Víðimýri Turf Church

Turf churches were once the ordinary parish church across rural Iceland, and only a handful survive. Víðimýri is among the finest: thick walls of stacked turf and stone around a snug timber interior, its roof green with grass. The carpenter Jón Samsonarson built it in 1834. Since 1936 it has been kept as part of the National Museum of Iceland's historic buildings, which is why so much survives. It sits just off Route 1 south of Varmahlíð, an easy and rewarding stop.