Day 81 01 July
Today we awoke to the sun streaming in the windows-a shock after the freezing weather out in the bay chasing whales last night.
We started our exploration by driving past a geothermal power station and then walking up the volcano Mt Krafla to the Viti Crater Lake. The lake was a beautiful turquoise colour in contrast with the red of the crater itself. From this vantage point we could look out over the lava plan and see the plumes of steam dotted all over. We walked right round the crater and then headed for the lava plain of Leirhnjúkur. This area is a great plain which overflowed with lava during a 1984 eruption.
.We wandered past bubbling thermal pools, crossed rocky crevasses and saw dead craters all the time marvelling at the force that was able to break and twist huge basalt blocks to its whim.After a solid walk around the circuit we headed back to the car.
The whole day was focused around the geological legacy of volcanic activity and our last stop, the black castles continued the theme.in this case magma had come up through a lake, the lake had subsided and cooled the basalt. This left a series of tall twisted structures some with natural arches.
We then started for home but not before stopping to explore a huge broken boulder by the side of the road.
We then drove right around Lake Myvatn before shopping and going to the Natural Bath hot pool, which had been recommended. There we died of sticker shock, as they wanted about $50 each so we went home and had a hilarious time after locking ourselves out of the house.
