“But we will keep the farm, and we will have sheep, but we won’t be full-time farmers.” For now, at least, the réttir tradition continues and is uniquely Icelandic in both practice and spiri ...

including the Glaumbær turf farm, a cluster of beautifully preserved homes, and the striking Víðimýri Turf Church. Sheep farming and knitting are also central to Icelandic heritage.

Being sheep, they eat everything—including birch seedlings. Less than half of Iceland has any vegetation at all, says Guðrún. It used to be two-thirds. As fluffy volcanic soils were exposed ...