Vikingtravelblog

Near the Reykjavik airport -do you see any rabbits?

Over by the Reykjavik airport there is a forested area with nice walking paths in and amonsgst trees and bushes.  This area is on a hillside above the airport on a peninsula, not too far from downtown.  All nice and normal so far.  What is not normal about this place, what is not supposed to be there, are the rabbits. 

Someone at some time released their pet rabbits at this location and set a precedent of sorts.  Now anyone that no longer wants their rabbit drops them off at this location to join their brethren.  And these rabbits have a nice home because there are lots of hot water pipes running through this area, some new and some old.  The new ones serve as a source of heat and the old ones as ready-made tunnels.  At the top of this hill are five huge hot water tanks that store hot water for the city.  This location has been turned into a tourist attraction called Perlan, there’s even a restaurant on top that turns around. 

Location aside, it is quite odd and humorous to see these pet store-variety rabbits, turned ferrell, hiding in a bush or tree, or chewing on grass near the side of a walkway or occasionally near the road above.  True to their domesticated nature, they are more or less unafraid of people.  If you were so inclined you could actually catch one, I know because I’ve seen it done.  My runs take me through this area often and I always keep my eyes open for a rabbit sighting. They are fairly elusive but I would wager that belies their true numbers, let’s face it they’re rabbits. 

Anyways, one day I saw one but I was not running near the airport.  Apparently they are spreading.  There’s a nice valley that runs all the way from the airport to the area in which I was running which follows a nice little river.  This valley is like a huge park with running and biking paths, benches and playgrounds.  These rabbits could very easily move from their original drop point to where I had my sighting.  Maybe this rabbit was an explorer, braving the wild and seeking new lands.  My wife thinks that people are releasing them in different places.  That could be true.  And, if people are releasing them in different locations it seems like a pretty stupid and ignorant thing to do.  But it may be that they are simply spreading.  I mean, why not? 

What’s to keep them from really spreading?  Maybe Iceland will be overrun with rabbits someday like some kind of Hitchcockian variation of “The Birds” or living out some kind of Nordic Watership Down epic.  Clans will be formed, heirarchies created, people will be frightened and, and, and…I guess Iceland will just have to learn to cook with rabbit meat.  There’ll be clever advertising campaigns like, “Kanína er Góð!” (Rabbit is Good!).  Cookbooks will be printed, the French will compare the culinary superiority of their rabbits to Iceland’s and, on and on.  One thing will be certain, rabbit meat will still be expensive.  This is Iceland after all.