Research Trip To Iceland

Well, we are now 48 hours from our trip to Iceland, which is nearly becoming an annual event.  Last year's trek included visits to Erik the Red's farmstead, the archaeological dig of the original settlement under Reykjavik, the Saga museum (Vikings!) and Reykholt, the home of Snorri Sturlson (Icelandic author of the Sagas), among other places.

This year, we have planned an investigative trip to Lake Lagarfljót in Egilsstaðir to attempt a sighting of the Monster Worm!   If you are unfamiliar with the Monster Worm, he is a dragon-like creature rumored to live  in Lagarfljót.  He is often be sighted raising its back as he swims around.  His home is a freshwater, glacial-fed lake that lies below sea level and is very murky and difficult to see into.  The monster worm is has been described as longer than a bus, or 39 feet (12 m), and has occasionally been reported outside the water, lying coiled up or slithering into the trees.  It is a "many humps" and seems to have a striking likeness to the Loch Ness Monster

According to Wikipedia:  “The Lagarfljót Worm has been sighted several times in modern times, including in 1963 by the head of the Icelandic National Forest Service, Sigurður Blöndal, and in 1998 by a teacher and students at Hallormsstaðir School.  In 1983, contractors laying a telephone cable measured a large shifting mass near the eastern shore when performing preliminary depth measurements, and when they later retrieved the non-functional cable, found that it was broken where it had lain over the anomaly:  "This cable that was specially engineered so it wouldn’t kink was wound in several places and badly torn and damaged in 22 different places . . . . I believe we dragged the cable directly over the belly of the beast. Unless it was through its mouth." "

We are also very excited about the opportunity to attend Elf School to find more stories to bring you!  The Icelandic Elf School, known as Álfaskólinn, is a school in Reykjavik, Iceland that teaches students and visitors about Icelandic folklore.  The school has a certificate curriculum that covers topics about the hidden people and the 13 different kinds of elves that legend says inhabit the country.  Since opening in 1991, over 9,000 people have attended to learn about the mythology!

The school also publishes texts on hidden people, and performs ongoing research on the elves and hidden people of Iceland.   They also collects stories about trolls, fairies, dwarves, and gnomes for the purpose of preservation.  The five hour long educational excursions for visitors finishes with coffee and pancakes at the school and if you’ve ever had these Icelandic goodies, you know that’s something to look forward to!  

I'll come back with all new stories and will be working on several new projects!