Kerið

Looking at a volcanic crater is one thing. Seeing how puny a person is next to it, really puts things into perspective. Kerið crater is on the popular touristic route called the Golden Circle in South Iceland, covering about 300 km looping from Reykjavík into central Iceland and back. While we were there we could not see anybody apart from one or two people. Very quiet and beautiful place. The minerals in the bottom of the crater make the water appear in this surreal blue-green color. Unlike other volcano craters that are usually covered in black sand and rocks, this one has the sides covered in gorgeous red rocks and dirt and from place to place you can observe bright green moss. It’s amazing to experience this beautiful palette of colors.

Kerið is a volcanic crater lake located in the Grímsnes area in south Iceland, on the popular tourist route known as the Golden Circle. It is one of several crater lakes in the area, known as Iceland’s Western Volcanic Zone, which includes the Reykjanes peninsula and the Langjökull Glacier, created as the land moved over a localized hotspot, but it is the one that has the most visually recognizable caldera still intact. The caldera, like the other volcanic rock in the area, is composed of a red (rather than black) volcanic rock. The caldera itself is approximately 55 m (180 ft) deep, 170 m (560 ft) wide, and 270 m (890 ft) across. Kerið’s caldera is one of the three most recognizable volcanic craters because at approximately 3,000 years old, it is only half the age of most of the surrounding volcanic features. The other two are Seyðishólar and Kerhóll. While most of the crater is steep-walled with little vegetation, one wall is sloped more gently and blanketed with a deep moss, and can be descended fairly easily. The lake itself is fairly shallow (7–14 metres, depending on rainfall and other factors), but due to minerals from the soil, is an opaque and strikingly vivid aquamarine.