Hotel Klaustur is ideally located for trips to the biggest glacier in Europe – Vatnajökull, Laki Craters and Skaftafell National Park, as well as the magnificent Dyrhólaey sea arch and a boat ride on Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon. At the end of an eventful day, Hotel Klaustur awaits you with an excellent restaurant and a friendly atmosphere.
Places Nearby:
LAKAGÍGAR (LAKI CRATERS)
Lakagígar (Laki craters) is a series of craters that were formed in one of the world's largest mixed eruptions in recorded history. Now referred to as the Fires of the River Skaftá (or Laki eruption), this continuous series of eruptions emitted a vast quantity of lava and substantial amounts of volcanic ash from a fissure stretching 25 km across the area west of the ice cap.
The eruption began on 8th of June 1783 at the south-west end of the fissure. Lava flowed across the flat land destroying a large number of farms, stopping just outside the small town of Kirkjubæjarklaustur on 20th of July. The north-east part of the fissure then erupted. From 29th of July until well into October, lava flowed along the course of the River Hverfisfljót and across the countryside on both banks. Although volcanic activity then began to subside, the eruption was not finally over until February 1784.
The total area of the resulting lava field is 565 km² and the estimated volume of volcanic material is over 12 km³.
Mosses
Nowhere else in Iceland are mosses as prominent as in the highlands southwest of Vatnajökull ice cap. Mosses have virtually no roots and absorb rainwater and nutrients through their small leaves. They therefore have an advantage over flowering plants where precipitation is high and the ground is poor in nutrients. Walking on moss can kill it, and then it does not re-grow in the same place. Please assist us to protect the area by only walking on the marked and posted paths around the Laki crater row.
How to get there
The road to the Laki craters (F 206) leaves the main road (road nr. 1) by the farm Hunkubakkar, just south of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. Distance is about 50 km, but traveling time should be estimated about 2 hrs, one way.
More geosites in the neighbourhood: www.vatnajokulsthjodgardur.is
SKAFTÁRELDAHRAUN (ELDHRAUN LAVA FIELDS)
The Skaftá-Fires are one of two of the largest lava flows that have occurred on Earth in reocrded history. The lava flow, which flowed from the Laki vent, fell into two main streams to inhabited areas, on each side of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. For the eight months during the eruption, 12 km3 of basalt lava flowed onto the surface and covered about 565 km2 of land or about a half percent of Iceland’s area. Skaftá-Fires lava field is classified as smooth or pāhoehoe lava. There are a number of lava caves in the field. All around thick woolly fringe moss forms a continuous layer which gives off a grey colour when dry, but a beautiful green after rain.
More geosites in the neighbourhood: www.katlageopark.com
