Hello again, Blogonauts!

On Saturday my interests turned once again to the heat beneath our feet…in other words, moments when earth's internal smelter leaks out onto the surface.

I am still in northern Iceland, but momentarily I've left the fjords and fishing fleets behind and am in the inland region around Lake Mývatn (MEE-vahtn). At 14 square miles, it's a sizable pond. The absence of motorized boats and the presence of nutrient-rich waters make it a great place for a variety of birds to nest in summer.

But why is this large, shallow lake here? As you may recall, Iceland sits on the seam where the North American and the European tectonic plates meet. That boundary runs directly beneath this region, and eons ago, the earth's crust cracked open and flooded the area with superheated lava. This and its subsequent cooling created both Lake Mývatn and the surrounding, sometimes other-worldly landscape.

For example, my first stop was to visit what are called "pseudocraters." They are relatively small, easily climbable, and sit close together. Rather than volcanoes themselves, however, they are instead the remnants of lava bubbles. Water (turned to steam by the fiery lava) created bubbles in the molten rock, which then burst and left several acres of craters.

Next on my route around the lake (in addition to simply looking for birds) was investigating grotesque towers and shapes created by the lava. Along the way I ended up in an enormous natural rock garden, known as the Dimmuborgir Lava Formations. Here the Icelandic legends of trolls and "Yule Lads" run rampant.

In truth, seeing faces in the tall, jagged formation was super easy. (Then again, we humans see faces in clouds, trees, and emoticons, so Icelanders aren't unique.)

The cafe at Dimmuborgir offered a soup & bread buffet with an interesting twist. The bread is a sort-of pumpernickel, but they bake it by burying it in a geothermally heated hole in the ground. After spending 24 hours there, it's ready to serve. (It was really tasty!)

There was also on the lake's shore a rare occurrence for Iceland…a forested peninsula. This surprise, however, was another act of gardening. The young woods on the Höfði Promontory was planted and cultivated by a local couple. They also laid out walking paths with views of the lake.

Next, of course, was an inevitable opportunity to climb a volcano. The Hverfjall Crater is far wider than it is tall, but it was a 300-foot climb to reach the rim…about the half the height of the Washington Monument. At the top the crater looked huge; its diameter measures about a kilometer. There was also quite a panorama from the rim, but the sky was getting gray, and on my way down, the clouds decided to empty…in the form of sleet.

The best experience of the day was saved for last. Just over the hill from Lake Mývatn, is the Námafjall Geothermal Area. It was like experiencing a miniature Yellowstone…steam vents, bubbling mud, and no small amount of hydrogen sulfide…the smell of rotten eggs. The sleet had turned to rain by this point, so ignore the lack of blue sky in the photos. (To compensate, I've uploaded a couple of videos of some steam and boiling mud.)

Tomorrow I head toward Iceland's eastern fjords…and with luck, more fabulous scenery.

Blog to you later!