The Blanda () is a river in
Iceland
Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...
which flows northwards from the northwest side of the
Hofsjökull
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Hofsjökull (Icelandic language, Icelandic: "temple glacier", ) is the third largest ice cap in Iceland after Vatnajökull and Langjökull and covers the largest active central volcano in the country, which has the same name. It is si ...
glacier into
Húnaflói
(, ) is a bay of the Iceland Sea in Northwestern Region (Iceland), Northwestern Region and Westfjords, Iceland. It is situated between the village of Strandir on peninsula to the west and the of Skagi peninsula to the east. Spanning , it has a ...
bay at
Blönduós
Blönduós () is a town and former municipality in the north of Iceland with a population of 895 in 2018.
Like many towns and villages around Iceland, Blönduós did not emerge as a village until the late 19th century. The town is situated on Rou ...
. The Blanda is one of the longest rivers in the country, with a length of about 125 km, and has a
catchment area
A catchment area in human geography, is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
estimated at 2370 km
2. Its source is calculated to lie at a height of 800m. The river is one of the main
salmon
Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...
rivers in Iceland and has often yielded a catch of almost 3000 salmon in one summer. Before the river was dammed in 1990, the salmon spawning grounds reached almost to the foot of the glacier. Blanda
hydroelectric
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...
power station uses the drop of the river to generate up to 150
MW of power.
Gallery
Image:Mouth of Blanda river.jpg, Mouth of Blanda river emptying into Húnaflói, November 2007
Image:Blanda river.jpg, Blanda river flowing through Blönduós
Image:Blanda river, flowing beneath Langadalsfjall.jpg, Blanda river, flowing beneath Langadalsfjall
References
Rivers of Iceland
Austur-Húnavatnssýsla
{{Iceland-river-stub