1980s
Moss over the lava field, three centuries of growth in one frame
The volcanic plain at Skaftárhreppur, our grid staked out in the middle distance
Lake and lava from the top of the pass, the tent a dot
Rock and moss under a low sky, the texture I spent August drawing
Green over black at Þingeyjarsveit, the morning after rain
The rhyolite valley, sand ridge and clouds, day thirty-one
Lava field at Grindavík, the moss like felt underfoot
Black sand and ice at the river mouth, the season's last frame
Snow on the peaks behind the moss, September arriving early
The eroded sand and shabby rocks that took a fortnight to surveyTwo summers on the outwash plains below Vatnajökull, counting the boulders a flood had moved and photographing the moss that grew back.