Salut les pitchous, third and last article (in two parts) on our road trip in Iceland! * snif snif *
The last days were great, we were tired but so happy … I think it shows on the video, really go see it, take a few minutes of your time and admire these beautiful landscapes and our happy faces.
FRENCH VERSION
DAYS 8 & 9
Seydisfjordur -> Myvatn (2hours40)
A little digression before talking about Lake Myvatn, we go back where we had stopped in the previous episode.
Seydisfjordur has been our favorite city in the eastern fjords. After shopping in the city without any interest in Egilsstadir, we had a road, foggy coast, and on the other side was the cutest village I had ever seen. Everything is colorful, clean, very pleasant to live.
We spent the night camping Seydisfjordur, very good campsite, small but well appointed and equipped with everything you need!
The Lake Myvatn region has been our favorite place in Iceland, there are lots of different things to see, a lot of hikes worth a visit, a very special atmosphere, basically a big playground for little explorers that we are.
To do in the Lake Myvatn area
Námafjall (or Hverir)
You can not miss this place, it’s on the road 1 going towards the lake. The Namafjall is a small mountain, and the particularity of this site is that the ground smokes everywhere around this small mountain. The colors are beautiful and it feels like another world with all the sulfur vapor that comes out of the ground, clearly it does not really smell good, but after 8 days in Iceland, we are used to the smell of rotten egg, and we almost like it (almost…). 
Krafla volcano
By taking Route 863, and going up, you can start with one of the many small volcanoes in the area. Its particularity is that it has a »pool » in the middle (if the scientists saw that, they would hit me on it). Climb up and you will see that it’s filled with a beautiful blue water. Unfortunately we can not bathe, this water is full of sulfur and other stuff not very cool for us 😉 The climb is steep but quick to climb and you can then go around the crater. The Krafla volcano is surrounded by the geothermal power plant with its big pipes, it’s quite impressive.
Leirhnjukur hike (which is … oh surprise, a volcano).
Great time to walk between the slushes of mud (the volcano is active so it mud the bottom, it makes bubbles and all that), to walk on the old black lava flows between the smoke spots. Yes, it’s really photogenic all that. You can do a little hike of an hour, very easy (it’s almost all flat), and otherwise longer hikes that go to the lake. The departure car park is quite easy to find, it is also on the 863 road, on the other side a little further down the Krafla volcano.
Grjotagja cave
Take again the road 1 and a little further take the road 860 (which is super pleasant to drive, it is a kind of black and fine sand), I loved this little road! And you’ll find Grjotagja cave – the cave where Jon Snow and the redhead (I never remember his name) do not very Catholic things in Games of Throne. If you are a fan of the series, it’s cool to see that, we wonder how they shot in such a small place, and for others, it’s still a nice little cave filled with water to see. Before it seems to me that we could swim but more now, bacteria have developed etc …
Dimmuborgir
Go at the end of the 860, turn left and you will arrive at the site of Dimmuborgir, which is a volcanic formation in the form of a column, with trees (rare in Iceland), and trolls living in the holes … 😉
There are several hikes to do, everything is explained at the entrance, there is something for everyone, but none are very difficult. These are just marked trails, the Icelandic government did this to protect the site and avoid destroying this miracle of nature. It was a great moment, spent in this mystical universe.
Hverfjall, we stay in the volcanoes
Climb really really not obvious (we were well tired too), and with my fear of heights, I was not at most comfortable up, but the view is splendid, and this volcano is quite impressive. If like me you want to drop your friends, go down, take your 4×4, have fun with the kind of sand super nice, and chill down the volcano next to the river (see 4th photo) with Erik Satie, a real happiness ❤
Skutustadagigar
On Route 848, you still have a little walk between the small craters that formed on the lake during a Krafla lava flow. In contact with the water, the lava « exploded » and that formed these small hills. Nice, especially with the sun.
Bird museum – Sigurgeirs
There was an afternoon when it was raining so hard, we looked for an activity to do indoors and not too expensive. We came across this bird museum, the entrance is 12 000kr, about 11 dollars. And it was a great surprise, this museum was created thanks to a great passionate bird. There are a number of listed species quite impressive. You also have an observation point with a binocular to admire all the different species present on the lake. And another piece with the story of a gentleman who helped the people of the lake all his life by making a boat to transport them from one point to another. If you take the time to read everything, you can kill two hours of your time in this museum (in the positive sense) and learn things. There is also something to eat and drink. We loved this place and it allowed us to hike Dimmuborgir out when the rain finally stopped!
Natural baths – Jardbodin vid Myvatn
You probably know the famous Blue Lagoon near Reykjavik ? Here it’s the same, but smaller, less expensive, with fewer people. This is still a hell of a price (a little over 47 dollars), but it’s worth it. It’s really something you can do only in Iceland. We stayed there a good time, we were so good in this hot water, with our little beers (three maximum per person) (not funny these Icelanders ;)), in the night, with a good atmosphere, very special. Remember to remove your silver jewelry before entering the water, I did not listen to the guy and suddenly one of my earrings turned black (I did not even put my head under water). Wash in the locker room before entering the water, there is soap available, dry hair and lockers for your stuff. Everything is well organized, no worries on this side. You also have small sauna, and a dining area.
Godafoss
Not far from the lake, you have the Godafoss waterfall, which is a big boss of the waterfall. One of the most impressive that we saw even though it was the 14 000th of the stay.
Northern Lights
It’s not typical of Lake Myvatn of course, but that’s where we’ve seen it. We were in our tent when someone shouted »Northern lights guys !! », we went out after a second of »what did he say ? », and OUAW. It was the first time for us to see that, and we were like crazy! It’s really great to see, like a spirit in the sky dancing. It must have lasted about twenty minutes, after the sky became cloudy, but we really loved being able to see that.
ACCOMMODATION NEAR MYVATN LAKE
We spent two nights at one of the Laugar campsites, a village 10 minutes drive from the lake. And this has been our favorite campsite! In other camping we were bad or not at all welcomed or the showers were paid or cold or it had no charm, or all at the same time. Here, you are taken care of when you arrive (it’s a farm) the owners are invested, (I specify because it’s really rare in Iceland), the locations are very good (there was a little bit flooded because of the huge rain of the day, but we looked for the perfect location not wet, and we obviously found it). The showers are free and hot, and there is a small outdoor kitchen. And you avoid the lake flies by moving away a bit 😉
Camping Lifsmotun – Hjallavegur / Laugar – +354 864 8790
Other articles on our road trip in Iceland:
-> Reykjavik / Cercle d’Or / Iles Vestmann
-> Landmannalaugar / Vik / Hofn
-> peninsule de Snaefellsnes
