Hekla, Iceland

One of the main national symbols of Iceland is Hekla volcano. Its height is 1,488 meters. Locals began to implement continuous monitoring of volcano activity in the second half of the 9th century. During that time, strong eruptions occurred more than 20 times. The increased activity of the volcano was recorded in the Middle Ages; during that period locals gave him a resounding informal name, ’Gateway to Hell.’

One of the main features of the volcano remains its unique eruption process, so it’s incredibly difficult to predict the onset of another disaster, as well as its specifics. Locals refer to the volcano with great reverence and consider it to be national pride; its current name is very symbolic and amazing. Hekla is translated from Icelandic as ‘short raincoat with a hood.’ This the name was given to the volcano because its top often shrouded in a dense fog and clouds afar making it look like a giant silhouette of a raincoat.

The last major eruption was in 2000. Currently, forest areas located on the slopes of the mount have a great value. They were almost completely destroyed as a result of volcanic and human activities. Thus, there was launched a unique project aimed to restore about 90,000 hectares of forest on the slopes of Hekla. This project is the most ambitious in Europe. Modern tourists have an opportunity to walk through the most beautiful foothills and hike very close to the mouth of one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world. Next - Chaiten