Today was a bit of a lazy day. We had no fixed agenda other than a list of sights to select from. Between yesterday and today we had seen a lot of Myvatn and so Krafla, an active area similar to Hverir, and a hike to the top of the crater Hverfjall were punted from the list. The occasional bursts of light rain were the primary reason for skipping the latter.
Day 7 – Around Lake Myvatn
- Grjótagjá Cave
- Dimmuborgir
- Goðafoss
- Hofdi
- Skútustaðagígar
Grjótagjá Cave
Brightly colored blue water steams at the bottom of the Grjótagjá cave. The underground hot spring here was once used for bathing, although there were no swimmers when we went. Most visitors come here now due to its recent appearance in a Game of Thrones episode with Jon Snow and Ygritte.
Dimmuborgir
The name Dimmuborgir translates to Dark Castles. It is an area of unique lava rock formations which formed thousands of years ago when a 10 meter deep lake of lava pooled over a lake of water. The boiling of the water through the very deep lava created these giant castles of black rock. Many trails loop through the area and for much of our time there we were wandering alone through this seemingly private garden of ancient stone castles.
Goðafoss
As we were walking around Dimmuborgir clouds started forming and a light rain came down. We made our way back to the car, which by this time had become our home base, and planned out the next destination. From here, Goðafoss was a 40 minute drive and this seemed like a good way to pass the time in the rain.
When we finally arrived at Goðafoss we were stunned by this magnificent horseshoe fall. We had seen many waterfalls in Iceland by now and still, somehow, we were being impressed by each one. The light rain continued while we were here and still we stayed to explore the falls from every vantage until, thoroughly soaked, we made our way back down the muddy trails to the warm car.
In spite of the rain, I couldn’t pass the opportunity to take out the drone and capture the falls from the sky. It too came back soaked and yet completely undamaged.
Lake Myvatn
After the rain cleared we spent the remainder of our day exploring the lake from various scenic spots. The pictures below were taken from two of my favorite shoreline sites, Skútustaðagígar and Hofdi.
At Skútustaðagígar dozens of small craters pop from the ground like giant pimples. Trails take you up and down along the tops of them while the local sheep graze nearby.
Hofdi is a small peninsula known for interesting rock formations called the pillars of Kálfastrandavogar, as well as for being one of the rare places in Iceland where you can hike through a small forest. The trees at Hofdi were planted by the prior land owners over a long period of time and so the whole area feels out of place here in Iceland. After seeing very few trees for the past week the stark contrast of a typical woodland was simultaneously strange and familiar.
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