As we climb the steep hill, we maintain our footing thanks to our crampons, the spiky additions to our boots. With each step, we heard the crunching of tiny black rocky pebbles as they shift under our boots. Eventually, we crested the hill, and our destination came into sight: The awe-inspiring Katla Ice Cave!
Katla, located in southern Iceland, is one of the most destructive volcanoes and is due for yet another eruption. The last time it did in 1918, it transformed a large surrounding area into an out worldly black, barren & desolate landscape that looks like a different lifeless volcanic planet. Driving through this landscape to reach the base of the ice cave was an experience.
Katla is covered by the Mýrdalsjökul glacier. As the ice on the glacier melts every summer, it mixes with the charred ash and rocks from Katla’s last eruption, to create an apocalyptic, black-and-white, fluid, and shifting landscape. It appears like a world collapsing onto itself as water swallows it. I felt a sense of unease.
Quite paradoxically, in a landscape devoid of all color, the 1000-year-old ice of the glacier reflects a light blue hue and brings color to this stark environment.
The combination of melting ice and high winds creates tunnels in the ice, which we call Katla ice caves. These natural wonders keep shifting, so each one is unique. Back at the mouth of the ice cave, we slowly and carefully moved inside. Our guide taught us how to walk with crampons, so they are engaged and locked into the ice. We walked the length of the cave and then through an opening onto the roof. It was a bit unsettling to be on top of an ice cave that was melting but the view from the top was simply breathtaking.
Back inside the cave we ate the ice & drank the glacial water; I mean, how often does one experience ancient ice that is pure & untouched by pollution? As we were exiting, I heard a weird swooshing sound, and then suddenly, out of an opening in the wall, came rushing in a stream of black pebbles. Although it was no higher than my ankle, the sight foretold what can happen when the structural integrity of the cave fails.
Visiting the Katla ice cave was the highlight of our Icelandic vacation. It was a surreal experience, an adventure that will be etched in our memories forever. Iceland, often called the land of fire and ice, truly lived up to its name during our visit, and the Katla Ice Cave was the epitome of that experience.
My Pravas 