What is a glacier? 

A glacier is a huge mass of ice and snow that is constantly moving under its own weight. Glaciers are made up of fallen snow that compresses into thick ice masses. Glaciers form when snow remains long enough to transform into ice. Each  winter, more snow is added, and it does not all melt in summer. The weight of the snow creates pressure which transforms the lower parts of the snow into ice. It forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds how fast it melts, over a period of many years, or centuries. Glaciers slowly deform and flow due to stresses induced by their weight which creates crevasses and other features. Glacier mass is affected by long term climate change (precipitation, temperature, cloud cover), which makes glacial changes to be considered amongst the most sensitive indicators of climate change. 

Why is the glacier ice blue?

After snow falls on a glacier, it ends up getting compressed into ice. As it’s compressed ice, all air bubbles are squeezed out and ice crystals enlarge, which makes the ice appear blue.

Water is very good at absorbing light. Blue is the colour of light that has the most energy. Only the strongest light, with the most energy, is able to escape. This causes the blue to be the only colour of light that escapes without being absorbed. The thicker the glacier is, the more blue it appears. 

What is a glacier outlet?

Outlet glaciers, or glacier tongues, is where we do our glacier trips. They are channels of ice that flow out of ice caps (such as Vatnajökull glacier), which are constrained on the sides with exposed bedrock. 

What is an ice cave?

A tunnel or a hole in the glacier formed by water flow. As they can be fragile in summer when it’s warm and the glaciers are melting, we can only access them in winter time when it’s cold enough, resulting in most water to freeze up. Ice caves can be full of water or not safe to access in the summer time. 

After snow falls on a glacier, it ends up getting compressed into ice. As it’s compressed ice, all air bubbles are squeezed out and ice crystals enlarge, which makes the ice appear blue.

We are able to visit the ice caves during the winter time only and this is when we offer our public ice cave tours and the private trips for those who are interested.

What is the biggest glacier in Iceland?

Vatnajökull, the area where we operate as a company, is the place where you can experience the biggest glacier in Iceland and the second biggest ice cap in Europe. This glacier has around 30 different outlets and we proudly operate on two of them: a beautiful Falljökull in the summer and a Breiðamerkurjökull in the winter time. The first one is easy to reach from Skaftafell National Park and the second one is very close to Glacier lagoon Jökulsárlón.

Is it safe to go on the glacier on my own?

It is not recommended for travellers visiting Iceland to do a glacier walk on your own. The weather in Iceland is quite unpredictable and it is definitely not safe for a person who doesn’t know the area to be going to any glacier outlet without a guide and any safety equipment. We definitely recommend booking a tour with any of the local companies who offer visits to different parts of Skaftafell and Vatnajökull areas. Some travel agencies also offer glacier hikes in the Sólheimajökull area, which is closer to Reykjavík. Good option if you have limited time in Iceland.