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The Dividing Gap

Last but never the least, another geotourism opportunity I had taken during my trip was snorkelling in the Silfra Fissure. Silfra Fissure is a part of the Þingvellir National Park, which forms the Golden Circle alongside Gullfoss and Geysir. It is an underwater rift formed between the tectonic plates of North America and Eurasia. In plain words, it is a split in the continental earth plates, making anyone diving the area look as if they are touching the two continents at once. We were informed that the plates were moving apart, at the rate of 2cm each year.



My tour was guided by Adventure Viking, a local tour company which normally brings visitors around the fissure, after explaining to them the essentials of survival while diving or snorkelling. Our guide, Maria, did a splendid job running through the necessary information we needed to know before getting into the water. This included the route, ways of staying afloat, ways to use the equipment and more.

As I did not have a diving license, I opted for snorkelling, but took the wet suit so I could get underwater rather than just staying on the surface. The water temperature remains constant all year long at 1-2 Degree Celsius. During the cool summer of 10+ Degree Celsius, the water temperature posed a huge contrast. The wet suit was difficult to put on as it fitted like a glove, and Maria instructed us to never stop moving our body in the water so that the water that surrounds our skins can be heated up and function as an insulator. Here’s a photo of me looking like a seal, before the big adventure:


Photo taken by Ler Wei Jun



The water was freezing. I did not dare to stop moving, and to dip my face in the water in order to observe the rift. Through my goggles, the water was crystal clear and I could see every single rock at the bottom; no fish, but a mysterious blue light reflecting off the rocky surfaces, which Maria explained as the outcome of light reflection through the calm water. (By the way, the water was clear and slightly sweet.) I followed Maria and snorkelled through the rift- a long crack that is mostly straight except for a few turns. It would have looked like a hairline fracture from the sky.

I took note of Maria’s professional guiding skills, when ‘emergencies’ occurred: when my blowpipe fell off and when one of the visitors following the tour panicked in fear of depths. He grabbed onto the nearby rocks, but was instantly halted by Maria as it was a golden rule to not land on or touch the rocks in the fissure- an evidence that they hold high ethics in caring for the nature. Maria calmed the guy down in no time, and led him through the course smoothly. What was I doing then? Just enjoying myself with the view while struggling to survive the arctic water. However, in a discussion after the session, we agreed that the incident had clearly shown the Icelanders’ massive respect for nature and incredible work ethics in taking care of the environment.

Photo taken by Maria @ Adventure Vikings



By,
Euan Thum.

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