Strýtan · Iceland · Pinnacle · Muck & macro
Arnarnesstrýtur
Venting chimneys with a wolffish in almost every crevice
Arnarnesstrýtur is a cluster of small hydrothermal chimneys scattered over roughly 400 m by 1000 m of fjord bottom, inside a larger protected underwater area. The nearest cones rise from 23 m to about 15 m and vent freshwater at close to 79 °C with a pH of 10. Wolffish hold in the crevices around them, and the ground between the cones carries dense macro life.
Also known as Arnarnesstrytan.
Where it is and how deep
65.8751° N, 18.2250° WApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The run out is about five minutes by zodiac from Hjalteyri, and the site is normally the first dive of the day tour, before Strýtan. The cones here are small and there are many of them, spread across an area of roughly 400 m by 1000 m, so the dive is a wander between formations rather than a circuit of one structure. The shallowest stand at about 15 m and the bottom they rise from is at 23 m; other cones in the field run down to 55 m.
The chimneys gush freshwater at around 79 °C, alkaline enough to measure a pH of 10, and it is the life around them that holds a dive here. There is a wolffish, or two, lurking in almost every crevice and hole around the cones, with cod, pollock and lumpfish on the same ground. Numerous species of nudibranch and a great deal of other macro life cover the bottom between the chimneys, which makes this a dive to work slowly and close in rather than one to cover distance on.
Background
Divers found this second chimney field in 2004, seven years after Strýtan was identified a short way down the fjord, and named it Arnarnesstrýtur. Iceland's Minister for the Environment designated it a protected area in 2007, and it sits within a larger underwater protected area.
Marine life and season
- Nudibranchs
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Strýtan: The vent's flow is constant year-round; ratings mainly reflect daylight hours, fjord sea state, and overlap with Eyjafjörður's summer whale season.
Know before you go
- The vents discharge freshwater at about 79 °C with a pH of 10. Stay out of the outflow and keep hands and gear away from the openings.
- The chimney field has been a protected area since 2007 and sits inside a larger protected underwater area, so it is dived only with permission from Strýtan Dive Center.
Dive videos
Dive in Arnarnesstrytan · Sjavarlif Lífið í hafinu on YouTube
Wolffish feeding in Iceland · Hugh Waite on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep is Arnarnesstrýtur?+
The shallowest cones stand at about 15 m and the bottom around them is at 23 m, which is the usual recreational profile here. Other cones in the same field run deeper, down to about 55 m.
When are the wolffish hardest to see?+
Around the September spawning. The dive centre's wolffish study recorded the fish staying in their holes instead of coming out to divers, with spawning dated to 9 September in 2016. At other times there is a wolffish, or two, in almost every crevice and hole around the cones.
Sources
- Arnarnesstrýtur (dive site page) — Strýtan DiveCenter
- Diving places overview — Strýtan DiveCenter
- Strýtan Dive Center — home — Strýtan DiveCenter
- The Wolffish Project — Strýtan DiveCenter
- The Strýtan Day Tour — Strýtan DiveCenter
- OpenStreetMap: Arnarnesstrýtur — OpenStreetMap
In The Logbook
- Cold-water diving: is it worth the drysuit?Cold water · 8 min read
More dive sites in Strýtan
Pinnacle
The only hydrothermal chimney shallow enough to dive on scuba
Similar dives elsewhere
Pinnacle
Chup Point
Barkley Sound · Canada
Twin pinnacles crowded with anemones, nudibranchs and sea pens
A rounded pinnacle whose lee side can often be dived when current runs
Pinnacle
Leopard Reef
Kota Belud · Malaysia
Bamboo and cat sharks asleep in the crevices of a pinnacle
Pinnacle
Ling Rocks
Kinsale & Old Head · Ireland
Offshore rocks topping out at 22 m, named for their plentiful ling