The amazing Mývatn & Krafla Area in North-Iceland - a Compilation of the wonderful Sights

Way up in North-Iceland you will find the amazing Mývatn area. Visiting it is like stepping into another world and I love spending time up there. Here you will find mud pools, a lunar-like landscape, pseudo craters, lava pillars, the Mývatn Naturebaths, a lake inside a volcanic crater and the amazing Dimmuborgir - Dark Fortress, to name just a few interesting places in Mývatn.

Not to forget an adventurous visit to the lava cave Lofthellir, where you will have to squeeze through a small hole to see the wonders inside, which include the biggest ice sculptures in any known cave in Iceland. 

In this travel-blog, I will touch lightly on the wonders of Mývatn and refer to my detailed Mývatn in North-Iceland - series I-IV  travel-blogs, where you will find much more detailed information in chronological order and a lot more photos.

Top photo: Bjarnarflag

Skútustaðagígar - the Pseudo Craters of Skútustaðir

Skútustaðagígar pseudocraters

Skútustaðagígar pseudocraters are also called rootless craters as they have no end to them. They are created when lava flows over wet ground, causing steam to be trapped underneath. The pressure from the steam causes explosions and these peculiar pseudocraters are formed.

Only in Iceland and on the planet Mars can such pseudocraters be seen above ground, so they are quite a geological wonder.

Read more about them in my travel-blog the amazing Mývatn Area in North-Iceland - Part I.

The Grænavatn Turf House

Grænavatn turf house 

Grænavatn turf house was built in 1913, but Grænavatn is a settlement farm, meaning that during the Viking times the Vikings had a farm here. It is unique in the way that it is a two-storey house with a roof made of turf.

Read more about Grænavatn turf house in both my travel-blog the amazing Mývatn Area in North-Iceland - Part I and my travel-blog on the turf houses at Grænavatn.

Lake Mývatn & the lava pillars at Kálfastrandarvogar

Kálfastrandarvogar cove

Lake Mývatn, which is Iceland's 4th largest lake, was created in a basaltic lava eruption. In and around the lake you will find many free-standing lava pillars and lava formations. The most beautiful lava pillars are to be found at Kálfastrandarvogar cove. On the lake, you will find at least 13 duck species and many more birds.

Lake Mývatn gets its name from the midge, which is the base of the ecosystem of Lake Mývatn. When they mate there can be some 750-900 tonnes of midges here and the sky can become black!

Read more in my travel-blog the amazing Mývatn Area in North-Iceland - Part I

Sigurgeir's Bird Museum - Breeding Birds in Iceland

At Fuglasafn Sigurgeirs Stefánssonar - the Sigurgeir's Birds Museum,

By Lake Mývatn, at Ytri-Neslönd you will find Fuglasafn Sigurgeirs Stefánssonar - the Sigurgeir's Birds Museum, with specimens of almost all the breeding birds in Iceland. This is the largest private bird collection in Iceland, built in the memory of Sigurgeir Stefánsson, who was an avid bird and egg collector.

Sigurgeir tragically drowned in Lake Mývatn at the age of 37.

Read more about this excellent museum in my travel-blog the Sigurgeir's Bird Museum at Mývatn - Breeding Birds in Iceland.

Höfði peninsula

Höfði peninsula

Höfði is a vegetated peninsula in the Mývatn area, which used to be barren until the owners planted thousands of trees and plants on the peninsula. You can take a walk on the peninsula and at the west end of it, you will get a beautiful view of Kálfastrandarvogar cove and Lake Mývatn.

Read more in my travel-blog the amazing Mývatn Area in North-Iceland - Part I.

Lofthellir cave - huge ice sculptures

Lofthellir cave

During your visit to Mývatn don't miss the chance of visiting Lofthellir cave, where you will see the largest natural ice sculptures in any known lava cave in Iceland.

Here you will get to squeeze through a hole by the entrance to the cave and slide on the ice holding a rope before you reach the main chamber with the extraordinary ice sculptures.

The visit is available on a guided tour only.

Read much more about Lofthellir cave in my travel-blog the Extraordinary Ice Sculptures in Lofthellir Cave in Mývatn North-Iceland.

Dimmuborgir - Dark Fortress lava formations

Dimmuborgir

At Dimmuborgir - the Dark Fortress or Dark Cities you will see unique lava formations, which got created in the most spectacular way.

Here you will walk between amazing lava formations caused by hot lava streaming under a lava pond. When groundwater became trapped beneath the molten lave the steam issued through vents in the lava and created these fragile pillars.

Read more about Dimmuborgir in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part II - Dimmuborgir lava field & the Cave of the Yule Lads.

Jólasveinahellirinn - the Cave of the Yule Lads

Inside Jólasveinahellirinn

Somewhere hidden inside Dimmuborgir you might stumble upon Jólasveinahellirinn - the Cave of the Yule Lads! The Icelandic Yule lads are 13 very ill-mannered and inquisitive trolls. They are the sons of the two terrible trolls, Grýla and Leppalúði!

Read more about the Cave of the Yule Lads in my travel-blog  Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part II - Dimmuborgir lava field & the Cave of the Yule Lads.

Grjótagjá lava cave

Inside Grjótagjá

Grjótagjá rift is an old bathing place and a magical place to visit. It is a rift or a cave with 2 entrances leading down to the hot thermal blue water. The temperature of the water rose too much (up to 60-70 degrees C) during the Krafla eruption in 1975-1984 and is still (2021) too hot to bathe in.

But you can have a peek inside and take photos - just be very careful as it is rocky and hot. Grjótagjá is privately owned and bathing or camping is prohibited here.

Read more about Grjótagjá in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part III - Grjótagjá, Stóragjá & the Mývatn Naturebaths.

Stóragjá rift

Walking inside Stóragjá rift

Stóragjá rift is much lesser known than Grjótagjá. Here you will have to descend into the rift and look for holes in the walls of the rift to find the entrances to the warm blue water, way below. The water is not recommended for bathing due to algae and e-Coli bacteria, but it is well worth having a look inside.

Read more about Stóragjá in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part III - Grjótagjá, Stóragjá & the Mývatn Naturebaths.

Vogafjós restaurant and cowshed

Visiting the cows at Vogafjós

Vogafjós - Cove Cowshed is both a restaurant and an open cowshed, which offers local produce, like smoked lamb and trout, tea and jam, rye bread cooked in a hot spring, home-made cheese and mozzarella and beef from their own cattle. A visit to the cows and calves is complimentary.

Read more about Vogafjós in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part III - Grjótagjá, Stóragjá & the Mývatn Naturebaths.

Reykjahlíðarkirkja church and the huge lava rocks  

The Church at Reykjahlíð in Mývatn

Marvels took place by Reykjahlíðarkirkja church during the Mývatnseldar eruption in 1724-1729. Here the lava flow from this massive eruption spared the church and miraculously flowed on both sides of it, leaving the church intact.

Next to the church, you will see the huge lava chunks. Inside the church, you can have a look at a wooden pulpit with carvings depicting this miraculous event.

The pulpit in Reykjahlíðarkirkja church

Read more about the Reykjahlíðarkirkja church marvels in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part III - Grjótagjá, Stóragjá & the Mývatn Naturebaths.

Jarðböðin á Mývatni - the Mývatn Nature Baths

Jarðböðin á Mývatni

The Mývatn Nature Baths are often referred to as the Blue Lagoon of the North. Here you can bathe in wonderfully blue water and relax after a full day of exploring the interesting sights in the Mývatn area. 

The blue water comes from the depths of some 2,500 meters in the ground and is believed to be beneficial to the skin as it is rich in minerals. It is very popular visiting the Mývatn Nature Baths during all seasons, but in the wintertime, you get the additional chance of the Northern lights showing up! 

Jarðböðin á Mývatni

Read more about the Mývatn Nature Baths in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part III - Grjótagjá, Stóragjá & the Mývatn Naturebaths.

Mt. Námafjall and Hverarönd

Mud pools at Hverarönd

By Námafjall you will find a high-temperature geothermal area with fumaroles and boiling mud pools. This area is sometimes called Hell's Kitchen, as it is boiling so much and the overwhelming stench of sulphur fills the air.

The orange/yellow colour of this area stems from sulphur which was exported and used for gunpowder.

Read more about this area in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part IV - Mt. Námafjall, Krafla & Leirhnjúkur.

Krafla and Stóra-Víti - Big Hell

Stóra-Víti crater

A little north of Námafjall you will find a lake-filled explosion crater called Stóra-Víti or Big Hell. The lake has got the most amazing azure blue colour. This crater got created in an eruption back in 1724 in the Mývatnseldar Fires.

Krafla central volcano erupted during the years 1975-1984 all in all 9 times! When you visit this calm area now think about what it must have looked like when there were lava fountains as high as 70 meters that lit up the sky!

Read more about this area in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part IV - Mt. Námafjall, Krafla, Leirhnjúkur & Gjástykki.

Leirhnjúkur geothermal area

Leirhnjúkur

Next to Stóra-Víti explosion crater, you will find the Leirhnjúkur area - where one can see some brilliant colours and big contrasts.

 As you hike in the Leirhnjúkur area you will see boiling mud-pots, pitch-black lava formations with many a lava rift, bubbling hot-springs inside the lava, extraordinary colourful hills and mountains.

Read more about this area in my travel-blog Mývatn in North-Iceland - Part IV - Mt. Námafjall, Krafla & Leirhnjúkur.

Gjástykki lava field

Gjástykki lava field

A bit further is Gjástykki, where the earth ripped apart during the movements of the Eurasian and North-American tectonic plates.

 At Þingvellir national park one can also see the tectonic plates above ground, but the lava in this area is new, so to speak, as it was created in the Krafla Fires during the volcano-tectonic eruptions in 1975-1984.

The lava field here is almost untouched and very brittle and can only be reached with a guide.

Read much more about this area in my travel-blog a Unique Lava Walk through the Colourful Lava Field at Gjástykki in North-Iceland.

Shining colourful lava at Gjástykki

Now, this was one of my first travel-blogs which I wrote back in 2013. Since then I have rewritten it and added many other travel-blogs about Mývatn as I love spending time up there.

Here are the travel-blogs I have written about Mývatn over the past few years:

The Amazing Mývatn area - part I

The Amazing Mývatn area - part II

The Amazing Mývatn area - part III

The Amazing Mývatn area - part IV

Grænavatn Turf House at Mývatn

The Sigurgeir's Bird Museum at Mývatn - Breeding Birds in Iceland

Úlfhildur the Elf-lady at Lake Mývatn in North-Iceland - an Icelandic Folklore

A Wonderful Day of exploring the Extraordinary Mývatn Area in North-Iceland

The Extraordinary Ice Sculptures in Lofthellir Cave in Mývatn North-Iceland

A Unique Lava Walk through the Colourful Lava Field at Gjástykki in North-Iceland

Mývatn is located up north some 470 km away from Reykjavík. To reach Mývatn you can rent a car in Reykjavík and drive up north in two days.  

Have a wonderful time at the beautiful Mývatn and Krafla areas :)