Nesgjá Snorkeling Tour

Nesgjá is another lovely fresh water fissure with the crystal clear water that is so unique to Iceland. It is often called the Silfra of the North as it has such similar qualities as the famous Silfra in the South.

Due to the activity of the tectonic plates, tension builds up in the earth’s crust. Every couple of years this tension is released through earthquakes. These earthquakes create cracks that can be seen from the south west of Iceland all the way to the north east. The Eurasian and North American continental plates meet deep down under the earth’s crust along this line.

Some of these fissures are filled with water, usually glacial water that has been filtering through lava fields for many years, before it flows into rivers, the ocean or these fresh water fissures. After dripping for a such long time through porous lava rock, the water has been filtered perfectly and is literally as clear as it gets.

Nesgjá is quite shallow but amazingly beautiful. The lagoon is huge and as one of our instructors says: “The visibility depends solely on the quality of your snorkel mask.” You can see further than 100 meters.

Sometimes we get to see arctic charr, a certain type of salmonide in the fissure. Sea fleas have also been known to hang out at the bottom of the fissure.

This location is on the Diamond circle about 30 minutes from the whale-watching town of Húsavík and a short distance from Ásbyrgi canyon, making this the perfect Diamond circle selfdrive tour. Other destinations on the Diamond circle include Goðafoss (waterfall of the Gods), the infamous Dettifoss waterfall and the beautiful Lake Mývatn.