Iceland A land of spectacular waterfalls David Redfern Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

A waterfall on the Ranga river. Note the salmon ladder to the left. Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

Introduction This PowerPoint supports the article ‘Volcanoes and ice caps: case study of Iceland’ in Geography Review Vol. 30, No. 2. As well as being an interesting area of volcanoes and ice caps, Iceland has several spectacular waterfalls. All photographs by David Redfern. Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

Gullfoss Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

Hodder & Stoughton © 2016 Gullfoss

Gullfoss Gullfoss consists of two waterfalls on the Hvita River. The upper falls have a height of 11 m, the lower ones 20 m. The gorge below the falls is 2.5 km in length and is up to 70 m deep. The falls and the gorge have been carved out by postglacial meltwater, along a fissure in the local rocks. The edges of the upper falls are lined with hard dolerite (a form of basalt) whereas the gorge is the result of erosion down a line of weakness. In the 1920s there were plans to build a power plant here. The scheme failed partly due to the efforts of the then landowner Tomas Tomasson and his daughter, Sigridur. She walked barefoot to Reykjavik to protest. She has been called Iceland’s first environmentalist. The area is now a nature reserve and belongs to the nation. Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

Hodder & Stoughton © 2016 Seljalandfoss

Seljalandfoss Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

Seljalandfoss Seljalandfoss is one of a series of waterfalls marking the line of a set of former sea cliffs on the southern edge of the island. Since the end of the last ice age, the land of Iceland has risen due to isostatic movement (as weight from the melting ice caps reduced) and the sea level has therefore fallen relative to the land. The outcome is a marked line of relict cliffs, many of which have waterfalls cascading down them (see the next photograph, and note the steep cliffs). Seljalandfoss is one of the more spectacular. As the photographs show, it is possible to walk behind the falls, with care. The previous photo also shows the flat former coastline, and a braided river bed, stretching several kilometres to the current shoreline. Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

A line of relict cliffs to the west of Seljalandfoss Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

Skogafoss Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

Skogafoss Skogafoss waterfall lies to the south of the Eyjafjallajokull ice sheet, and consists of some its meltwater. The falls are 62 m high. There is a series of steps to the top of the falls where there is a viewing platform, or you can walk to the foot of the falls and look up at the nesting sites of many fulmars. The base of the falls is shrouded in mist. Perhaps you can find the chest of gold hidden behind the falls, as stated by Icelandic legend? Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

Skogafoss: the start of a hike across country and glacier to Porsmork Hodder & Stoughton © 2016

This resource is part of Geography Review, a magazine written for A- level students by subject experts. To subscribe to the full magazine go to:  http://www.hoddereducation.co.uk/geographyreview Hodder & Stoughton © 2016