In particular I was wondering if there were trees when the Vikings arrived.
Yes - the Íslendingabók, written by an Icelandic priest, Ari Þorgilsson, in the 12th Century, describes it having forest at the time of the Norwegian settlement:
At that time, Iceland had woods growing between the mountains and the shore.
Those forests were heavily felled for timber and firewood, until you get the current situation of only a few small areas of birch trees.