Iceland review - 2012, Qupperneq 42

40 ICELAND REVIEW
fILM
Tel: +354 411 5000 • www.itr.is
Thermal
swimming
pools
Saunas,
steambathsand showers
Forhealth and well-being
Hot tubs
and
jacuzzi
Reykjavik's Thermal Pools
500 isk.
120 isk.ADULTS
CHILDREN
ONLY
A source of health
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12
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Thermal pools and baths in Reykjavik are a source of health, relaxation and pureness.
All of the city´s swimming pools have several hot pot´s with temperatures ranging from
37˚ to 42˚C (98˚–111˚F). The pools are kept at an average temperature of 29˚ C (84˚ F).
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this building will be a visitors’ center.” Another building left over from the salmon
farming station will serve as staff facilities and storage. “I want Reykjanes to become a
food center for the region and to create employment,” Garðar says, adding that in the
future, the product will also be packed on the premises. And there is more to come.
“The next thing will be virgin salt,” he reveals with a sparkle in his eyes. “We’ll freeze
seawater in shallow outdoor ponds in winter and as we remove the ice, the salt is left
behind,” he says of a method developed by Norse settlers in Iceland. “The composi-
tion will be different from the geothermal salt and the taste and size of the harvest will
vary depending on the weather. We’ll mark each package with the year of production.
Like wine.” They certainly don’t lack ideas. “We’re working on making a deal with
local fishermen to make salt fish the old-fashioned way,” Garðar continues, explaining
that salt fish production was the function of the original Reykjanes saltworks. “And
we’ve discussed collaborating on making hangikjöt with the Reykjanes sheep farmer,”
he adds, referring to the smoked lamb that is a traditional Icelandic treat. Moreover,
Halli, a dairy technician, wants to use the salt for making cheese. “But we won’t get
ahead of ourselves,” Garðar stresses.
First, the saltwork’s production capacity must be expanded. It currently produces
20 tons per year, which supplies the Icelandic market. With the new purpose-built
saltworks, export will be possible on a larger scale. Which reminds Garðar of his
other identity. “I have to get back to Reykjavík soon and work on marketing,” he
says. Regularly commuting the 330 kilometers (205 miles) between Reykjanes and
Reykjavík where he lives with his girlfriend and young child, Garðar doesn’t com-
plain about the distance to work. “It’s a privilege to be able to work outside in nature
right on the shore of the Arctic Ocean, watching seals and whales swim past and the
birds soar above,” he told me on an earlier occasion. He can’t be too fond of the birds
anymore, though, I think to myself as the terns take a final dive for our heads as we
bid the salt-makers goodbye. 
INNOVATION
View of the
Arctic Ocean
from Reykjanes,
where the sea salt
originates.
“i want reykjanes to become a food center for the
region [...]. the next thing will be virgin salt. we’ll
freeze seawater in shallow outdoor ponds in winter
and as we remove the ice, the salt is left behind.”