Hverir geothermal area

We are driving on the Ring Road (or also called Road 1), coming from Mývatn and heading east. From here it is not a long drive to the geothermal area of Hverir. The road leads us through a landscape of barren red earth and zigzags over a pass, and suddenly we see it....

The steam is coming out of the ground on many spots and the smell of sulphur is creeping into our car. It is an out-of-this-world view, or maybe something out of a science fiction movie. But certainly not something you can imagine to be real. And I guess the impression is even more stark this particular day as the sun is ligthing up the steam giving it an even more dramatic and eerie impression.

But before I continue with my impressions of Hverir, please let me give you an idea where you can find it on the map. Hverir is located in northeastern region of Iceland, just a few kilometers east of Lake Mývatn. It is about 6 hours / 480 kilometres drive north east of Reykjavik, directly at the main Road 1 (also called the Ring Road, and in Icelandic: Þjóðvegur 1 or Hringvegur). It is part of the Námafjall Geothermal Field, which is one of the largest geothermal areas in the country, and also the most easily accessible.

You actually don't need to take any detour at all to visit Hverir, the parking lot is located directly at the main Road 1. (also called the Ring Road, and in Icelandic: Þjóðvegur 1 or Hringvegur).

location on the map: 65° 64,179'N, 16° 80,694'W

Hverir with Mt. Námafjall in the background

We drive into the parking area and there are only 2 other cars are parked here today. The car park is relatively large, so I guess normally this would be a rather busy place to visit, but today it feels almost deserted. During this Covid time, there are hardly any travellers around, meaning that we have the major sights almost all to ourselves and are able to experience the beauty of Iceland without any disturbances. And being here almost alone gives an extra dimension to our visit, making this strange place even more intense.

We hop out of the car, while the steam is floating above us. And immediately the smell of sulphur is penetrating my nose. And sulphur, as you might know, resembles the smell of rotten eggs. Not that I really know how rotten eggs smell though, I have never experienced that. But, I can tell you for sure that sulphur doesn't smell like the nicest thing on the planet!

The first viewing spot is right at the edge of the parking lot. In front of me unfolds a landscape of red barren earth. And directly below of me is one of the big mud pools that is bubbling away. The whole area is totally empty, hardly any vegetation is visible, no matter what direction I look in. Fumes are emitted from numurous cracks in the ground. And we are surrounded by loud hissing noises and the bubbling sounds of the mud pool below of me. And behind this spectacle rises the red-coloured Mt. Námafjall.

Iceland is one of the most geologically active places on Earth having had regular volcano eruptions during the past century. And at Hverir, being one of the High Temperature Areas in Iceland, you can unmistakenly wittness a tiny bit of this constant geological activity.

At Hverir we are on top of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge; the boundary where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet and separate. The ridge is about 16,000 km long, and reaches all the way from 87°N (about 333 km south of the North Pole) to subantarctic Bourvet island at 54°S. The Atlantic Ridge is also part of the longest and the most extensive chain of mountains on earth, extending continuously across the oceans floors for a total distance of 40,389 km.

Most of the Atlantic Ridge is hidden under water however, and with that, more than 90% of it is hidden from view. But here on Iceland it is not just hidden in the ocean; the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is clearly present and noticable. Especially here in the Myvatn region and even more so at Hverir.

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is responsible for the volcanic activity which created Iceland, and the island appeared over the ocean surface about 16 to 18 million years ago. But the Mid-Atlantic Ridge still has a constant impact Iceland, changing its geography. Iceland is in fact still growing from fresh volcanic eruptions and the moving of the tectonic plates.

Me trying to take some photos at the Hverir geothermal area. Which isn't all that easy with all that steam coming out of the ground!

When you try to find information about this area you most likely will get confused by the name for the place, as so many different ones are used. I mainly refer to it as Hverir myself, as this is the shortest of the options :-) But you can also find names like "Hverir austan Námaskarðs" ( meaning: hot springs east of Námaskarð), Mt. Námafjall, Námaskarð or even Hverarönd.

There are a couple of walking trails through the area, and one of them leads you to the top of Námafjall. The main route and trail to follow is I guess the one circling around the outside of the field, with a possible detour to the top of Námafjall. We skipped the walk to the top though, but I assume you will have a great view over the area from there. Finally there is a possibility to walk through the middle (directly at the parking area), leading you right through the heart of it from the one side to the other.

My feet however were not that organized about any route to take. They just followed my eyes, that actually were fascinated by the whole area. But the ones that grabbed the most attention were the fumeroles to the left, spouting steam into the air like a hot boiling kettle (photos below).

The plumes of steam were heading directly at me when I followed the main walking trail, floating over me just above my head. At times I quickly needed to duck to avoid being embrased by these smelly hot steam clouds. But the wind constantly seemed to change direction, and for a while the steam was veering off to the left, making the sun high up in the sky visible for me and giving me some nice opportunities to take some photos.

While I was clicking away with my camera, Åke dedicated some time in taking some short videos. And although videos cannot replace the full experience of being here, it might add an extra dimension to the still photos. Add in your mind the strong sulphur smell and the eerie feeling to the video to get the full experience ;-)

I absolutely loved my visit to Hverir, it is such an out of this world place. The Geothermical Area reminds me a bit of Yellowstone, although this is much smaller. But at the same time it is much more "raw" and intimidating than Yellowstone. A unique place for sure! And I feel so lucky to have been able to visit it during some bright sunshine!

But now it is time to get back on the road again and discover some more of Icelands amazing nature and landscape. There is lots to see in this area around Myrvatn, and our car is heading in the direction of "Dettifors" today. But I'll write more about that visit on a separate page.