Icelandic Flow

The “Icelandic Flow” Experience

Meandering auroras flow around the moon and avoid a bank of clouds before dipping into Iceland’s roaring Godafoss Falls on April 15, 2022 at 2 am Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

It was Night #9 on my two-week Iceland odyssey and, although I’d seen a few minor aurora displays, I hadn’t experienced anything of this magnitude. As I cruised along the Ring Road near sundown looking for a campsite, I came upon Godafoss Falls and was instantly struck by the sheer beauty. The sky was predominantly cloudy but around midnight the auroras peaked through a cloud gap and I hustled to get some cool shots in the game bag before heavy clouds moved back in.

And then the big one hit at 2 am when the sky suddenly opened back up and a huge aurora rush came shining through. For the second time that night, I found myself sprinting like an Icelandic horse to get into position above the falls when Holy Wow, With-Out-Words, the sky erupted into tight, multiple bands snaking together into curvalicious shapes! I was absolutely stunned at how bright & well-defined the lights were. This was the quintessential peak moment of the entire trip. I’ve been on a lot of aurora hunts in my life, but I don’t know if I’ve ever “worked” so hard to get the shot. I was 3,336 miles from my home in Anchorage, Alaska, living in a campervan, but the whole trip was a dream-come-true and this night alone made it totally worth the effort.