The Great
Geysir area
Please read and follow
instructions regarding
your safety and the Geysir area
nature and environment
The Geysir Thermal Area
is a unique place
Mount Laugarfell
1 Do take utmost care when
Geysers are very rare
phenomena, and the spectacular
Háihver
beauty of their eruptions
can easily be destroyed
2 Respect fences and barriers – they
Help us preserve the Geysir
VIEWPOINT
geothermal area for the enjoyment
of future generations of visitors
4 Do not throw rocks, coins or litter
walking in the area
are there for your own safety
3 Do not break or collect sinter
(sediments)!
into the geysers – it will not trigger
eruptions!
KINGS’ STONES
Chr. IX (1874)
5 Never stand on the edges of the
Fr. VII (1907)
hot springs
Chr. X (1922)
Konungshver
Móri
er
ður
ir
Vigdísarhver
Litli Strokkur
Map
inside
Óþerrishola
Litli Geysir
6 Remember that the water is
80-90°C (176-194°F)
– it will badly burn you!
Blesi
Fata
7 Don’t test the water’s temperature
with your hand, even though it
looks cold
STROKKUR
THE GREAT GEYSIR
8 The nearest hospital is 62 km
away
E
NORTHERN ENTRANCE
car park
To
Gu
llfo
ss
>
To Haukadalur Forest & Church >
River Beiná
Map &
Guided
tour
ug
Mount Laugarfell
Háihver
VIEWPOINT
KINGS’ STONES
Chr. IX (1874)
Fr. VII (1907)
Chr. X (1922)
Konungshver
<
ca
Ullarhver
To
rp
ar
Re
yk
jav
Móri
Sísjóðandi
ík
k
Þy
kk
Sóði
v
v
uh
er
ir
Blesi
Óþerrishola
Fata
Vigdísarhver
Litli Strokkur
Litli Geysir
STROKKUR
THE GREAT GEYSIR
Smiður
MAIN ENTRANCE
THE GEYSIR CENTER
car park
NORTHERN ENTRANCE
HOTEL GEYSIR
car park
To
Start –
Main
entrance
Gu
llfo
When entering the area it´s highly
recommended that visitors read
information signposts and pay special
attention to warnings regarding the hot
springs and mud pots. The area changes
frequently and therefore it´s important to
follow walking paths and take utmost care
when exploring the area.
When entering the area through the
main entrance on your left hand side are
several small hot springs and mud pots
which have been named Þykkvuhverir
meaning the bulging or thick hot springs.
Þykkvuhverir is a collection of small pots
either bubbling with water or mud. Only
ss
>
a very few of these small pots have been
given names but the best known is Smiður
which derives it´s name „the carpenter“
from the fact that is was a carpenter
working in Geysir who digged it up. Liquid
soap infusion may result in an eruption as
high as 5 meters.
South of Smiður is the hot spring Sóði or
„the slob“ which used to erupt when given
some soap but after the eruption of 2000
in the south of Iceland, it now only erupts
on an intermittent basis. The hot water in
the eruptions is often contaminated with
mud and stone and is, therefore, brownish
in color.
To Haukadalur
River Be
Sísjóðandi or the „ever boiling“ is below
Þykkvuhverir and as it’s name clearly
describes is forever boiling, but does not
erupt due to a niche almost closing the
spring´s pipe. It was used for laundry
washing until the middle of the last
century. If the laundry was left too long
in the hot water it became crisp due to
the preciptiation in the thermal water.
It’s probably at one of these laundry hot
springs that the idea of using soap to
trigger an eruption was borne.
Not far from Síðsjóðandi is Móri, a red
brown bubbling mud pot named after a
ghost.
TONES
(1907)
Chr. X (1922)
Above Móri is Vigdísarhver named after
a local woman and Little Strokkur lies
nearby which could, in days gone by, erupt
up to 5 meters high.
Little Geysir lies by the walking path and is
an inactive hot spring.
To Haukadalur Forest & Church >
River Beiná
The most active hot spring in the area
and probably the most popular – at least
most photographed is Strokkur which
erupts every 5-10 minutes and up to 20-35
meters high. It seems that nothing disrupts
this active hot spring which started to
erupt again in 1789 after a long break. In
a big earthquake in 1896 it´s activeness
declined greatly but in 1963 it was
reawakened by drilling a 40 meter long
hole into it´s pipe down to the bottom.
After this „help“ Strokkur or the Churn has
been erupting every day, all year round.
Beneath Strokkur is one of the most
interesting hot springs Óþerrishola or
„rainy weather pit“ which becomes active
just prior to wet weather. This is because
the pressure of the water column in the
geysers decreases as the atmospheric
pressure decreases. If the temperature of
the hot water in the pipe is near to boiling
point the drop in the pressure results in
overheating in the pipe and it starts to
erupt. The hot spring was used as a natural
barometer in the old days for the farmers
in the area.
A green field above Óþerrishola is called
the King´s field as it was used for the tents
of the Danish King visiting in 1874.
Fata or the bucket is a inactive hot spring
which was fomerly used as a teaser for
guests waiting impatiently for a Great
Geyser eruption, by putting soap into it
resulting in quick and 8-10 meters high
eruptions.
Many visitors consider Blesi the most
beautiful hot spring in the area. The name
means blaze and is common for a horse
with a light colored stripe between its eyes
on its forehead. Blesi has 2 active pots
divided by the aforementioned blaze. One
pot is producing a clear hot water from it´s
pipe. The hot water runs over the blaze
between the pots and when ending in the
other one it is luke warm and light blue
from the colloidal silica in the water.
Above Blesi is Konungshver or the „King´s
hot spring“ which gets its name from the
visit of the Danish King Christian IX to
Iceland in 1874. The story told was that the
water was also used to make hot drinks
such as coffee as the smell and taste was
less than from other springs.
In the fields of Laugarfell are 3 natural
stones to which can be seen the signatures
of the Danish Kings after their official visits
when Iceland was still a Danish colony:
Kings Christian IX in 1874, Frederik VII in
1907 and Christian X in 1921. The stones
were also used as a seat when waiting for
the Great Geyser to erupt.
Geysir means the spouter and is the most
famous one in the area. The maximum
height of eruptions used to be 70-80
meters but now seldom exceeds 30-50
meters. In 1935 and then repeated 1982,
eruptions were made easier by drilling
in the bowl of the geyser which made it
possible to lower the water level when an
eruption was made by putting 40 liters of
soap into it. Shortly after the 40 liters of
soap have been melted in the hot water
the eruptions start with the hot water
coming up like explosions, each reaching
10-20 meters height and lasting for 10-15
minutes. Suddenly this stops and some
time may pass until the next phase starts
which is the main eruption which can last
from 5 to 10 minutes and reach as high
as 70 meters. On a good summer’s day
visitors can expect the old geyser to erupt
slightly but only to a maximum of 5 to 10
meters high.
<
Helpful
information
Mount Laugarfell
Háihver
Emergency
Number
112
Toilets
are located
in
The Geysir
Center
Shops &
Restaurants
VIEWPOINT
are in
STONES
The KINGS’
Geysir
Center
Chr. IX (1874)
Fr. VII (1907)
Chr. X (1922)
Konungshver
Ullarhver
To
rp
ar
Re
yk
jav
ík
Móri
Sísjóðandi
k
HE GEYSIR CENTER
Þy
kk
vu
e
hv
ri
r
MAIN ENTRANCE
car park
Fata
Vigdísarhver
Litli Strokkur
For
more
Sóði
information,
go to
VISITGEYSIR.IS
Smiður
Blesi
Óþerrishola
Litli Geysir
STROKKUR
Contact us,
Complain
or thank us at
[email protected]
HOTEL GEYSIR
THE GREAT GEYSIR
NORTHERN ENTRANCE
car park
To
Gu
llfo
ss
>
LANDEIGENDAFÉLAG GEYSIS
THE GREAT GEYSIR AREA
HAUKADALUR
ICELAND
To Haukadalur Forest & Church >
River Beiná