Iceland’s idyllic landscapes

Some say it looks like a basaltic lava mound, some say it resembles a geyser. In any case the imposing Hallgrimskirkja temple in downtown Reykjavik can’t be overlooked.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Visitors view a rainbow across Seljalandsfoss waterfall in south Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Skogarfoss waterfall in south Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A chapel in south Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Sod-roofed houses at a folk museum in Skogar, south Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Icelandic horses in south Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A field of rape in south Iceland. The country produces large quantities of rape-seed oil.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

The notorious Eyjafjallajokull volcano that caused a major air travel setback in the summer of 2010 looked quite peaceful under its snowcap in July.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Kerid Crater in south central Iceland features a lake inside its mouth.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Strokkur geyser in south central Iceland erupts every five minutes or so.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A rainbow lies next to Gullfoss waterfall in south central Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Vatnajokull Glacier, Iceland’s biggest ice cap, is one of the landmarks of southeast Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A traveler watches icebergs in Jokulsralon Lagoon in southeast Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A black mark on top of this iceberg floating in Jokulsarlon Lagoon in southeast Iceland means it was once part of a glacier and in contact with the ground.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A local guide holds a 5,000-year-old piece of ice in Jokulsarlon Lagoon in southeast Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Sheep walk along the highway in east Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Icelandic horses in east Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

An Icelandic horse in east Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A new and an old lighthouse on the coast of east Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A view in east Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Alaskan lupins near a volcanic hill in central Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Lake Myvatn in northwest Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A natural hot bath near Lake Myvatn in northwest Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Whale watching off the coast of northwest Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Tourists look at photos on their iPhones in the harbor of Husavik in northwest Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A red ash volcanic landscape in northwest Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A sunset in northwest Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A gray whale off the coast of northwest Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Whale watching boats off the coast of northwest Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Alaskan lupins in northwest Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Icelandic horses roam the rugged terrain of northwest Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

A view in north Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Europe’s most powerful waterfall, Dettifoss, in northwest Iceland.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Caldera Krafla in northwest Iceland, an area of geothermal activity.  (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Caldera Krafla in northwest Iceland, a vast area of geothermal activity.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)

Godafoss, one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Iceland.   (Sergei L. Loiko / Los Angeles Times)