196 THORODDSEN 



east. On this peninsula occur the greatest heights in northern Ice- 

 land (Vindheimajokull, 1445 metres; Kerling 1350 metres; Rimar, 

 1261 metres). Broad, fertile and thickly-inhabited main valleys stretch 

 up from the head of Skagafjordur and Eyjafjor5ur; east of Eyja- 

 fjor5ur, between the latter and Skjalfandi, the stern, wild mountains 

 rise to a height of 1200 metres, and there Fnjoskadalur, which cuts 

 through these mountains towards EyjafjorSur from the east, opens out. 

 These mountains fall abruptly towards the east down towards Bar5ar- 

 dalur (70 km. long), but east of that valley the country becomes lower, 

 and has a different geological structure and character; hitherto, 

 basalt has been the dominant rock, but hereafter, for a long distance, 

 the substratum is formed of tufY, breccia and recent volcanic forma- 

 tions. East of Bar5ardalur the plateau gradually sinks down to- 

 wanjls the sea, and inhabited spots occur, not only along the coast 

 and in the valleys, but also here and there upon the high land 

 itself (Myvatnssveit, 300 metres above the level of the sea ; Fjallasveit, 

 450 500 metres). Upon these areas of the plateau there are many 

 isolated mountains and mountain-ridges, volcanoes and lava-streams. 

 The eastern part of Iceland is called collectively Austfirdir. 

 There the country is very mountainous towards the coast and in- 



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dented by deep fjords which are bounded by high, precipitous rock- 

 walls, basalt being now again the dominant rock. From HjeraSsfloi 

 two long valleys, 80 90 km. in length, extend towards the south. 

 These valleys, which unite lower down, are called Jokuldalur and 

 Fljotsdalshjera5; the latter lies behind the fjord district of eastern 

 Iceland and cuts it off from the interior plateau which is here 

 somewhat lower than the coastal mountains, which reach a height 

 of 10 1100 metres and even more. Towards the south there are 

 two smaller Jokulls, Thrandarjokull and Hofsjokull f Loni , with 

 an area of 100 and of 80 square km. and a height of 11001200 

 metres respectively. Near Hornafjordur the character of the coastal 

 land changes completely, because there the plateau, to its extreme 

 edge, is buried beneath the snow and ice fields of Vatnajoknll. The 

 low, narrow and sandy coastal border is irrigated by glacier- water 

 streaming down from the numerous glaciers which advance through 

 every cleft and valley. Here and there, along the edge of the snow-field, 

 mountains and rocky promontories appear, and of the former the 

 imposing volcano of Orrefajokull (2119 metres), Iceland's highest moun- 

 tain, is the most noticeable; other promontories and mountains near 

 the southern edge of Vatnajokull have a height of 1100 1500 metres. 



