Falljokull


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I drove up to a gravel pit near Falljokull in my little Toyota Yaris.

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I then started hiking to the toe of the glacier.  A few years ago, this glacier was much closer to the highway.  Global climate change takes another victim.

IMG_0492 Some of the gravel, ash, and rock being pumped out by the receding glacier.

IMG_0511 One has to be careful crossing the moraine at the terminal face of the glacier.  Hidden underneath are fast-melting pockets of ice that can leave void spaces for people to fall into.  Since I was solo, I only walked where there were fresh footprints lest the ground give way underneath me and take me down into the depths of gravel and sand.

IMG_0513 At the toe of the glacier.  This is ice covered with dirt, dust, ash, and rock.

IMG_0514 An up-close view.  It is an extremely interesting melt surface.

IMG_0515 I wish I had proper ice gear and a team to hike further up the glacier.  Perhaps another time.

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Panorama of the toe of the glacier.

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One of the rickety bridges that a local guide service had placed across the melt water.

IMG_0500 There was rope attached to the bridge and to a firm anchor.  Evidently it is not a rare occurrence to have the bridge washed downstream.

IMG_0501 A rainbow over the glacier.

IMG_0503 Ice hiding under the gravel.

IMG_0504 It is difficult to fathom how much ice is up above me in the mountains.


IMG_0508 I was excited to be walking among the glaciers.

IMG_0509 The sand and gravel right next to the edge of the ice was very soft.

IMG_0510 IMG_0520 Blocks of ice calving off the toe of the glacier.

IMG_0517 A stream running down the top of the ice.


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I heeded the warning and didn’t try a glacial traverse.

IMG_0502 Another rickety bridge.

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The glacier we see is just a tiny fraction of the volume of ice up above.

 

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