Skaftafell National Park is situated between Kirkjubæjarklaustur and Höfn in the south of Iceland.

It was founded on September 15, 1967, and enlarged twice afterwards. Today the park measures about 1700 km&sup2 (656 mi&sup2), making it Iceland's second largest national park. There you can find for example the valley Mörsárdalur, the mountain Kristinartindar and the glacier Skaftafellsjökull (a spur of the Vatnajökull ice cap).

The landscape is very similar to some of the Alps, but it has been formed in thousands of years by different influences of fire (volcanic eruptions of Öraefajökull or Hvannadalshnjúkur) and water (the glaciers Skeiðarájökull and Skaftafellsjökull), the rivers Skeiðará, Morsá und Skaftafellsá. Volcanic eruptions under the ice-cap can give rise to glacier runs (Icelandic:jökulhlaup) which swell the Skeiðará river massively. The sandy wasteland between the glacier and the sea caused by jökulhlaups is called the Sandur. The last jökulhlaup occurred in 1996.

Skaftafell is well re-nowned for its agreeable climate and the sunny days in summer - which are not so common in the south of Iceland. There is a bigger birch wood (Bæjarstaðarskógur). Since sheep are no longer allowed to be kept in the park, vegetation is prospering. There are also a lot of different birds to be seen in the park as well as foxes.

Not too far from the visitors' centre, the waterfall Svartifoss (Black Falls) flows over a step of about 12m. Its name comes from the black basalt columns behind it.

In the Middle Ages there were some bigger farms in this area, but they had to be given up due to volcanic eruptions and the ensuing glacier runs. The two surviving farms are now living mostly from tourism. The park has also an information center and a camp ground. A lot of hiking trails are crossing the area.

See also: Waterfalls of Iceland

External links

• Svartifoss - Photo gallery from www.islandsmyndir.is
• Official park Web site
• Photos, French text