Reykjavík Grapevine - 20.05.2011, Page 33

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KEFLAVÍK
BORGARNES
STYKKISHÓLMUR
SNÆFELLSJÖKULL
DRANGAJÖKULL
FLATEY
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BLÖNDUÓS
SIGLUFJÖRÐUR
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HRÍSEY
NARSARSSUAQ
Greenland
FAROE ISLANDS
REYKJAVÍK
AKUREYRI
EGILSSTAÐIR
ÍSAFJÖRÐUR
VOPNAFJÖRÐUR
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GRÍMSEY
KULUSUK
Greenland
Blue Lagoon
AKRANES Geysir
Gullfoss
Jökullónið
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Hallormstaður
NUUK
Greenland
ILULISSAT
Greenland
www.airiceland.is
CONSTABLE POINT
Greenland
“I couldn't help feeling as though I maybe didn't want to
write about this tour after all
33
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 6 — 2011
Words
Paul Fontaine
Photography
Maroesjka Lavigne
Travel | Organised tours
Back To The Way It Was
North-central Iceland's attraction to
tourists revolves primarily around two
areas: Akureyri, for being “the capital
of the north”, and Húsavík, which has
exceptional whale watching tours.
Sadly, the wonderful stuff in between
these two towns is often completely
neglected. However, there is a tour
that can introduce you to quite a
number of these little treasures.
Grapevine’s photographer and I
flew up to Akureyri for the “Lake My-
vatn is Natural Magic” tour. We were
greeted at the airport by Trausti, a
jovial and informative freelance guide
who's been in the business since
2007. While part of what he does is
offer private tours for visiting VIPs, he
told us that the Mývatn tour has been
popular, especially in the winter.
Travelling with us in Trausti's van
were three elderly Australians and a
quiet Canadian photographer. Trausti
was anything but quiet, and made
for the perfect guide—having grown
up in Akureyri he knows the sur-
roundings like the back of his hand.
He provided interesting commentary
(including a brief explanation of the
aluminium smelters vs. exporting
electricity debate) peppered with
forgivably corny jokes, kept the mood
lively, and answered questions faith-
fully.
WATERFALL OF THE GODS
Our first stop was just outside
Akureyri, at Gallerí Surtla—a con-
verted barn where handmade felt
products are sold. In the next barn,
we were able to witness the use of an
automatic, laser-guided cow milker
from France, which I personally found
pretty cool.
After that, we were off to Goða-
foss. Trausti explained that the name,
“waterfalls of the gods”, originates
from when Iceland officially con-
verted to Christianity, and the newly
saved Icelanders threw their graven
images of Óðinn and Þór into this
waterfall. It's a spectacular site, but
what struck me was the contrast be-
tween it and Gullfoss. At the latter,
you will find a large tourist shop and
a restaurant; at Goðafoss, you'll find a
waterfall. It was refreshing to be able
to enjoy this natural wonder without
being reminded that we were all tour-
ists.
Moving along, our next major stop
was Lake Mývatn, and if you haven't
seen this place, you're missing out.
Stand on a tall enough hill, as we did,
and you'll see how positively Tolk-
ienesque this volcanically and gla-
cially created lake is—cone-shaped
hills, giant craters (created by hot
lava meeting cold water and subse-
quently exploding, we learned) and
hundreds of tiny little pools along the
lake's edges gives this place a surreal
beauty; the lack of any major souvenir
shop helped preserve it.
DIMMUBORGIR: NOT JUST A
BLACK METAL BAND
After about half an hour there, we
were off to Dimmuborgir. Now, for
most of my life, Dimmuborgir was
a black metal band. But it's also a
frankly mind-bending maze of lava
pillars and winding paths that you
can easily get lost in. It's also home
to the famed Icelandic Yule Lads and
their mother, the half-troll Grýla. We
were told that every Christmastime,
Icelandic farmers from the surround-
ing area dress up as the Yule Lads
and provide terror and joy for visiting
children. We were also told that it's
not unusual to “see things” that you
might not expect to see—one Ameri-
can tourist allegedly saw the ghost of
John F. Kennedy sitting on a rock and
reading a book. Trausti did not know
what book it had been.
Once our stay was finished, we
stopped briefly at a number of plac-
es—the natural geothermal vents of
Hverir, the enormous crater Víti (liter-
ally, “hell”) and the naturally formed
jacuzzi-in-a-cave of Grjótagjá. All
of this was very nice, but it paled in
comparison to our final stop before
heading back to Akureyri: the Mývatn
Nature Bath.
KEEP IT LIKE A SECRET
On my first trip to Iceland, in 1998, the
Blue Lagoon was little more than the
lagoon itself and a tiny shack for sell-
ing admission and ice cream. Today,
it is a full-fledged spa, replete with
its very own eponymous cocktail. I
am of course not speaking badly of
the Blue Lagoon—there's a time and
a place for the luxury the place pro-
vides, and it will always be a staple
of Icelandic tourism—but the Mývatn
Nature Bath was pretty much exactly
what the Blue Lagoon used to be over
a decade ago: understated, low key,
and simple.
As the photographer and I floated
in the steaming hot water, listening to
the excited conversations of a group
of Danish tourists, I couldn't help
feeling as though I maybe didn't want
to write about this tour after all; that
I wanted to keep this to myself, pre-
served in time, remaining a humble
attraction that stands on the strength
of the natural wonders it provides.
But in the end, I decided to share the
secret with you. Because I'm gener-
ous like that.
'The Lake Myvatn is Natural Magic tour' is available year-round, costing 200 Euros in the winter,
212 Euros from March 24 to June 14 and August 21 to October 26, and 228 Euros from June 16
to August 20 . Tours are held daily all summer long. For more information, call 570 3000 or visit
their website at http://www.airiceland.is/action-packed-daytours/lake-myvatn
Grapevine tours Mývatn