Raving Ravens

Amazing Northern Lights Video from Sisimut, Greenland

Hans Christian Sivertsen, a student in Sisimut in Greenland caught these fantastic images of the northern lights dancing above his campus in Sisimut in Greenland on the night of January 25th. Resulting from a geomagnetic solar storm the northern lights were exceptional that night, and Hans Christian was ready to capture it with his camera from the balcony on his campus.

 

Hans Christian used a DSLR camera and created this awesome time-lapse video from it. 

Hjörtur

 

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Just released: Game of Thrones in Iceland

Game of Thrones was shot partly in Iceland for season two, that starts airing April 1st. The world North of the Wall is shot in Iceland and for about three weeks the film crew was in various locations in South-Iceland shooting. And yours truly was part of the cast :)

HBO has released the first video with footage from the set in Iceland:

 

The snow, frost, wind and the winter is all very real in Game of Thrones this season. Nothing had to be faked. I'll be sharing more as it is released. And some real trucks needed to be used to get to and from location, like the huge Man truck you see in the picture above.

Hjörtur

ps. I've been nominated for the ShortyAwards for travel, so if you like my posts, my tweets and my pics, your support would be higly appreciated: ShortyAwards - Hjörtur

A day at the beach in Iceland

Everybody loves a day at the beach, right? Well, a beach is not always the same as a beach. Today is #FriFotos and SAND is the theme, so I decided to pick a few pictures of sand and beaches in Iceland to share with you :)

Here's what a day at the beach looks like in Iceland:

The sand is black and the sea is frozen. No swimming on this beach, my friend. At least not in February :)

A Viking ship waiting outside a beach in the Westfjords of Iceland.

 

The Icelandic "Baywatch" to the rescue! 

 

Since I was a kid I've heard the 1.000 year old legend about the Viking that was supposed to be buried here in the sand bank by the beach. It wasn't until 4 years ago that someone took a look - and found a Viking chief buried in his ship with his Viking sword!

 

The famous Reynisdrangar seen from the black beach in Vik, South Iceland!

 

I just love this place. Again, this is Arnarfjordur in the Westfjords. The view is from the old farm Bakki and inwards the fjord over the golden beach.

Hjörtur

ps. I've been nominated for the ShortyAwards for travel, so if you like my posts, my tweets and my pics, your support would be higly appreciated: ShortyAwards - Hjörtur

Monster caught on video in an Icelandic lagoon

This video of what looks like a monster worm was made at Lagarfljót, where legends say a giant worm or a monster of some sort lives. I've never seen it myself, but I remember when I was in school for a few weeks in Hallormstadarskogur, a forrest village by the lagoon, I used to stare out to the lagoon in the hope I'd see the worm monster. 

A few years back I took my kids sailing there and we visited the captain in the bridge. We watched the monitors to see if there was anything unusual and at one moment, there was something on the screen that was very much out of the ordinary, a little bit like a monster. It never surfaced though so we couldn't tell for sure if it was the monster or not.

This week someone finally managed to get a video of the alleged monster. You can view the video here:

 

The video is no fake, however it is debated what it is we see there. Looks a lot like a giant worm!

What do you think? Could it be the worm monster?

Hjörtur

 

ps. I've been nominated for the ShortyAwards for travel, so if you like my posts, my tweets and my pics, your support would be higly appreciated: ShortyAwards - Hjörtur

Winter Driving in Iceland

Driving in the winter time can be tricky in Iceland. We've had a lot of snow in the last few weeks and roads have been closing down frequently due to snow and storms. 

I've been travelling quite a bit in the last few days as I've been teaching my course in Social media marketing in both Isafjordur in the Westfjords and Kirkjubæjarklaustur in the east. The roads were icy, I caught storms and on the mountains there was a lot of snow on the road. But I was well prepared and really enjoyed my trips. Though I was driving in the dark all the time I used the opportunity to take a few photos of the northern lights and the beautiful winter scenery :)

The right vehicle
I recommend you rent a 4x4 with studded tires and take into account that you might need a few extra hours for the trip. 

Be prepared
For safety you should also make sure you have extra food and drinks in the car and a warm blanket in case you get stuck somewhere. Have a full tank of fuel and let someone know at the hotel or where you're staying when you expect to arrive, so arrangements can be made if you don't show up. You can call 1777 for updates on traffic conditions before you head out into the country side in winter time. 

 

The sign in Seltún, Krýsuvík where you can find geothermal springs. The wind was over 20 m/sec, snow and very little visibility.

An angelica standing in the ice by Seljalandsfoss waterfall.

 

A fishing boat in safe harbour in Súðavík, in the Westfjords.

 

Better not drive too fast on the icy roads. This one had lost control and rolled over in the snow. Luckily, no one got injured.

 

A charming old farm in Hestfjordur in the Westfjords with the northern lights dancing above it.

 

A picture can never do the northern lights justice, but they simply filled the sky right above me, and were reflected below on the semi-frozen sea. It was impossible to capture the scale of it, but here is a glimpse. To realize the size of it, the mountain in the picture is about 3-400 meter high.

 

The northern lights were so bright that you could have driven with the headlights off. I don't recommend it though ;)

Have a nice trip! :)

Hjörtur

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The sun is back after two months behind the mountains

In the Westfjords of Iceland the mountains are high and the fjords are narrow, meaning that even though the sun does come up during the shortest days, it never gets high enough to peak above the mountains and light up the towns.

In Isafjordur, which is just below the Arctic circle, the sun is gone for about 2 months but today, January 25th, is a big day. This is the first day the sun is visible again in Isafjordur and that is a day to celebrate. Eythor Jovinsson in Vestfirzka verslunin in Isafjordur got this picture of the moment the sun appeared again in Isafjordur:

 

 

Looks like the people of Isafjordur will have to wait an additional day or two to see the sun...

Hjörtur

 

Update Jan. 26th: Eythor Jovinsson sent me this update of his second attempt to see the sun this year:

 

Oh, well. The year isn't over yet...

 

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Arnarfjörður - My Happy Place!

 This post is inspired by today's FriFotos theme on twitter, Happy Place.

 

Standing by a Viking grave overlooking the Arnarfjörður fjord in the west fjords of Iceland, my happy place!

The first years of my life I lived in less then optimal conditions in downtown Reykjavik with my mom. There was drug abuse and alcohol. When I was six years old, my mother was offered a summer job in fishing village in the Westfjords, in the town of Bildudalur located in the beautiful Arnarfjörður - Eagle fjord. 

It was a complete change in my life in many ways. Not only was it the change my mom needed to wake up and quit using drugs and alcohol, I was also entering a fascinating fjord with beautiful mountains and white beaches, charming old houses and tales of adventure, Vikings and sea monsters.

 

Enjoying a swim in a pool that just like pops up by the road, filled with warm water from a hot spring just a few meters away, with the midnight sun in the mouth of the fjord. The perfect way to end the day.

 

I loved growing up there with the freedom of exploring the fjord, riding my bicycle 20 km in fjord to be able to swim in a geothermal swimming pool that just is there for anyone to enjoy, or ride my bike 8 km in the other direction to run on the white sandy beach and swim in the freezing ocean. Every fall I would run the mountains herding sheep and even after I went away at the age of 15 I'd come back for the sheep.

 

 

The home of the free!

For a few years I didn't come back, I was busy with work, family and university in Reykjavik. After I moved to charming, but very flat Denmark I started to crave for the mountains, the smell of arctit timian and blueberries, the fresh sea breeze and the freedom of being in the middle of no-mans land. I tried to get to Iceland and hike in the Westfjords once every year.

After I moved back to Iceland I worked on started a hiking festival, offering a week of guided hikes mixed up with cultural events, plays, poetry, food and fairytales, all for free. It never became big, but very much appreciated by all those participated. And I got to know the environment in a new way digging deeper into the stories of Vikings, sea monsters, witch trials and strange people who had lived in the area.

The sand beach in Hvesta, Arnarfjörður.

 

For one thousand years there have been stories about the Vikings that lived there, fought there and died there. Stories of where they fought and where they were buried. Archeological finds have been confirming the stories that were thought to be myth and folklore. Research have even shown that the wildlife in the see in the fjord is unique, with species that are only found in the fjord. And a sea monster institute has been opened. Those stories aren't just fairytales...

 

Yes, this is a real sign by the road!

 

This is a place of amazing natural beauty, rich history and fascinating mythology. This is my happy place!

Hjörtur

 

ps. Someone wrote "Happiness is only real when shared", so I share. This summer I'm planning a 4 day Viking hike, sailing around the fjord in a Viking ship exploring the amazing stories of Vikings and sea monsters, magic and mythology. Wan't to know more? Stay tuned!

 

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Snowboarding on Icebergs in Greenland

Snowboarding in Greenland is about as cool as you can get. Four friends, Teerje Haakonsen, Nicolas Müller, Mads Jonsson and Kevin Pearce, went to Tasilaq on the east coast of Greenland to try out snowboarding on some icebergs. With the transport being snow mobiles and dog sledges, they got out to try some very different snowboarding slopes :)

 

The video is made by Nathan Avila.

Hjörtur

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Björk: Scientific Music. That Will Kill You. Slowly.

Björk, the Icelandic singer and musician which everyone loves so much. Or do they? 

There's no doubt she is Iceland's most famous person and loved by many, but her innovative, experimental, scientific music isn't for everyone to like. So this is the take on Björk's biophilia concert in Áramótaskaupið - a comedy show that is aired on New Years Eve every year in Iceland mocking the major events of the year. Enjoy:

 

Hjörtur

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The Death Rail - Urban Skiing in Iceland

Yep, I said Urban Skiing!  That is skiing in urban settings, as you'd maybe already guessed. Two chaps, Nick Martini and Rory Bushfield visited Iceland and with a full size payloader accompanying them they could create the most awesome tracks for urban skiing in Akureyri, the capital of Northern Iceland. 

Starting in a school where they said they found some excellent rails (or maybe just some excellent looking audience... ) they got bolder as it kept snowing, finally going for the 35 feet drop!

Check out their cool video:

 

Hjörtur

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