Westfjords – The Travelling Ginger

We were in for another day of clocking up the miles, so after a couple of pots of Skyr and a bowl of frosties, we prepped the flasks with plenty of coffee and hit the road to get us back out the Westfjords. On the drive yesterday we spotted a shipwreck, but we’re unable to get a closer look due to someone blocking the entrance to the parking area, however today it was empty so we had a quick investigate. It is thought to be the oldest steel ship in Iceland and has been at this location since 1981. It is now in a bit of a sorry state and is far too unsafe to actually get on, but it still makes for some dramatic photography.

We left the Westfjords and headed to familiar territory for me.. the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. It was also time for another diesel run, and again the PAYG pump refused my card.. such a pain! It was therefore only right that to ease the stress, we got a service station hottdog 🌭 The first stop on the peninsula was Kirkjufell, said to be the most photographed mountain in the country. Again another GoT location – Beyond the wall from season 7. It’s distinctive shape and Kirkjufellsfoss at the front makes the whole area very dramatic.

Next stop was Saxhóll crater, which was much easier reach the top in comparison to the crater earlier in the week. The landscape it has created is incredible and the views over the mossy lava fields below are mind-blowing.

As the peninsula is a relatively small area, there is so much you can see and do in a day, and so our next stop was an ancient fishing village called Hellnar, with views over to Mt Stapafell. Some Icelanders believe this place is a favourite for elves! It’s the perfect place to sit with a picnic (when the weather allows) and watch the world go by. There is also the option to do a coastal walk to the next village – Arnarstapi, however as we both exhausted we decided to just drive it instead.

It was back to the van for our next stop, a giant crack you can see from the road. Rauðfelsdsgja gorge is easily accessible in the summer months and is a short hike from the car park. It’s another small scramble to get into the gorge itself, but its well worth the potential soggy shoe. On our way back to the van we noticed a group of people, and one of them dislocated his shoulder! Luckily the ambulance was just pulling up (although who knows where the nearest A&E is 🤷‍♀️) so Mark didn’t have to jump in and be a hero.

Our last stop on the peninsula was the black wooden church Búðakirkja. Located within a lava field, it is a fantastic building to photograph whatever the weather. I have been here twice and both times have been totally different and I can’t decide which conditions I prefer. Again it’s another peaceful location and somewhere you could spend all day exploring the surroundings.

Tonights base is another campsite overlooking the sea in the town of Akranes. Whilst doing the washing up we spotted the campsites local resident curled up on top of the dryer getting shelter from the rain. After a quick fuss it was back to the van to get some sleep before our last full day in Iceland 😭

This morning was a slightly earlier start than usual as we were in for a long day of driving. The Westfjords was somewhere we were both keen to visit, as only around 10% of visitors actually make it here due to its vastness and distance from the main ‘tourist attractions’. Its also only somewhere you can visit during the summer months, as the roads are a lot less maintained and snowfall is incredibly heavy during the winter. The scenery here is beyond stunning but there are very few places to pull over and actually admire it properly. We did manage to find one, however Mark was very quickly attacked by a group of Arctic Tern (a very angry bird!) and after running around the van a few times, he decided that they had won and returned to safety. After a bit of research, it turns out that they are notorious for attacking people, and scratching you with their talons!

Our first proper stop of the day was the mighty Dynjandi waterfall, which means thunderous, and is often referred to as the jewel of the Westfjords. It’s also known as the bridal veil falls due to its distinctive shape. Thanks to a group of volunteers, it’s so easily accessible from the car park meaning more people can enjoy the beauty. It is definitely one of our favourite falls and the photos really don’t do it justice. As a treat, there are also 6 smaller falls on the way up to Dynjandi, making it a foss heaven 💦

Driving the Westfjords involves lots of arse twitchy twisty roads that are full of potholes, so this is something to bear in mind if you want to add it to your trip. As the area is so big we had to decide what was most important to see, and as we hadn’t yet done a ‘side of the road hot spring’ we chose to add this to the itinerary, and headed to Krosslaug. It’s well hidden and Google promised minimal people know its location. Turns out the day we went, lots of people found it! But it was still so lovely to sit and enjoy the views with a cold drink to hand. The only small issue was when I went back to get changed, I found a pair of someone else’s knickers in my shoe!

Home for this evening was probably one of our favourites so far as it had a waterfall and a ‘normal’ coloured beach, which is very rare for Iceland. We fired up the BBQ tonight because it was just too nice not to, and had yet more hot dogs with crispy onion and that fabulous sauce. As Rauðisandur beach was right next to the campsite, we decided to have a midnight sun walk to enjoy the sound of the crashing waves, whilst looking on at the moody clouds over cliffs in the distance.

Tag: Westfjords

Day 9 – The Snæfellsnes Peninsula 🇮🇸

Day 8 – The Westfjords 🇮🇸