Úlfljótsvatn (, ''Úlfljótr's Lake'') is a lake in southern
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
, to the south of lake
Þingvallavatn
Þingvallavatn (), anglicised as Thingvallavatn,The spelling ''Pingvallavatn'' is wrong as the letter “p” should never be used to represent the letter “þ” (thorn). is a rift valley lake in southwestern Iceland. With a surface of 84 km² ...
, 74km east of
Reykjavík
Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...
. Úlfljótsvatn is named after
Úlfljótr Úlfljótr (Old Norse: ; Modern Icelandic: ) brought law to Iceland and is regarded by some as Iceland's first ''lawspeaker''. In around 927-930 AD Úlfljótr was sent to Norway by a group of chieftains to study law and culture and bring back to Ic ...
, an important man who was involved in the
Alþingi (Icelandic Parliament) in 930.
In the vicinity, the Icelanders have many summer cottages.
Geography
The lake has an area of 3.6 km² and is situated at an altitude of 80 m. At the deepest point, Úlfljótsvatn is about 34.5 meters deep.
The lake has a water area of 3.6 km² and is located directly south of the larger lake
Þingvallavatn
Þingvallavatn (), anglicised as Thingvallavatn,The spelling ''Pingvallavatn'' is wrong as the letter “p” should never be used to represent the letter “þ” (thorn). is a rift valley lake in southwestern Iceland. With a surface of 84 km² ...
on the
Sog river
Sog (; more commonly Sogið ) is a river in Iceland. It runs from the lake Þingvallavatn for to its confluence with the river Hvítá, forming the river Ölfusá which then runs for another 25 km into the Atlantic Ocean. Its average disc ...
, which continues to Álftavatn.
The lake in the warm season attracts
anglers.
Trout
Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...
and
lake char can be found in the waters of the lake.
History
Orkuveita Reykjavíkur
Orkuveita Reykjavíkur (English: Reykjavík Energy) is an Icelandic energy and utility company that provides electricity, geothermal hot water through district heating and cold water for consumption and fire fighting. It also operates a wholesale ...
bought the rights in 1929-1933 to generate electricity in the upper run of the Sog. In 1937, the
Ljósafoss power station was then built, increasing the water level by about 1 metre.
The
Icelandic Scout and Guides Association has had its
national scout centre by the lake since 1940. It hosted the
World Scout Moot
The World Scout Moot is an event for senior branches of Scouting (traditionally called Rovers) and other young adult Scouts, gathering up to 5,000 people. Moots provide an opportunity for young adults in Scouting to meet, with the objective of ...
there in 2017.
Traffic
To the east of the lake is
road no. 36, southwest of road no. 360.
See also
*
List of lakes in Iceland
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulfljotsvatn
Lakes of Iceland
Rift lakes of Iceland