It's still windy today, but warmer, in the 60s. We walked down to the restaurant for a nice breakfast buffet of skyr, granola, bread, hard boiled eggs, etc.
Nearby there is a geothermal area with fumaroles, mud pots, etc, and we set off for that. We were somewhat put off by the almost $9 parking fee. It was pretty cool to get that close to those features.
After that, we headedto the Krafla Geothermal area, where there is a power plant, a volcanic cone, and a crater. The crater has a lake inside that was formed in the 1720s. We walked up the crater rim a bit.
The volcanic cone formed during eruptions about 1980. The walk takes you past different lava fields. It was amazing to me to see tiny pink thyme flowers blooming in the lava. Apparently it's pretty tough stuff. Part of the walk is on a boardwalk that obviously had not been maintained--caved-in and missing boards, especially where it went uphill.
At the power plant, we watched a short movie about its operations.
From there, we drove north to Husavik, a short distance from the arctic circle. The drive was through gorgeous country with sheep everywhere. We had to stop once for sheep in the road. Not far from Husavik, along the side of the road, someone with a sense of humor stuck a pipe with a showerhead on it in the ground and connected it to a hot water source underground, to create a running shower. Weird.
Husavik itself reminded us of a small, really small, version of Valdez, Alaska, an absolutely stunning port. With snow- capped mountains as a backdrop, it's really charming. We strolled a bit about the waterfront, then visited the Lutheran church, built in 1907. The interior looks like a ship, and for good reason: it was built by shipbuilders. The painting at the front of the church depicts the resurrection of Lazarus, but set in Iceland, with a backdrop of lava rock. The ceiling was sky blue.
Amazing to us was that the Temps here were a comfortable 70. Beautiful day.
Photos here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/bjd9cUvMFgYCDRTw9
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