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Geitland is a relatively barren and sanded lava area between the rivers Hvita and Geita and the glacier snout Geitlandsjokull (a part of the ice cap Langjokull). The craters, which created the lava field, are at the edge of the glacier just south of Mt Hafrafell. Some vegetated areas in the lava field are considered good summer pastures for sheep.
According to the Book of Settlements, a man named Ulfur Grimsson, settled in the Geitland area, where people lived up to the turn of the 16th century. At least two ruins of farms and home field walls remain. River Svarta discharges the ice cap Langjokull and runs through the area. Its enters River Geita in the proximity of the farm Kalmanstunga before the latter joins River Hvita.
According to the legend, a hot spring called Skrifla existed in the Geitland area. After the blood stained clothes of a murdered man were washed in it, it moved to another location. The same happened again and the hot spring eventually found a permanent spot at Reykholt, where it feeds the historic outdoor pool of the long late chieftain and historian Snorri Sturluson
Geitland is on nat.is West Iceland Saga Trail
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