"THE MÝVATN - AREA." Top 5 Page for this destination Mÿvatn by Regina1965

Mÿvatn Travel Guide: 69 reviews and 357 photos

THE MÝVATN - AREA.

Now this area in Iceland is absolutely amazing and should not be missed while visiting the country. The Mývatn area is called Mývatnssveit, but we Icelanders always refer to it as going to Mývatn.

In Mývatn you can see awesome mud pools by Mt. Nàmafjall and visit Hells kitchen. Hike in the mud pool area of Leirhnjukur by the Krafla volcano. Walk by a crater filled with water, called Viti or Hell. Walk on pseudo craters by Skutustadagigar, see beautiful lava pillars by Lake Mývatn. Walk through amazing lava formations in Dimmuborgir - Dark Fortress, bathe in the geothermal lagoon called The Blue lagoon of the North. See the place where the lava flood stopped right by a church. Camp in a lava field, hike on Mt. Hverfjall and many, many more things.

A highly recommended area to visit while in Iceland.

THE MÝVATN - AREA.

Boiling mud pools.

There are 2 amazing mud pool areas in Mývatn.

Námafjall is on ring-road one just by the road in the Krafla and Mývatn area in N-Iceland. It is a high-temperature geothermal area with fumaroles and boiling mud pools. As is characteristic for other hot spring areas there is a hot spring smell at Námafjall which is caused by the steam and the fumarole gas, such as hydrogen sulfide. The sulphur fumes can overwhelm you at times there, especially when the wind is strong. Try to stay up wind as this can be toxic and can give you a bad headache and nausea. This area in Námaskarð has often been called "eldhús djöfulsins" or "Hell's (The Devil's) kitchen" because of the sulphur smell and the boiling mud pools all around you. You will understand this comparison when visiting this place.

Námafjall is located by ring-road one just behind Mývatn. Right on the other side of Námafjall is the Blue lagoon of the north. This is an extremely volcanic area with Mt. Krafla just a few kilometres away where the last volcanic eruption took place in 1984.

There is another mud pool area at Mývatn called Leirhnjúkur area, which is really like stepping into another world, there are big contrasts and a lot of colours. There are several walking-paths in the Leirhnjúkur area and you feel like you might be walking on the moon or in another world. Stay on the paths as it is bubbling and boiling all around you and the area beneath is extremely hot and dangerous. As you walk in the Leirhnjúkur area you encounter boiling mud-pots, lava formations, hot-springs inside the lava, extraordinary colourful hills and mountains. Here is socalled Gjástykki, where the tectonic plates drifted apart with the volcanic eruption in the middle, so on one side there is America and on one side there is Europe. But here there is new lava, not like in Þingvellir national park where you can also see the tectonic plates.

Here is a driving range for astronauts going to Mars, pretty much like Askja was chosen as a driving range in 1967 for astronauts going to the Moon .

THE MÝVATN - AREA.

Lake Mývatn.

Lake Mývatn is Iceland's 4th largest lake and was created in a basaltic lava eruption 2300 years ago and the surrounding landscape in the Mývatn area is extraordinary.

There are so many wonderful lava formations in this area, including the lava pillars by and in Lake Mývatn.

There is a very diverse waterbird-live here, including at least 15 species of ducks, and nowhere else on earth are there as many duck-species than in Mývatn

Pros and Cons

Pros:Absolutely amazing.

Intro Updated Aug 12, 2012
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Reviews (19)

Beware of the mud pools and sulphur... Things to Do (16)

I accidentally put this tip under things to do - but this is a warnings and dangers tip. There are many mud-pools and... more travel advice

Bevare of the black-flies. Warnings and Dangers (1)

Mývatn gets its name from the "mý" or the midge/blackfly. It is literally everywhere and gets totally on one's nerve.... more travel advice

Mt. Hverfjall. Things to Do (16)

Now this is a strange looking mountain. It looks like something you might encounter on the moon, as it were. It looks... more travel advice

The view from the view platform of Krafla. - Mÿvatn

The view-platform - and Krafla power... Things to Do (16)

Krafla is a caldera of 10 km in diameter with a 90 km long fissure zone. The highest peak of Krafla is 818 m. Krafla... more travel advice

Hotels (1)
Camping in Mývatn in lava field.

Favorites (1)
The rare Moss balls in Lake Mývatn,...

Travelogues (2)

1 - 2 of 2

Comments (7)

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HORSCHECK May 14, 2013 at 2:32 PM

Regina, outstanding photos and very interesting info on this page. I didn't know that these sulphur fumes are so dangerous. I also like the moss balls. German caravans seem to be everywhere all around Europe.
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Nemorino Apr 25, 2013 at 3:11 PM

Regina, I see you have been updating this impressive page. It’s good that there is a geothermal power station to make use of some of the awesome energy in this area.
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maple_air Feb 13, 2013 at 7:47 AM

Your pages are a fountain of knowledge. I' m learning a lot, i'm looking out for our next destination . We went as far as Jokulsarlon last year, maybe we can venture up North this year. Thanks for sharing them.
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  Regina1965 Feb 13, 2013 at 3:20 PM
  
  Thanks, the Mývatn area is amazing, one of my favourite places in Iceland. I hope you will be able to visit the North :)
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XenoHumph Feb 9, 2013 at 12:50 PM

Excellent page! I love your country!
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  Regina1965 Feb 9, 2013 at 1:10 PM
  
  Thanks - I love this area too, one of the most interesting areas in Iceland in my opinion :)
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Yaqui Dec 28, 2012 at 10:11 AM

Fantastic page! What a beautiful place!
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  Regina1965 Dec 28, 2012 at 10:32 AM
  
  Thanks, I agree, it is one of my favourite places in Iceland :)
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balhannah Sep 12, 2012 at 3:58 AM

Excellent page Regina! I'm not keen on the sulphur smell, but I would love to see all the sights you have mentioned on this page.
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Nemorino Sep 1, 2012 at 3:05 PM

Those boiling mud pools with their sulphur fumes certainly look scary. Your photos of them are very impressive, however. I must admit I had never heard of Moss Balls before.
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  Regina1965 Sep 1, 2012 at 6:00 PM
  
  Thanks, yes, I love taking photos of the mud pools - they stink though and there are too many accidents in these geothermal areas.