Wool Factory

We stopped off at a wool store that used to be Iceland’s oldest wool factory. It’s the first building on the left above. When it was operational, the factory took in wool from farms all through the area. It was a major hub of production.

Although it no longer operates, there is still a strong call for yarn. The traditional sweaters never went out of fashion. Part of this may be because of the cold climate. Though there is more variety, they still keep the same patterns and colors.

These sweaters are available to tourists, but can easily cost hundreds of dollars.

As to the statue on the left, these kinds of small monuments are scattered everywhere – city and country. This one at the base of the street close to where the bus parked made a handy point of reference.

Along with the skeins of wool were decoratively placed old equipment left over from the factory days.

The owner of the shop wanted to give a tour, but didn’t have a lot good English and so didn’t provide much information. She did, however, point to the building spanning the river across the street. Apparently the band Of Monsters and Men used that building for a recording session a few years ago. When they opened the door to let the heat out, their music filled the entire valley.

As to the waterfall out back, she said it was a very special and mystical place, but could not explain why. I’ll admit it’s a very nice water fall, but Iceland is chock full of fantastic water falls. Seriously, it’s enough to spoil you.

I wandered up the street to a knife maker’s shop.

Talks about drool worthy! I adored his merchandise but a single rustic blade could cost just under a thousand dollars. I had to content myself with pictures and the promise to surf into his web site and place an order should I ever become stupidly rich some day.

The street only ran two or three blocks to the water tower up the hill There you could see lupine everywhere. What a great view. As the the computer monitor nailed to a wood post… I have no idea what that’s about.