Iceland is well known for it’s geothermal activity, be it active volcanoes or their natural hot baths dotted around the country. Right outside Mývatn is Hverir, a small area with bubbling mud pools and water pools. It’s free to go and see so if you are passing by I’d really recommend it as the landscape is actually quite beautiful. Prepare yourself for the sulpher smell though, it’s very strong and when it’s windy you just can’t escape.
If you get a little cold, pop yourself in the way of the steam coming out of this little mound where people have piled rocks, sorted!
Between 1724 and 1729 the Mývatn fires happened, which is when many of the fissures opened up. The lava flow covered most of the area which is why there isn’t much growing in the area. Then between 1975 and 1984 the nearby Krafla volcano had nine volcanic eruptions in which a large magma chamber emerged which is why still today the areas geothermal energy has been used by a local power station (pictured above in the last picture). The power station is off a small road just across from the geothermal area, and if you drive to the top there is a little lookout car park to see over the valley.
I was glad we decided to go and see the bubbling pools as it was getting late and we weren’t sure about it. We were there for about an hour overall and it was well worth it. The pools are really actively bubbling and steaming, and I felt like I was on another planet. I’m so glad we were in Iceland during the summer when it didn’t get dark until almost midnight, because we saw a lot more that we probably would have missed otherwise.
Have you ever been to any geothermal areas?
