CELL Soil Conservation and Seed Planting Service Trip

This past week has been another unbelievable chance to experience the beauty of Iceland’s landscape and meet some of the people that make this country such a unique place. Our four-day excursion began with a trip to the headquarters of Iceland’s Soil Conservation Service in Gunnarsholt where we got a tour through a successfully reforested area that was a desert in 1927.


It was amazing to see that what is now covered by grasses, moss, and trees was once a shifting sand dune of volcanic ash. These early successes have inspired the Soil Conservation Service to undertake a much larger project in the wastelands surrounding Mt. Hekla, the most active volcano in Iceland.


After our tour we all gathered inside to listen to a presentation about the history of desertification and soil loss in Iceland, which has been a problem ever since the early settlers used the trees to stoke their fires. This historic problem continues today as the loss of tree cover allows dust storms and rain runoff to carry away the precious topsoil, but the Soil Conservation Service told us about their many projects to help restore the vegetation and protect their soil from further degradation.


The people of Iceland are well aware of this careful balance of conservation and wise-use of their land and it was exciting to see the number of participants involved in the Soil Conservation Services’ projects.


Afterwards, our group decided to take a hike up to the top of Mt. Bjólfell. From the top we were able to get an amazing view of the surrounding land, including the large lava flows from Mt. Hekla. Iceland continues to amaze us all with the beauty of its varied landscapes.





That evening we stayed at a cozy bed & breakfast. The hospitality of the owners was heartwarming, and their generous servings at every meal were more that we could ever ask for (or finish eating!).








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