or if you're interested in learning more, keep reading.
Skaftafell is the largest national park of Europe, covering an area of 4,807 sq. km. It's world-famous for it's exceptional beauty and the contrasts in the landscape. The park includes glacier tongues Skaftafellsjökull, Skeišarįrjökull, Morsįrjökull and several other branches of Vatnajökull, Iceland's largest glacier. The highest peak of Iceland, Hvannadalshnśkur, is in Öręfajökull, which is also within the park's boundaries. The park is one of the country's most accessible places for glacier exploration.
The name Skaftafell derives from an ancient estate and assembly site, after which the countys Austur(East)-Skaftafellssżsla and Vestur(West)-Skaftafellssżsla, are also named. Two farms in the district are still active, but over the centuries, theyve gradually moved up the slopes of the mountain as Skeišarį river has deposited its sand on the lower fields.
Skaftafell has some of Iceland's most diverse flora and fauna, with protected species including growing stocks of arctic fox and ptarmigan. Characteristic plant species of the area include broad-leaved willow herb, wild angelica, bluebell, willow and birch. Some of the tallest birch trees of Iceland grow in Bęjarstašarskógur forest, which is situated in the foothills of mountain range Skaftafellsfjöll, north-east of Morsįrdalur valley and the very popular campsite of Skaftafell. Bęjarstašarskógur supplies the majority of the countrys birch for forestation projects.
For an accurate, interactive map of the area (in fact all of Iceland), click the following link: http://atlas.lmi.is/reidleidir. Then, by holding down your left mouse button, draw a box around the area of interest. In this case, that area would be between the two big branches coming south from the middle of Vatnajökull (the big, white glacier). Those branches are Skeišarįrjökull and Öręfajökull. If this doesnt immediately provide you with a more detailed map, full of landmarks and names, you simply have to zoom in a bit more. From there, Ill let you figure it out yourselves. Have fun!
About this particular photo:
Taken in Bęjarstašaskógur, it depicts peak Skaršatindur in the middle, and the even taller Kristķnartindar on the right, behind a big, crooked copy of guess what a birch tree!
Post processing:
Simply enough, I sharpened the photo a bit and added a little saturation. Thats about it.
Ill let this suffice for now. |
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