Ljósufjöll

View from Eldborg crater to the mountain range of Ljósufjöll

Berserkjahraun

The Ljósufjöll is a volcanic mountain range in the west of Iceland.

He is off the actual rift zone in a so-called flank zone on Snæfellsnes.

You have here the Ljósufjöll in the strict sense, the actual mountain and central volcano, different from the Ljósufjöll in a broader sense, the surrounding volcano system.

The mountain range of Ljósufjöll

The mountain range is located in the eastern part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula. It is the same around the central volcano of the system.

The name means light in Icelandic mountains and due to the fact that the total of six peaks above consist of Liparitgestein and therefore well lit, similar to that of the neighboring mountains Esja Móskarðshnúkar or the mountains to Landmannalaugar, about the Brennisteinsalda. They can be seen on some days of Reykjavík.

The actual Ljósufjöll, that is, the central volcano with the magma chamber lying west of the Hnappadalur and reach a height of 1063 m. This makes them the highest mountains on the peninsula Snæfellsnes after Snæfellsjökul. It is a series of five wedge-shaped peaks in northwest -southeast direction, which direction north, another peak is upstream.

You can climb the mountain from the south side.

The volcanic system of Ljósufjöll

This volcanic system has considerable proportions, as we know today. It ranges from Berserkjahraun in the north of Snæfellsnes Stykkishólmur on the actual Ljósufjöll and the entire Hnappadalur up to the leatherback neighboring Grábrókkratern and expands so about 90 km and is one of the longest in Iceland.

The volcanic system is still considered active since the last eruption took place in Hnappadalur about 1000 years ago.

The Hnappadalur

See Also: Main article Hnappadalur

The bowl-shaped Hnappadalur is located about 40 km north of Borgarnes on the Snæfellsnes peninsula, at the foot of the central volcano of Ljósufjöll. There are numerous cinder cones, including the welding cinder cone Eldborg.

The Grábrókkrater

There are three craters, the main crater is called Stóra - Grábrók, the smaller Litla - Grábrók. A third crater named Grábrókarfell located to the west of them. They border directly to the north of Hringvegur Borgarnes in Norðurárdalur. The village and the Bifrost University lie at her feet in the lava field created by them.

Numerous hiking trails can be found on the crater and its surroundings, as well as the lovely Hreðavatn.