This map shows our driving route around the perimeter of Iceland (yellow), the Baldur ferry from the Western Fjords (blue),
the bus ride to/from the Laugavegurinn Trek (orange), and the Laugavegurinn Trek itself(green).

We circumnavigated Iceland counter-clockwise in a rental car (approx 2184 km).

Iceland's Keflavik International Airport features 2 sculptures.

On the left is "The Rainbow" by Rúrí made of stainless steel and stained glass. On the right is "The Jet Nest" by Magnus Tomasson.

Keflavik is hugely controversial to native Icelanders. The airport and surrounding town were built by Americans during WWII and subsequently transferred to NATO. Icelanders deeply resent this ongoing military occupation of their country.

Vik is the southernmost point on the Iceland Ring Highway (Highway 1). This photo shows Vik's famous black volcanic sand beach.

This area is dominated by the immense Vatnajökull glacier (Europe's largest).
To the south of Vatnajökull is the Skatafell National Park. To the Southeast lies the Jökulsárlón lagoon.

To the east and northeast lie the Eastern Fjords.

The remains of a steel highway bridge destroyed by the catastrophic 1996 jökulhlaup.

A jökulhlaup is a glacial outburst flood that occurs when a volcanic eruption under a glacier causes countless tons of ice to melt - but remain trapped under the ice cap.

Eventually the heat of the steam causes the entire ice cap to rise up, and the melted water rushes out destroying everything in its path.

The 1996 jökulhlaup caused by an eruption of Grímsvötn released water at a rate of 50,000 cubic meters/second.

We stayed at the Bolti Farmhouse, the only non-camping accommodation in Skatafell National Park. This derelict outbuilding was mostly built below ground as protection against harsh winters.

The basalt stone wall surrounding Svartifoss in Skatafell Park is its most recognizable feature.

Icebergs at Jökulsárlón

To me, this iceberg looks exactly like a young bird hatching from an egg.

Icebergs detaching from Vatnajökull flow to the Atlantic via the Jökulsárlón lagoon.

Jökulsárlón has become one of Iceland's premiere tourist locations and features a fleet of converted Vietnam era landing craft that allow tourists to get up close and personal with the ice flows.

Volcanic ash from the 2011 eruption of Grímsvötn stains the crystal clear Jökulsárlón ice.

The Jökulsárlón lagoon is joined to the Atlantic by one of the world's shortest rivers (less than 100 meters).

The icebergs that join the Atlantic are scrubbed clean by the waves and wash up on the beach.

Ships in port at Höfn in the Eastern Fjords.

Glacial errata in the Eastern Fjords.

Steep barren mountains between Höfn and Breiðdalsvík in the Eastern Fjords.

Farmhouse - Eastern Fjords

Mývatn to Akureyri via the Diamond Circle

Selfoss.

Scientists believe that 8-10,000 years ago, a single catastrophic jökulhlaup carved this gorge through which the Jökulsá á Fjöllum river flows. The gorge runs from Vatnajökull all the way to the Greenland Sea.

Selfoss is a couple of hundred meters upstream from Dettifoss.

Bjarnarflag Geothermal Power Station

Mývatn is a major source of the geothermal power that heats 99% of the homes in Iceland.
This photo shows part of Bjarnarflag, Iceland's oldest geothermal station (1968).

Icelanders believe that Hverir is the gate to Hell. Its no mystery why they feel that way.

Boiling Mudpot – Hverir

Steam Vent and Mudpot – Hverir

Lava fountains from the "Krafla Fires" between 1724 and 1729 could be seen all the way to the south shore of Iceland.

Rather than erupting from a cone, Krafla opened up as a series of fissure vents over a wide area. The lava flow from the fissures extended all the way to Lake Mývatn.

Krafla last erupted in 1984, and is still VERY active.

Fissure Vent at Krafla

The Krafla area is home to the massive Krafla Geothermal Power Station. Krafla has proved to be an excellent site for geothermal power due to the close proximity of the magma to the surface (2-4 km).

This photo shows geothermal pipes in the hills near Krafla.

Pipes arch above the road at the Krafla Geothermal Power Station.

According to Icelanders, the Iceland Deep Drilling Project came close to creating their own volcano when their drill bit hit magma and melted.

Fortunately, they were able to cap the drill hole without incident.

Dettifoss is the most powerful waterfall in Europe (flow approx 193 cubic meters/second).

Powerful as Dettifoss is, it is a faint echo of the jökulhlaup that created it.

An interesting thing about traveling in Iceland is that no matter how dangerous a tourist site is, there are no fences, barriers, or security guards to keep you from walking right up to (or into) it.

I suppose this explains why there are so few idiots in Iceland.

A gravel road snakes through the hills of the Diamond Circle.

In the year 999, Icelandic lawspeaker, Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði formally accepted Christianity as Iceland's primary religion when he hurled statues of the Norse Gods into the waterfall at Goðafoss. Goðafoss means literally "waterfall of the Gods".

Akureyri is Iceland's second biggest city (pop 17,000). Wall murals are common in Iceland's major urban centers.

Only a fraction of the tourists that visit Iceland go to the Western Fjords - the Ring Highway skips the Western Fjords altogether.

This is a pity as the landscape is spectacular. Látrabjarg is the westernmost point in Europe.

The Baldur Ferry connects the Western Fjords with the Snæfellsnes Peninsula by picking its way through the 40 or so islets of the Breiðafjörður.

The Icelandic horse is a breed of horse developed in Iceland. Although they are small (pony-sized),they are long-lived and hardy.

The Icelandic Horse displays two unique gaits in addition to the typical walk, trot, and canter/gallop commonly displayed by other breeds.

They are highly prized in Iceland, and owning a large number of horses is considered a major status symbol. Horses are used extensively during the annual sheep round-up in September

Hay Bales - Northern Iceland

In the 17th century, the Western Fjords were a hotbed of Icelandic witchcraft, and 21 Icelanders were burned alive for sorcery between 1625 and 1683.

Icelandic witches were 90% men as Icelandic witchcraft was based on written spells and women were largely illiterate.

Hólmavík is the home of the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft (a must-see attraction).

One of the most bizarre exhibits in the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft has to be the Necropants.

This spell required the sorcerer to dig up a body and skin it in one continuous piece from the waist down. The sorcerer put the Necropants on his own legs - and of course, they immediately adhered to him tightly.

Next step was to steal a coin from a poor widow on Christmas or Easter and place the coin in the "pouch" of the Necropants. If successful, the sorcerer could then pull coins from the "pouch" indefinitely.

North Iceland offers some of the country's best grazing land for horses and sheep.

When we saw this long stretch of unpaved road on the map, we were dreading it - but it turned out to be one of the highlights of our trip.

Another amazing view along that same stretch of unpaved road.

Glacial Errata - Western Fjords

A memorial to ships lost in the Western Fjords.

Breiðavík Church

The coldest day that we spent in Iceland was August 15 on this exposed peninsula near Látrabjarg.

Not a bikini to be seen on this desolate stretch of beach.

The bird nesting cliffs at Látrabjarg - the westernmost point in Europe. Extremely high winds, frigid temperatures, and not a puffin in sight.

We were subsequently told that the fish on which the puffins feed are not returning to Icelandic waters, and as a result, puffin numbers are greatly reduced. The fragile ecosystem of Icelandic is feeling the effects of climate change in a very real and immediate way.

Enroute to the Baldur Ferry early in the morning of a lovely day.

This photo looks southeast towards the islets of the Breiðafjörður.

This massive 4 wheel drive truck is an example of the custom vehicles that are built to navigate the rugged interior of Iceland.

Our rental car is the little red job that is sniffing the Super 4x4's tail.

The Lagarvergurinn Trek is approximately 55 km of some of the most spectacular scenery in Iceland.

It is considered one of the world's 10 best treks. It involves 4 days of backpacking and overnight stays in 5 mountain huts.

It also requires 2 long bus rides on specially equipped 4x4 buses that splash fearlessly through glacial rivers as required.

The bus winds its way to Landmannalaugar past this pretty (but misty) little lake.