Today I visited numerous sites with natural rock formations and water rushing through the rocks. We first visited a spot that resembled a creek with a spring running through it and lava-formed rocks all around. We then went to another place with rocks and a beach, where we saw some seals as well as whale bones. The final place we went was a cliff trail where we hiked around and saw the Atlantic ocean crashing into the cliffs and shooting up water.
This landscape was different from what we have seen before since we haven’t really seen many places where the ocean directly meets the island. So far, we’ve seen springs from glacier runoffs, but nothing like these beaches. Although they’re not your typical Florida beach, they’re rocky.
The first time I came to Iceland, I saw a couple of these landscapes, like the cliffs where the ocean crashes into them and the spring running through lava-formed structures. Now, I come to Iceland in the summer, so again, it’s a very different climate to experience these. We had 50 mph winds, which were very strong and blew snow at our faces with speed.
This scenery has shown me the real power of nature and to understand that it’s hard to harvest and utilize the force of nature. Those winds were extreme and I can only imagine a turbine in those conditions trying to survive the snow and frost. It’s clear to see how the crashing ocean and strong winds have shaped the country of Iceland. Most of the island is covered in ice and snow right now but it’s much more green in the summer. The force of nature in Iceland can change in an instant, one second you can have sunshine and no clouds. The next minute you could be getting pelted from snow in 40+ mph winds, but that’s the fun thing about Iceland, the weather keeps you on your toes.
Swanson School of Engineering 