Today on the National Geographic Endurance we took a very special after-dinner excursion to the Arctic Henge in Raufarhofn, one of the most remote villages in Iceland. The Arctic Henge is Iceland’s largest open-air art piece. It consists of large stone arches intentionally placed to line up with the midnight sun, acting like a huge sundial. It celebrates Icelandic culture with allusions to mythology and folklore. It is the brainchild of Erlingur Thoroddsen and is still under construction.
7/16/2024
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National Geographic Endurance
Heimaey, Iceland
We began the day with a circumnavigation of Surtsey, the newest island in the Vestmannaeyjar Archipelago. This small desolate volcano captured the world’s attention in 1963 when it erupted without warning from the seafloor off the southeast coast of Iceland. From there we sailed north to Heimaey, or “home island”, where we disembarked and toured the area via coach or on foot. The more energetic folks climbed Eldfell, the volcano that nearly consumed the town and forced its evacuation during an eruption in 1973. Regardless of our choice of activities, all guests visited the Eldheimar Museum that records, preserves, and brilliantly commemorates the eruption that prompted the evacuation and destroyed nearly half of the homes in town. The devastation took one life but did have a significant and positive long-term impact. By fighting the lava flow with cooling water cannons, the townspeople halted its advance and improved the safety of the harbor.