Diving in Iceland

Back from the land of Ice & Fire… or myths and magical creatures: Iceland!

I’ve just returned from a short trip to Iceland. It’s been on my bucket list for a long time—mainly for the diving—but I kept putting it off. I finally decided to go this week!

I did the obligatory “Golden Circle” tour, which almost everyone takes when visiting Iceland. I visited the site where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet (well, sort of), the Golden Waterfall (where the tour gets its name), and the Geysir hot springs—steaming at 100°C, with some erupting in spectacular shows every few minutes. I also saw the Kerið crater, a dormant volcano now filled with a lake.

After that, I relaxed at the Blue Lagoon Spa—the most visited attraction in Iceland!

Diving!

It was freezing cold—between 2°C and 4°C! I dived in Silfra, the famous fissure that lies directly between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. Although the actual plates are separated by a lava field about 6 km wide, the fissure marks the center between them. The water is some of the clearest in the world, with visibility over 100 meters! It’s glacial meltwater that has been filtering through porous lava rock underground for 30 to 100 years before reaching the fissure from the nearby glacier.

I also dived in a lake located between the two tectonic plates. The lakebed is made of lava rock, with fissures formed by seismic activity. Glacial water also filters into these fissures, making for a fascinating dive. Visibility in the lake is lower than in the fissure, and the water is slightly warmer—ranging from 2–4°C in the fissures to around 8°C in the lake.

Overall, it was a short but incredibly interesting and unique trip to Iceland!

Below are a few links to my diving videos in Iceland: