We left the coast today and headed inland towards Lake Myvatn and some of Iceland’s most dramatic geology. Although we split up into different groups with different areas of focus, we all spent our time investigating the active volcanic areas that make this country so special.
A first stop was Godafoss, a beautiful waterfall that has become a popular stop thanks to its beauty. Because the falls begin at road level and carve a canyon down into the rock, it is difficult to see these falls until you are upon them. The cascades made a gorgeous curve in the river, and the mist rose high to join the overcast sky. Our photographers enjoyed the even light.
From here we headed into the volcanic zone with a stop at a formation called “pseudocraters.” These unusual structures look like a series of small volcanoes, and they were formed when lava superheated the lake sediment and caused mini-explosions that left characteristic cones behind. The pseudocraters we visited sit on a farmer’s land on the shore of Lake Myvatn. The farmer grows and harvests hay on the level ground around the craters–an interesting mix of landscape and culture. The lake itself was visited by swans, ducks, and phalaropes, which pleased the birders among us.
The area we were traveling throughout the day is right on the rift between two tectonic plates, and it feels like the Earth is alive. In some places, towers of lava trace shapes against the sky, and in the others you can see how the lava is split deep down into the Earth. At one stop, we walked between fumaroles that spewed steam and gas into the air, and the hot sulphur water traced multi-colored lines across the ground. Our young explorers walked around with their noses plugged to keep the smells out, but they still had a great time in a landscape that was so new to most of us.
At the end of the afternoon, some of us went to climb up one of the tephra rings accessible by road; this was a mountain left behind by an enormous eruption. With lava stones, cinder, and ash underfoot, we trudged up the trail until we reached the edge of a giant circle of volcanic scree. This gave us yet another perspective on the land. We could look across the top of the cone to see tiny figures on the other side silhouetted by the afternoon sun.
We didn’t rest much today. After Recap and dinner we went ashore at the island of Grimsey, a beautiful little community full of puffins and fishing boats as well as the one place in Iceland where you can walk across the Arctic Circle. We are indeed northerners now.
