Reykjavík Grapevine - 08.04.2005, Blaðsíða 43

While I swear by Mývatn as a hiking destination, the
owner of our hotel happily took us on a brief jeep tour.
He explained that during the off-season, the hotels will
offer Northern Lights tours, skiing tours and bike tours.
Mountain biking is coming to Mývatn, he pointed out
as he showed us Hverfjall. “We have great tracks now,
but there will be some extreme stuff coming in the
next few years.” He then quickly recapped the current
list of activities that Mývatn specializes in: the area is
something like a national capital for snow-mobiling and
cross-country skiing already, it is the launch point for
the biggest superjeep tours to Dettifoss, home to the best
salmon fishing in the country, and, if you’re inclined, it
even has an ice-fishing culture.
by Jason Deign
Directions to key cities in Iceland
are simple: drive the ring road. If
you have two or more people, buses
and planes price themselves out of
the market, so you’re best is with a
rental.
Grapevine went on word of mouth
and chose the local rental agency,
RAS. (www.rascar.com) We did
everything online. There were ups
and downs to this strategy; the lack
of personal communication made
it much easier to book a car at, say,
1 am the night before. But it didn’t
allow for the knowledge and know-
how that are necessary.
We rented a Toyota Camry for a trip
to Mývatn, for example—not wise. A
small jeep is essential for Mývatn in
the spring. Beyond this, RAS, with
a fantastically laid back staff, worked
out well.
Our car: Toyota Camry, 5000 ISK
per day.
(If going to Mývatn, pay 500 ISK
extra for light jeep.)
Gas money for 1100 kilometre
journey: 8000 ISK.
(Gas is CHEAPER in major towns,
Reykjavík and Akureyri. It can be up
to 10 ISK per litre more expensive in
the countryside.)
Time spent driving: 7 hours each
way, with stops for coffee, food and
hikes.
Groceries and foodstuffs for three
days: 4000 ISK.
(Purchases at 10/11 in Akureyri and
Strax in Mývatn were easy on the
budget.)
Driving:
The maximum speed limit in Iceland
is 90 km/hour. As it turns out, this
is the highest reasonable speed in a
country full of sheep, high winds and
lost tourists. Our advice: if you are
reading this magazine, you are either
foreign or young—in both cases you
a) have something to live for and
shouldn’t put this in jeopardy and b)
are very easy targets for the plentiful
speed traps.
Fines for speeding hit 20,000 ISK
(400 USD) very very quickly. If
you do get pulled over, you can pay
on the spot for a reduced fine. We
highly recommend this method.
Miscellaneous:
We used complimentary maps from
the rental agency and a large guide
map. For the drive to Mývatn,
no map was necessary, as road
signs were clear. In locating local
treasures—hotsprings and hiking
trails—advice from hotels was better
than maps.
A cell phone is essential, preferably
with the numbers of the place you’re
staying programmed in. Because
they share coverage towers, Síminn
and Og Vodafone cell phones work
equally well throughout Iceland.
Bathing
Touring
Travel Tips:
For Hiking Trails, go to www.nat.is.
My favourite activities in Mývatn used to be tracking
down hot baths in which to swim. There is what we
called the “green lagoon,” the hot lagoon formed from
production of a silicate material at a now defunct factory.
There are also amazing natural hot pots, all of which I
found through the help of locals and have promised not
to report. (Though if you follow the hiking trail from
just outside Reykjahlíð to Grjógjá, you will stumble on
my favourite natural hot pool in about six kilometres.)
The warning on natural hot springs, including the
“green lagoon” is this: they aren’t regulated. You can get
burned. Badly. So use caution and don’t even think about
drinking near them, as this can dull the senses a little,
and you could get burned on very private areas.
If you want casual bathing, or just a relaxing time, I
highly recommend the newly constructed Jarðbaðsholar,
or Mývatn Nature Baths. The less pretentious, less
futuristic cousin of the Blue Lagoon, Jarðbaðsholar
initially disappointed us.
“This is just a big puddle,” my friend said. “This can’t
even compete with the Blue Lagoon.”
Two hours later, after staring down at an unimpeded
view of Lake Mývatn, and up at the stars and the
Northern Lights, we both conceded that Jarðbaðsholar
won hands down. A puddle the place may be, but
a puddle in the middle of some of the world’s most
beautiful scenery with no alteration whatsoever isn’t bad
thing.
Jarðbaðsholar (Mývatn Nature Baths), 660 Mývatn,
Ph# 464-4411 www.naturebaths.com
Getting to Mývatn
Whales
&Puffin Island
Take part in an adventure at sea with an
unforgettable 3-hour trip from Reykjavík harbour
into the world of whales and sea birds.
Daily departures from Reykjavík
9:009:00 9:00 9:00 9:00 9:00
May
13:00
June
13:00
July
13:00
Aug
13:00
Sept
13:00
Oct
13:00
April
13:00
17:00 17:00 17:00
555 3565
Call us now
or visit
www.elding.is
Elding Whale Watching, Reykjavík, Iceland
Tel: (+354) 555 3565, Fax: (+354) 554 7420
info@elding.is, www.elding.is
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