Since we had a late flight home, my husband and I decided to make the most out of our last day in Iceland by driving around the Reykjanes Peninsula, where Keflavik Airport is located. The drive is lovely, with the exception of the sulfur smell that pervades the air as you drive. At times it can be quite over-whelming. The peninsula is filled with geothermal activity and hosts the famous Blue Lagoon, the geothermal wastewater container turned major tourist attraction/spa.

We opted not to join the throngs of tourists at this man-made wonder, and instead we made our way south down Rt 42 from Reykjavik. It’s not a large peninsula, and it doesn’t take long to reach the first stop worth pulling over, Kleifarvatn Lake.

The lake is stunning, and well-worth pulling over to take in its beauty, and capture a few memories in photographs. Although there is no formal road leading down to the water, there are cars that ignore the signs and drive down to the water’s edge. We pulled over with other tourists in one of the lots over-looking the lake to take our photos and selfie.

Although our stay beside the lake was brief, we were glad we did not miss the splendor of this gem inside the peninsula.

After taking photographs from different angles to capture the lake’s beauty, we headed back down Rt 42 towards the Seltún geothermal field.

The smell of sulfur greets you before you pull up to the parking lot at the Seltún Geothermal Field. The odor of the landscape, along with its colors and textures, gives you the feel that you are somewhere other than Earth.

To be quite honest, I found the area difficult to navigate, not due to the terrain, but because of the over-whelming odor of sulfur. If you are sensitive to the smell, you may want to consider wearing a mask. I found myself covering my nose with the sleeve of my coat as we walked through the smelliest areas. Aside from the odor, though, the area is quite intriguing and, in some ways, beautiful with its steaming pewter-colored steams meandering through red sands.

We followed the paths along the main area of the field up into the hillside, where you you can see some more geothermal vents as well as gorgeous views of the surrounding area. Click through for a glimpse of the rest of our visit to Seltún.

Do take care if you walk up the hillside. The terrain can be quite slippery and steep. We had plenty of its red clay stuck to our shoes afterwards, and saw some visitors cleaning it off theirs in the cool stream that descends from its summit. We opted to clap ours off as best we could before we got back into our car and headed towards our next stop, a still-steaming volcano…