Laufskalavarda Lava Rock Hill and Cairns in Myrdalssandur in Iceland
by Alexios Ntounas
Title
Laufskalavarda Lava Rock Hill and Cairns in Myrdalssandur in Iceland
Artist
Alexios Ntounas
Medium
Photograph
Description
Laufskalavarda (or Laufskálavarða) is a small lava rock hill located on the east side of Mýrdalssandur black sand area between the Hólmsá and Skálmá Rivers. You will find it to the east of the village of Vik on Iceland’s south east coast. The hill is surrounded by small cairns which look like miniature mountains! Of course they are all man made.
According to tradition there was a farm in that location called Laufskalar but it was destroyed in the year 894 BC on the first eruption of the volcano Katla. The lava mound Laufskálavarða (Laufskalar cairn) was named after the farm. Travellers crossing the desert of Mýrdalssandur for the first time would pile stones up to make a cairn, which was supposed to bring them good fortune on the journey. Recently the Public Roads Administration has moved a supply of stones to the site to enable modern travellers to continue this tradition.
There are other cairns throughout Iceland as well. For centuries, locals used these stacks of stones as navigational markers. Early settlers built them to mark their trails or other important sites. As we read on a sign we shouldn’t create any more crains.
If the weather is clear you can see Mýrdalsjökull glacier and Katla volcano across Mýrdalssandur in the background as you can see in this photo. During our visit there, although there were heavy clouds in the sky and a lot of wind, we had a clear view of the glacier. Since there is a parking spot and a WC this is a location you can stop and spend some time. Walk through the cairns and up to the top of the lava rock to enjoy this mysterious and unique location!
Uploaded
December 18th, 2021
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