Marcea's World: Iceland, Day 6

Northern Iceland

Today we are going to the Lake Myvatn area. The lake's name means gnats. If it is warm and sunny, they will find us...but we start out in wind and rain again, COLD. The scenery feels more desolate in its beauty.

High School campus in Iceland

Along the way we see a large high school complex in the middle of farmland. In the summer,
schools like this are often converted to hotels. Then back to dormitories and classes for the school term. It solves a problem of a short summer tourist season, where rural areas could not support a hotel investment.

Lake Myvatn region

We also learn a bit more about livestock. Sheep and cows were brought to Iceland in the settlement days, but none are allowed to be imported any more. The breeds enjoy no threats of bacteria or viruses in their isolation, and could not tolerate them without good immunity systems.

All along our drive, we see evidence of layer, upon layer, of volcanic activity. Craters in the distance, lava fields.

Not only are livestock immune from the unseen...there are also no predators! There is no
large game except for reindeer (which were imported in the 18th century). Hunting for birds
is popular, and Iceland has many breeds including the more unusual puffin. There are no
reptiles like lizards or snakes, no frogs. Mink are wild, after being imported in the 1940's for fur production and there are rabbits plus the native arctic fox.

Sheep Extras for Ben Stiller

Trying to direct sheep for filming

As we reach the lake, crossing lavafields mixed with farmland, lots and lots of sheep being gathered for shearing and slaughter next month...we see another gathering of sheep. Ben Stiller is filming a movie, and we watch a rather humorous attempt at making sheep move one way, then the other! ONE THING WE KNOW about sheep...when you look at them they run away! There are have been many movies shot in Iceland over the summer, as the government has been encouraging it.

Lake Myvatn

Lake Myvatn is the 6th largest lake of Iceland. It is special in that it lies along the split of the Eurasian and American tectonic plates. The split runs from the northeast here, to the southwest and into the Pacific Ocean. This rift widens about 1 inch every year, the plates moving apart, which makes Iceland grow in size. The rift expands on the island with
some collapsing of the land walls, and refilling from underneath with lava. Volcanic activity is frequent, though usually on a smaller scale than what gets world attention!

Mountain view in Iceland

The lake itself has a unique eco system. Fresh water is seeping into it from volcanos and moorlands, so it is rich in minerals and nutrients. It exits via the Luxal River. Salmon fishing is popular...although we are told licenses can cost as much as $1,000 per reel per day! No catch limit at least. In addition, the lake boasts the most variety of duck species anywhere. Myvatn is shallow, 6 feet or less.

Lake "waste" from diatome factory

Thermal energy and sulfur are harnessed by a Diatome Factory that we pass. It's overflow makes a stunningly beautiful baby blue pool. The diatome extracted from the earth is used in filtration for industrial and agricultural products, like diatomaceous earth, and dynamite.

Myvatn mud pits

Next site are the mud pits. Sulfur underneath meets the boiling thermal waters, on the surface they boil wildly. There are several active pits in a small area, each pit boils for awhile and then subsides, a new one forms nearby.

Myvatn mud pits

Boiling mud pits

Wind and steam

The colors are amazing in some of the mud pits (what would they look like if we had sunny blue skies?!?), the smell is pungent like rotten eggs, the earth near them can be rather sticky like warm peanut butter. The wind is icy cold across the barren landscape today...see Jim!...so we do not linger.

Smile for the camera!

Tectonic plates rift

One of the much-anticipates sites is the actual rift where the tectonic plates are moving! At this particular spot, the rift is fairly well defined. The movement can be spread out over several acres in small deep cracks. Or here where the earth has risen and left a deep gap.

Magical pool of water in tectonic plate rift

Water has formed a pretty little cave...but warning of falling rocks at any time!

Tectonic plates rift

Marcea on either Eurasian or
American tectonic plate...don't fall!

Marcea on BOTH American and
Eurasian continents!

Marcea puts one foot on the Eurasian side and another foot on the American side...where else can you touch 2 continents (so to speak).

Myvatn Troll Garden walk

Next walk is in the Troll Garden and Palace Garden. Trolls...the icelandic character that has small brain and giant stature. Here the lava rocks form figures and faces, like frozen trolls. There are caves where perhaps more trolls hide live. Our guide Snorri entertains us in a circle of
trolls with his bugle, including a verse of "Amazing Grace", with lovely echo sound effects. We did not see a troll stir.

Lava formation (Troll)

Myvatn Troll Garden

Lake Myvatn, pseudo crater group

Our last stop in Lake Myvatn is to see a grouping of pseudo craters. These are perhaps what makes the lake most magical when seen from the distance. They are short mounds with hollowed out centers, they seem to cave out an opening on one side. Our visit includes the
lovely sound of sheep bleating, and they indeed scurry every time you look cross-eyed at them. These pseudo craters are formed during volcanic activity, but there was no lava spewing from them. Instead, steam is trapped under the lava, and escapes in a steam explosion to form the crater.

Sheep on pseudo craters

Jim...swatting at Gnats

Marcea, Lake Myvatn
pseudo craters

Eyjafjordur

As we drive back to Akureyri, the clouds move away and we get some of the best views into Eyjafjordur.

Our last evening in Akureyri is spent strolling a rather quiet downtown Akureyri. Yesterday they celebrated a 150th anniversary with the most amazing fireworks show, that I saw from our hotel window.

Jim, HELP!

Some tourist souvenir shops are open, with fun photo ops with horrifying trolls and wilder life. But the
real smile appears for Jim when we get our Hot Dog Dinner (and a Pepsi Max). The town is lovely, but sadly it is late and we do not get to visit the closed shops or museums.