07-14-2026 A Day Trip from Akureyri, Iceland Part 1 Lake Mývatn

Early morning approach to Akureyri, Iceland

Our longest excursion of the cruise began early. By 7:00 a.m. we were off Neptune and looking for Bus Number 2, one of dozens lined up along the dock waiting to carry passengers across northern Iceland. Three other cruise ships were in port that morning, and the big tour buses were already lined up and rumbling.

Almost there!  A big day ahead for us

One of the things I appreciated throughout the voyage was how carefully Viking looked after me. Before I had time to worry about my walker, a crew member had already whisked it away, and it was always waiting for me at the bottom of the gangway.

Once again I was ushered to the front seat of the bus

We rode about forty-five minutes through a technicolor landscape while our guide introduced us to the world around us. 

such a green and lovely landscape

By the time we arrived at Lake Mývatn, I was already in love with the colors and this familiar-yet-unknown volcanic landscape. It was like looking at Upper Klamath Lake, Mono Lake, and some wonderfully green Irish countryside all rolled into one.

Viking Neptune and a Regent ship both in port at Akureyri

This first stop was spectacular. The rain stopped just long enough to leave behind a magical sky filled with shifting shadows and light. 

A shallow lake with cones and fumaroles scattered about

The lake stretched before us with gorgeous views in every direction. Even though the path was rough gravel, I decided to take the walker. I made it to the first high viewpoint, and then our guide, in her wonderful Icelandic accent, announced,

"Now these are the only stairs I will require you to take. The rest is fairly level."

The stairs were long and rather steep

As I looked down the long flight of stairs, I asked Mo if we could somehow carry the walker. Just as she was saying, "No way," an older gentleman lost his footing on the lower steps. Unable to regain his balance, he finally sat down and carefully slid the rest of the way to the bottom.

As I stood looking out over that magical landscape, I tried hard to hide the stinging tears welling up in the back of my eyes.

Halfway around the world, I thought, and I'm going to miss this.

Then Mo quietly looked around and said, "What if we go back down and access the trail from the lower end?" It worked.

Together we walked to the lakeshore with the walker, and suddenly the disappointment melted away. The entire landscape felt wonderfully familiar. The volcanic story reminded me so much of the Klamath Basin, algae blooming in phosphorus-rich waters, clouds of midges thriving because of that same phosphorus, and a healthy trout population completing the ecosystem. Half a world apart, yet somehow it felt like coming home.

Our first sight of Icelandic horses

At the beginning of our walk around the lake trail, our guide explained how Lake Mývatn had formed about 2,300 years ago after a large basaltic lava eruption. As the lava spread across the region, it reached wetlands and shallow water. The intense heat caused powerful steam explosions, creating the remarkable pseudocraters surrounding the lake. Unlike true volcanic craters, these weren't formed by erupting magma but by steam blasting through the lava. The same lava flow also blocked the region's natural drainage, trapping the water that eventually became Lake Mývatn.

wild purple thyme and white yarrpw growing on the lava

Today it is one of Iceland's largest lakes, covering about fourteen square miles, yet its average depth is only about eight feet similar to our very own Klamath Lake. That shallow, nutrient-rich water supports an astonishing abundance of aquatic life and birdlife.

the hotel where we were served a lovely lunch

With our extended trail walk, Mo and I were just a bit late to the included lunch at the hotel across the street from the trail.  The meal was simple and delicious: smooth tomato soup, perfectly prepared trout without a single bone, boiled potatoes, cabbage slaw, beer for me, and wine for Mo.

delicious lunch served family style

I have to admit I remained a little irritated. The lower trail had been an easy and enjoyable way to experience the lake, and I couldn't understand why our guide hadn't mentioned it from the beginning. It would have allowed anyone with limited mobility to enjoy the same beautiful shoreline without feeling they were missing the best part of the stop.

the wind was strong but the rain gave us a bit of a break as we walke the paths

As we continued toward our next stop, our guide kept pointing out features of the volcanic landscape rolling past our windows. This seems like the perfect opportunity to share something I was beginning to understand about Iceland.

One reader commented that she was surprised by the horizontal basalt layers in the cliffs around Ísafjörður. She had imagined Iceland as one dramatic volcanic landscape filled with fresh lava and erupting volcanoes.

I smiled because I had expected much the same thing. Instead, I discovered that Iceland tells its geologic story in chapters.

As a retired soil scientist, I naturally notice geology because it forms the parent material of soils. But what fascinated me even more was the geomorphology, the shape of the land itself. Geology tells us what the rocks are made of. Geomorphology explains how the landscape we see today came to be.

As we traveled around Iceland, I realized each stop revealed a completely different chapter in the island's history. For those who enjoy geology as much as I do, here's a simplified way to think about Iceland's landscapes.

• 
  The Westfjords (Ísafjörður) showed us Iceland's oldest landscapes, millions of years of stacked basalt lava flows later carved into spectacular fjords by glaciers.

• 

  Gentle landscape around Lake Myvatn

  North Iceland (Akureyri and Mývatn) felt completely different. Here we would see a landscape still being built by volcanic eruptions, rifting, lava flows, geothermal activity, and boiling earth.

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  Godafoss downcutting recent basaltic lava

  Goðafoss reminded us that water can be just as powerful as lava, carving beautiful waterfalls through ancient volcanic rock.

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  Recent volcanic landscape of Heimaey

  Heimaey showed us perhaps the most dramatic chapter of all, a town that watched a volcanic eruption reshape its island within living memory.

By the end of our journey I realized Iceland wasn't one landscape at all. It was an entire geologic story spread across an island, one remarkable chapter after another.

But this tour from Akureyri still had wonders to show us.  Next, Part 2  The Geothermal Zone