Iceland Day 7 – Myvatn Baths
On the four hour drive to Myvatn over the mountain pass and blinding fog, I pick up some more tourist spots. As I cover the gravelly desert road to Dettifoss waterfall, a 4×4 decides that I am not going fast enough, which is fair enough as I am only travelling at about 45 mph.
On the way to Dettifoss
More power to him and his four wheel drive as he pulls ahead of me, spraying a plume of gravel behind him.
My attitude changes when he pulls immediately in front of me with no clearance, spraying the front of the car and windshield with stones. When I get to the parking lot at the waterfall, there are tiny holes in the front of the bumper, and at least one suspicious scratch in the windshield. I count myself lucky that I purchased the platinum insurance package with gravel damage included.
Dettifoss is majestic, and it turns out to be the last waterfall I will see in Iceland. I miss out on Goðafoss, Krafla crater lake, the Hverfjall volcano, Lavafeld Dimmu Borgir, and the pseudocraters at Skútustaðagígar due to poor planning. I had miscounted days, and can only spend one day in the Myvatn area before the ferry to Grimsey Island.
Dettifoss Waterfall
But I do get to see Hverir, where hell bubbled up, and Grjótagjá Cave where Jon Snow and Ygritte made passionate love, before spending a couple of hours at the baths.
Hveric
The Myvatn Baths are a less crowded but still quite touristy version of the Blue Lagoon near Reykjavik that I bypassed on the way out. Mineral-rich wastewater from a geothermal power plant is captured in a pool, much like the pools in every town in Iceland but full of mineral salts. I am deterred from the cafeteria by the high even for Iceland prices.
I discover in time my miscounting of days that lead me to believe I would be able to spend two days around Myvatn, and press on late to Dalvik.
