Oaklands School Geography Department - Iceland Trip 2019
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Oaklands School Geography Department - Iceland Trip 2019 Skogafoss Waterfall Name: __________________________________ Tutor Group: _____________________________ 1 Part A: Where is Iceland? Iceland is an island formerly belonging to Denmark. It has been a Republic since 1944 and is found in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean. We will fly to Keflavik and stay near Hvolsvollur in the SW of the island. The map above is an enlargement of the box drawn on the map of Iceland below left. Map area on next Clearly, we are only visiting a small section of page the island, but in this small area you will be blown away by what you will see. Perhaps your visit to the island will prompt you to come back to explore further in the future? 2 Part B: History of Iceland Iceland is only about 20 million years old! It was formed by a series of volcanic eruptions at the Mid- Atlantic ridge. In fact the plume of magma called the Iceland ‘Hot Spot’ is responsible for its continued existence and almost continuous volcanic activity. Exact dates for first human occupancy is uncertain, but the accepted date is 874 for the first permanent settlers from Scandinavia. They settled near Reykjavik (which means ‘smokey cove’ – due to the Geothermal heat). Settlers continued to come from Norway, Scotland and Ireland. The first parliament was held at Thingvellir (pictured right), where chieftains met and agreed laws and rules for the country. The country converted to Christianity in the 11th Century, but pagan worship was tolerated if it was in secret. Civil war followed and the end result was that Iceland accepted Norwegian sovereignty and were ruled by the Norwegian kings. When King Olav IV died this ended the male Norwegian King blood line, so Norway (and therefore Iceland) became part of the Kolmar Union, which incorporated Sweden and Denmark, with Denmark the dominant power. By the middle of the 16th century, King Christian III of Denmark tried to impose Lutheranism on his subjects. Catholic bishops in Iceland opposed the Reformation, but when Bishop Arason was captured in battle all opposition attempts were lost. Most Icelanders are Lutheran to this day. The climate deteriorated in the 18th Century – the Laki eruption of 1783/4 resulted in the death of 9,000 people and the loss of 80% of livestock. This deterioration continued into the 19th century too and consequently many people left for the New World. However, a new national consciousness was revived in Iceland at this time and a movement for independence started. In 1874, Iceland was granted home rule from Denmark. In 1918, Denmark recognised Iceland as a sovereign state, but Iceland agreed that Denmark would look after its foreign affairs. In 1940, Nazi Germany invaded Denmark, so Iceland decided that it would sever its ties with Denmark and decided to take control of its own foreign policy. They were determined to stay neutral during the war, but the British invaded in May 1940 (not to take over, but to make sure the Germans would not get there first). In July 1941, the British handed over to the US to look after the island. Eventually, Iceland became a republic in 1944 and became truly independent. The US maintained a military presence in Iceland until 2006 and was responsible for its defence. This agreement has now ended, but the remnants of the US military power can be seen at Keflavik air base (where you landed). Iceland is now protected under NATO. One strange conflict the Icelandic people have been involved in were the ‘Cod Wars’ with the UK during the late 50s to the 1970s. Iceland wanted to extend the fishing rights around their coast, but 3 the UK disagreed with this. As a result, we sent ships up to challenge the Icelanders and a number of boats were rammed. The Icelandic government threatened to close the NATO Keflavik air force base and as a result the UK had to concede defeat. Iceland is not part of the EU, but is part of the European Free Trade Association and the Schengen passport area. In fact, Iceland has very high living standards, but the suffered greatly following the collapse of their banking system in 2008. Part C: Climate Iceland can be warm in the summer – it was about 24⁰C when I stayed there in August 2011! However, as can be seen from the climate data on the right, we can expect temperatures to be somewhere around 13⁰C. 51mm of rainfall can be expected in the month of July. However, the weather in Iceland is very changeable, so you must prepare for virtually all conditions. Warm clothing and waterproof clothing are essential. Part D: Travel details (draft – final details will be provided in the final arrangements letter about two weeks before we go) (23kg hold luggage and one piece of hand luggage no more than 10kg) Flight Outbound Tuesday 23rd July 2019 Leave School at 08:30 by coach and travel to Heathrow, Terminal 2 - meet at 08:15 on the school drive. Flight: Icelandair flight FI(fi)451 departing at 13:05 and arriving at Keflavik, Iceland at 15:10 (local time - 1 hour behind us). Flight Inbound Saturday 27th July 2019 Flight: Icelandair flight FI450 departing Keflavik at 12:30 and arriving at Heathrow, Terminal 2 at 16:30. Arrive at Oaklands at approximately 19:00 4 Travel Itinerary (order of days may change due to weather conditions) Tuesday 23rd July: Arrive at Keflavik airport. Meet coach driver and drive to ‘The Bridge Between two Continents’ at Hafnir and then on to Gunnuhver hot springs. We will visit the Blue Lagoon and then on to one more geothermal area – Krysuvik – and then on to the hotel where we will have a meal (although I would suggest that the students should try to eat something at Gatwick airport after check in as it will be a long day). Wednesday 24th July: Breakfast at the hotel and then travel to the Kerid volcanic crater. From there, we will drive to Ljosafoss HEP station. Drive to Thingvellir – this is the best place to see the North American plates splitting from the Eurasian plate and also site of the first parliament in the World in 874AD. On to watch the geyser erupt at Geysir and then on to the waterfall at Gulfoss. On the return journey, stop at Faxofoss waterfall. Thursday 25th July: Day trip to Heimaey. We will catch the ferry to the islands in the morning. We will then walk up to the ‘Pompeii of the north’, where the houses are buried under the ash form the 1973 eruption and then on to the summit of the volcano. We will have lunch at the top of the volcano – you can even toast your sandwiches due to the heat from the ground! In the afternoon, we will go on a boat trip around the island with our ‘Viking Tours’ guide. There is an excellent pool on the island, which we will visit before we catch a late ferry in the evening. Quick stop at Gluggafoss. The evening meal will be back at the hotel. Friday 26th July: Glaciers, coasts and waterfalls. Depart the centre and drive to Seljalandsfoss waterfall. Then on to Skogafoss waterfall. Glacier walk on the Solheimajokull glacier. We will go to beach at Vik and see the basalt columns and then our final stop will be Dyrholaey to see the magnificent coastal arch and 120 metre high cliffs. Saturday 27th July: Walk round Reykjavik in the morning. We will visit the house where Regan and Gorbachev met during the Cold War, the famous church, main shopping area, concert building and the City Hall. We will drive to Keflavik around lunchtime and return home. We should arrive at Oaklands at about approximately 19:00. Accommodation Husid. There are excellent views of the coast and the Westmann Islands to the south and the majestic ice caps of Myrdalsjokull and Eyjafjallajokull are just to the east. We have stayed here on 7 x previous visits. Guesthouse Húsið, Gloa Elf, Hvolsvöllur, Sudurland 861, Iceland. Tel Nº: (00354) 892-3817. Mr. Bamford (school mobile) phone number in case of emergency +447977 297946 . 5 Each room has bunk beds and the students can expect to be in rooms of 4-6. There are shared shower (with private cubicles) and toilet facilities. We also have use of the communal area in the accommodation with sofas, TV etc. WE ARE FULL BOARD – BREAKFAST AND EVENING MEAL PROVIDED, BUT STUDENTS WILL NEED TO MAKE THE SANDWICHES FOR THEIR LUNCH AFTER BREAKFAST EACH MORNING. I must stress that this is not a hotel, and is a purpose-built centre for youth groups. BRING TOWELS AND SOAP/SHOWER GEL. Part E: Kit List The main thing to remember is that we will not be going away for a very long time. Therefore, you don’t need to bring huge suitcases. However, we will be visiting a range of environments so you must pack with care. IT COULD BE COLD – GLOVES, WATERPROOF CLOTHING AND WARM JACKETS CRUCIAL. TAKE A WARM HAT TOO!! Part F: Code of Conduct (you will have signed a detailed code of conduct sheet – just a reminder provided here) You will all be guests in Iceland and will be representing Oaklands, Hampshire, your country and your family. Please behave well on all occasions; remember others will be judged by your actions. For the benefit of everyone cooperate by being helpful and sensible – always show consideration to others. Some of the key rules to obey during the trip are as follows: - 1.