One of the coolest things to do in East Iceland is to visit the newest hype of the country: a basalt column canyon. The Studlagil Canyon was only discovered a couple of years ago, because the Jökulsá á Dal river used to be a gushing glacial river that completely filled the basalt ravine.
Are you thinking of visiting this basalt column canyon? We will tell you all you need to know about the Stuðlagil Canyon!
How Studlagil Canyon Was Created
There are many basalt columns in Iceland. Basalt is a volcanic rock that is created when lava cools off to form crystals into which lava has contracted as it was cooling.
During the cooling process, the chemicals and appearance of lava changes; the rock shrinks and it ‘cracks’– often hexagonal shaped. It’s best understand if you look at the basalt canyons from the top.
This amazing place has both vertical and horizontal columns, but vertical columns are most common.