Snorkeling in a geothermal lake in Iceland - Kleifarvatn
Probably not many of you think of diving when it comes to visiting Iceland, a sub arctic island with no tropical fish or coral reefs. However you’ll be surprised by what the country has to offer for divers and snorklers. One of the best known site is probably Silfra, a fissure between the two continents (Eurasia and North America) filled with crystal clear glacial water.
Silfra has become widely famed for its unrivalled clarity, offering one of the best fresh water dives in the world. As a result other natural diving pearls often go unnoticed. One of them is Kleifarvatn, a geothermal lake nestled between steep lava rocks and black sandy beaches. Let me tell you all about it!
Kleifarvatn – Geothermal Lake
Kleifarvatn is the largest lake in Reykjanes peninsula and sits on a very active volcanic area. There is no water flowing in or out of the lake, so the water level solely depends on ground water. Miraculously, during a silent earthquake in 2000 the a fissure opened on the bottom draining the lake causing a 4 meter drop in the water level. Fortunately the crack has mostly filled up naturally the past years so the lake is slowly returning to its former size.
Due to the lake’s position over a highly active area (with over 2000 small earthquakes a month), you’ll witness something you rarely see during your regular dive in the tropics: nothing less than underwater hot springs!
This is something we had to see for ourselves, so we teamed up with Dive.is, Iceland’s first and leading dive center, with years of experience diving/snorkeling in Kleifarvatn. We met with our guide Louis and a group of five that were joining the tour. The location of Kleifarvatn is surprisingly near Reykjavík (a mere 30 min drive), but nevertheless it feels like you’re in the middle of nowhere. It was a beautiful day, the air was perfectly still and so was the lake.
An unexpected guest!
We realised that we had the lake all to ourselves, not another human being in sight. This kind of seclusion is something you won’t encounter in Silfra, which occupies up to 60 tours a day.
We drove around the lake and found a nice spot on a black sand beach to park and gear up. In the mountains above we encountered a rare sight; the arctic fox in his beautiful white coat. This is the first time we’ve seen one in the wild. Fun fact: the arctic fox is the only mammal native to Iceland!
Geothermal but yet so cold!
The lake is about 3-4 degrees celcius at this time of year, so dry suits are recommended and are actually used for most dives and snorkeling tours in Iceland. It was a bit different wearing a bulky dry suit for the first time, but their superior thermal insulation is indisputable. Our guide made sure everyone was ready to get into the water and made a quick safety briefing and gave us some practical tips, like how to release air from the dry suit if you want to free dive, or how to get rid of water in your mask etc.
Underwater hot springs
Getting in the cold water felt refreshing and instantly woke us up. The visibility was pretty decent, about 10-15 meters. We didn’t spot any fish (it mostly inhabits arctic char and brown trout), but it’s not the fish you’re after here, it’s the underwater landscape. As soon as 10 m off the shore we started to see the sandy bottom change to something we’ve never seen before: majestic underwater hot springs surrounded by colourful sulfide deposits. Bubbles filled with various volcanic gases were streaming up from hydrothermal vents all around us. It was so strange to see the lake so calm on the surface but everything steaming below!
To get closer to the steaming vents we emptied the air from our dry suits and free-dived to the bottom. We could see the steaming water from below instantly mixing with the cold water, creating a blurry effect on your vision. We could also hear and feel the vibrations from the ground below.
Breakfast buffét – The perfect final touch
This was such a unique and different experience from what we’ve seen underwater before. During the tour we got the freedom to explore on our own, giving the tour a relaxed atmosphere. We stayed about 40-60 min in the water and never did we get uncomfortably cold, thanks to high quality dry suits.
After getting out of the water our amazing guide prepared a nice buffet for us on the black sand beach. Having a tasty vegan soup with freshly baked bread, cookies and hot cocoa, really gives the tour a final perfect touch.
Seltún – Geothermal area
On the way back we visited Seltún, a geothermal area just 3 min from the lake. Here you’ll see many mudpots, fumaroles and colorful sediments. There is a nice boardwalk through the area and we recommend walking all the way up the hill to get a nice view over Reykjanes peninsula.
The perfect day trip from Reykjavik
Snorkeling in Kleifarvatn, with its geothermal activity and the amazing landscape of Reykjanes peninsula, makes for the perfect day tour from Reykjavik. You don’t have to be experienced or certified in any way to snorkel in the lake. Our experience and service from Louis at dive.is was nothing short of exceptional!
기타 흥미로운 블로그
요쿨살론부터 비크까지, 꽃보다 청춘 5화
드디어 하늘씨과 쓰리스톤즈가 합류했는데요! 설원을 달리는 모습에 저도 아이슬란드가 엄청 그리워졌답니다. 빙하와 빛나는 요쿨살론 첫번째로 향한 요쿨살론(Jokulsarlon)은 아이슬란드의 대표적인 명소 중 하나랍니다. 영어로 Glacier lagoon 이라고도 하는데요. 방송에 나온 것처럼 눈 앞에 보이는 빙하는 빙하수가 흘러서 녹았다 얼었다를더 보기스코가포스 폭포부터 오로라까지, 꽃보다청춘 4화를 따라서
여행 5일째, 포스톤즈가 처음으로 향한 곳은 아이슬란드 남부에 있는 스코가포스 폭포(skogasfoss)입니다. 아이슬란드 남부의 대표적인 폭포 중 하나에요. 방송에서는 들르지 않았지만 스코가포스 거의 바로 옆에 위치한 셀리야란드스포스(seljalandsfoss) 폭포와 함께 같이 들르곤 한답니다. 스코가포스 폭포는 폭포의 물줄기 끝까지 올라갈 수 있단더 보기꽃청춘을 따라서
요즘 인기리에 방영되고 있는 꽃보다 청춘 아이슬란드편! 저도 매주 빼놓지 않고 시청하고 있습니다. 많은 분들께서 포스톤즈의 발랄한 매력과 아이슬란드의 놀라운 경치에 빠져드셨을 것 같습니다! 이번에는 꽃보다 청춘을 따라서 아이슬란드를 한번 가보도록 해요! 사실 아이슬란드가 한국에서 그렇게 가기 쉬운 나라는 아닙니다. 거리도 멀고 항공권도 비싸고! 우더 보기
아이슬란드 최대의 여행 마켓플레이스를 전화에 다운로드하여 전체 여행을 한 곳에서 관리하세요
전화 카메라로 이 QR 코드를 스캔하고 표시되는 링크를 누르면 아이슬란드 최대의 여행 마켓플레이스를 주머니에 넣을 수 있답니다. 다운로드 링크가 포함된 SMS 또는 이메일을 받으려면 전화번호 또는 이메일 주소를 추가하세요.