Popular Scuba Diving destinations conjure up images of tropical islands, sandy beaches, coral reefs and colorful fish. Iceland on the other hand isn’t exactly what fits this description or springs to mind, but, Surprise! Surprise! it’s home to one of the Top 10 Dive Sites Worldwide and a Must Dive Destination.
* Photo by r.gielen on flickr
Iceland is located in the North Atlantic Ocean just south of the Arctic Circle, the freezing cold waters alone wouldn’t scream Scuba Diving! But the uniqueness of it’s dive sites definitely do. Known as the land of glaciers, active volcanoes, geysers and hot springs, Iceland actually sits on the joint where two continental plates meet. This crack in the face of the earth between the Eurasian and American tectonic plates is Silfra, rated a World Top 10 Dive Site by some of the most respected dive magazines worldwide.
Silfra is as unique as you’ll get for a dive site. Located in the beautiful National Park Thingvellir an hours drive from Reykjavik, the Silfra Ravine is a crack in the earth signifying two massive landmasses and is filled with the clearest water you could possibly see. With visibility said to be 100m+ it feels like you’re floating on air! The near perfect visibility is a result of the melting water from a glacier about 50km away that has traveled through the lava fields for many years before coming out at the north end of Thingvellir lake through underground wells and the temperature of the water which to say the least is very cold at around 2°C – 4°C all year round. * Photo by r.gielen on flickr
Silfra offers open water diving, caving and deep diving, with a depth of about 40 meters (131 feet) open water and 60 meters (197 feet) inside a cave. Even deep dives feel unreal in these pristine waters. Silfra never freezes over because of the current which pushes you along the ravine as you dive this site. However if you dive at Silfra don’t expect to see fancy fish or marine life, the most you may see are tiny fish darting into the rocks.
* images source www.adventures.is Click for more
Another unique dive site Iceland has on offer among many others is Strýtan in Akureyri. Strýtan is the world’s biggest geothermal chimney. Build up from a hot water spring on the bottom of 70 meters, rising like a tower up to about 15 meters depth, the Strýtan chimney is unique as it is the only geothermal chimney in the World that is in dive able conditions.
The warm water rising through this one of a kind limestone chimney draws marine life and schools of dozens or even hundreds of cod can be seen swimming up and down the length of the chimney.
So, the next time you’re thinking of a dive experience of a lifetime Iceland is the way to go. That said, you have to be up for some dry suit diving in extreme conditions strong currents, cold waters and at Silfra you can expect small earthquakes which are said to shake the surface about 300 times on any given day!!
* image source www.dive.is
I have heard a lot about Silfra in Þingvellir National Park. I would like to visit the place once.