We birded Snæfellsbær National Park and I did two sketches to commemorate the visit. At least one sketch is semi-bird related.

One sketch is of a stone troll that was built as a memorial to a young man who died of exposure up in the Icelandic mountains.

The statue represents the Deity of Mt. Snaefell and was sculpted by Ragnar Kjartansson in 1985.

About 50% of Icelandic people strongly believe in “hidden” people. As the name implies, these are people that exist but are seldom, if ever, seen. A list of the hidden people sounds like a reading of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings: dwarves, elves, and trolls. (It is no wonder because JRR Tolkien was heavily influenced by the Icelandic Sagas and myths). So the stone troll was very much in keeping with the ethos of the Land of Fire and Ice.

Throughout Iceland it was not uncommon to see small houses build out in the countryside. They were usually in a field usually near a house or road and always with an open front door. These houses are built as a home for the small hidden people. Icelanders believe!

The other sketch is of an unexpected visitor to the Snæfellsbær National Park Visitor Center. The homing pigeon appeared one day and the staff gave him the Icelandic name “Ragnar”. They feed him a bit of seed and he occasionally comes indoors. Hopefully he will avoid the attention of the local Arctic foxes that also visit the visitor’s center.