Wrecking ball it is not but wrecking plane is much more fun. PIC Pieter Morlion
I t is fair to say that the majority of visitors to South Iceland are well taken aback, in a nice way, by the seemingly endless black sand coast ruling the view for kilometer after kilometer. These fields of sand stretching everywhere are eerily tantalizing and inviting for most in spite of being a preview of the world after the Third World War.
This feeling can be hard to describe but you will feel it when you get here. You, as most others, will feel something special too.
Not surprisingly, this sandy land has become one of the most photographed area in Iceland. Not only is the dark sand itself excellent for stunning photos but also found here just a few kilometers away from the Ring Road is the most photographed plane wreck in the whole of Iceland.
The wreck itself is little to write home about. It is half of a fuselage of a Douglas DC10 military plane from the US back in the day. The pilots were forced to make an emergency landing here in the 1970´s when the fuel ran out. Nothing too dramatic and nobody got killed or injured. However, there was a casualty when the US Army tried to remove the wreck some time later. So it was that the wreckage was just left there.
But it is not really the wreck that has such pull on people and photographers. It is the surroundings. Millions of wrecks are all over the world but none is found smack in the middle of pitch black sands in all directions. Almost like a bad ornament. A fantastic place for a horror movie if you ask us.
While the number of people visiting is quite high these days one can still find this place completely abandoned and like the folks in the pic use that moment to do something funky. We understand this is the Iceland version of Wrecking Ball although there is less nudity.
But, there is always a but, there is one thing to keep in mind to keep you safe. This area being nothing but sands it goes without saying that it turns easily into heavy mud after much rain. Do not venture here if it is raining hard or been raining long. Certainly do not venture here unless you have good wheels and preferably 4×4. Otherwise you might be another statistic in the annals of the local rescue operators.
