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| An Icelandic Arctic Fox |
The “Plus” of our trip was Vestfirðir, or the Westfjords, where we were now driving in the afternoon light.
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| We went to Vestfirðir for its scenery and charm |
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| Map: Wikipedia |
Vestfirðir is a large peninsula in northwestern Iceland that lies on the Denmark Strait, facing the east coast of Greenland. It is connected to the rest of Iceland by a four-mile-wide isthmus between Gilsfjörður and Bitrufjörður. We did not travel that way, however, opting instead to take the Ferry across Breiðafjörður.
As I mentioned in my last post, the Ferry Baldur arrived at a dock with no real town.
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| Brjánslækur |
After we got off the Ferry, we headed west along the coast of Breiðafjörður and then cut north toward Patreksfjörður.
At the base of the fjord, the road splits. To the east is the town of Patreksfjörður, with its 600ish inhabitants, hotels, restaurants and a grocery store. We went west toward our lodging for the next two nights – a converted shed on a farm in Hænuvík.
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| Hænuvík Cottage |
It was a pretty drive on narrow mountain road that passes through rugged – very rugged – landscape. The main characteristic is rocks.
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| Scott was mesmerized by the foggy rock hills |
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| A waterfall through a rock cleft |
Rocks, rocks and more rocks with low vegetation, streams and waterfalls.
It was foggy and a bit rainy, giving the landscape an otherworldly appearance. I told Scott that it looked a lot like remote areas in Norway, but without civilization.
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| Patreksfjörður – the fjord, not the town |
At Kleifaheidi, a 1,325-foot-high mountain pass, we encountered a weird statue built predominantly of – you guessed it – rocks. The building of the road over the pass more than 70 years ago was considered a major feat and greatly improved travel within the region. In Iceland, it’s a tradition for road construction workers to erect a monument upon completing a difficult stretch of road. This one, called Kleifabui ("Inhabitant of Kleif"), watches over those who travel the road.
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| Kleifabui |
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Photo: Scott Stevens
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It is said that the Kleifabui statue bears an uncanny resemblance to a local farmer and politician. Personally, I didn't know what it was supposed to be!
We also saw lots of rock cairns in the area, many appearing to mark trails.
Since Kleifabui was built in 1947, we assumed the cairns were also fairly recent.
Later, we found out that Iceland is filled with cairns, most so old no one knows when they were built. The oldest known one dates to 871.
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| Cairns Scott captured later in the trip |
After taking the west road toward Hænuvík, we rounded a corner to see an old rusty boat lying on the shore of Skápadalur.
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| A cool find; Photo: Scott Stevens |
The beach around it was littered with kelp and the shells of blue mussels that had presumably been eaten by seabirds.
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| Seaside still life |
The sun peeked out just as we stopped to examine the 98-foot-long Garðar, an old whaling vessel built in 1912 in Oslo, Norway.
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| Photo: Scott Stevens |
Scott was finally able to drone something cool.
Meanwhile, I was able to enjoy some sunshine after the somewhat dreary ferry ride.
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| A pretty scene |
And, I got a good look at some more Common Eiders, just hanging around at the surf line.
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| Common Eider |
VestfirðirBefore I go on, let me provide some background on Vestfirðir.
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| Mountains and water = Vestfirðir |
The mountainous region features a coastline heavily indented by dozens of fjords and side fjords (smaller fjords that jut off of big fjords) surrounded by steep hills.
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| Fjord reflection |
As I mentioned in an earlier post, this zig-zag nature of the coastline makes for slow travel, taking many more miles than the actual distances between areas would indicate.
Of course fjords plus mountains means it is also gorgeous.
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| There are countless steep, rocky cliffs |
The lack of flat lowlands limits the potential for agriculture, which is primarily restricted to low-intensity sheep grazing near the fjords.
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| Old farm buildings; Photos: Scott Stevens |
But, good natural harbors in many of the fjords makes fishing a main occupation.
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| A dock where fish is delivered to the local processing plant |
And, now there is a fair amount of fish farming, well.
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| You can see a fish farm in the middle of the fjord |
Vestfirðir is very sparsely populated; the total population in 2020 was 7,115. The district capital and by far the largest settlement is Ísafjörður, with a population of 4,000. Where we spent our first two days, there is practically no one.
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| Empty beaches |
Vestfirðir is the oldest part of Iceland at 16 million years old and, therefore, lacks active volcanoes and lava fields. Although there are no active volcanoes, there are more than 20 natural hot springs.
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| Lichen covers lots of the ubiquitous rocks |
Drangajökull, the only glacier in Vestfirðir, is the fifth-largest in the country. Along the road to Hænuvík, there are also some sand dunes, Sauðlauksdalur – a bit of a surprise in that landscape.
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| Sauðlauksdalur |
Patreksfjörður (which is the name of the fjord, the main town and the area – confused yet?) was named when Iceland converted to Christianity; it means “the fjord of St Patrick.”
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| The fjord's crystal clear water is striking |
Our Accommodations
We were not headed to town, we were going to Hænuvík, a farm directly across the fjord.
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| Hænuvík Farm |
The directions to Hænuvík Cottages were pretty good until we were almost there. The paved road gave way to gravel as it zig-zagged along the coast and around some streams.
Then the road got narrower. Just when we thought it would be unsafe to drive farther, we were there. I wouldn’t want to drive that road in winter.
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| Our drive "home;" Photo: Scott Stevens |
Our cabin was rustic, half-buried in turf.
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| "Home" |
It had bunks, a fold-out bed and a kitchenette of sorts. It was tiny, but clean and neat. It did not have coffee or a coffee maker or a microwave, which upset Scott who had assumed there would be coffee everywhere.
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| Compact, but cozy |
But this cottage comes with an option for linens (at an extra charge) because many guest are semi-camping. So, lack of any supplies isn't unexpected. Lesson learned: if you want coffee, bring coffee.
Outside, we encountered more murderous Arctic Terns. There weren’t as many as in Snæfellsnes, but they were still loud and threatening. It was fun, however, to watch them as they flew back to their nests with tiny fish (herring?) in their bills.
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| Flying by with dinner |
I had chosen Hænuvík Cottages rather than staying Patreksfjörður proper with all its services because it looked like a great place for aurora. I mean, it has to be dark. Unfortunately, it was also foggy, so we didn’t stay up looking for lights.
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| A brooding sky |
Exploring
Over the next two days, we explored the beautiful area, skirting several fjords and seeing some interesting sights.
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| Some roads are paved; some are not |
The area is breathtaking, with steep mountains, blue, blue water and – for much of the time – eerie drifting clouds.
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| Just a typical Vestfirðir landscape |
And, there were some odd things, too.
Two fjords east of Patreksfjörður, on Arnarfjörður, we stumbled across the Samúel Jónsson Art Farm. It’s a weird little museum in Selárdalur.
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| The Samúel Jónsson Art Farm |
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| Much of the artwork is just sitting in the grass |
Called a “naiveté artist,” Samúel Jónsson retired from farming at the age of 72 in 1958 and started creating sculptures from concrete that he made from sand he hauled up from the beach along the fjord.
He also built a church, gallery and a house, which now comprise the museum.
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| Photos of the original construction |
Many of his sculptures, including lions based on the lion fountain in the Alhambra Palace in Spain, and many miniature sculptures, are well-preserved and still standing.
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| A lion fountain |
I found that amazing because the elements to which they are exposed can be pretty destructive.
Samúel Jónsson lost his sight in 1968 and died in 1969. Personally, I think the art resembles elementary school projects, but he is revered in Iceland.
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| The interior; Right photo: Scott Stevens |
I much preferred the lovely anchor and sea lady sculptures we encountered in Bíldudalur. We did not visit the Sea Monster Museum there, although we passed it (I think it was closed because of COVID).
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| Pretty sculptures on the dock in Bíldudalur |
I was pleased that, all along the fjords, there were birds: Common Eiders, including males in the eclipse (non-breeding) plumage …  |
| Eclipse is moving from non-breeding to breeding |
It’s not nearly as pretty as their breeding plumage …
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| This was taken in March 2017 in Reykjavik |
Glaucous Gulls …
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| Glaucous Gulls are large and prey on smaller seabirds' eggs |
Juvenile Lesser Black-backed Gulls …
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| Although juvenile, they look like two old men |
More European Golden Plovers …
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| The European Golden Plover is such a charming bird |
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| The European Herring Gull X Glaucous Gull is a very large bird |
Eurasian Oystercatchers …
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| Oystercatchers have beautiful red eyes and bills |
And, two more lifers: a Meadow Pipit …
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| A Meadow Pipit I almost missed in the rocks |
And, some European Shags (relatives of Cormorants) …
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| A new bird! I didn't expect so many |
We also saw lots of sheep …
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| Iceland's one breed, the Icelandic Sheep, comes in many colors |
… and one (just one) Harbor Seal …
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| Just chillin' in the fjord |
Cliffs of Látrabjarg
We closed out our first full day in the Patreksfjörður area by driving to the westernmost point in Iceland and the longest bird cliff in the northern Atlantic Ocean, the Cliffs of Látrabjarg.
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| Some of the prettiest scenery in Vestfirðir |
Nine miles long and over 1,300 feet high in many places, the cliffs are filled every summer with millions of birds, nesting and raising their chicks. In many places, you can get within arm's reach of nesting birds.
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| A nesting Black-legged Kittiwake |
Almost half of the world's Razorbills nest on the Cliffs, as do many Guillemots, Fulmars, Auks, Puffins and Northern Gannets.
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| The locals scale the steep cliffs to collect eggs |
We went hoping against hope to see some birdlife. On the cliffs themselves, everything was gone except the Black-legged Kittiwakes and Northern Fulmars. A bit disappointing, but still beautiful.
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| Flowers fill in after the birds go to sea |
The hike along the edge (which I did while Scott waited in the car) was a little tricky because the ground is riddled with Puffin burrows. A sprained ankle would not be a surprise.
Apparently, when birds are nesting, the protocol for photography is to lie down on the delicate edge and scoot forward until you can shoot below you. A bit scary!
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| The path winds up the edge among the abandoned burrows |
I was, however, able to see some birds without standing too close or crawling on my belly.
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| These nests sure look tenuous |
Even though the Cliffs failed to produce new birds, I did see another lifer in the parking lot: a Northern Wheatear …
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| This was a bird I hoped to see |
Outside of the abundant birdlife, Látrabjarg is famous for being the site of a dramatic rescue; when the British trawler Dhoon crashed into the rocks beneath the cliffs, local farmers noticed 12 survivors stranded below.
Trained in scaling down the sheer cliff face to collect bird eggs, the Icelanders descended on ropes and managed to haul all of the fishermen up to safety.
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| Historical photos of the rescue |
Fox! |
| Arctic Fox hiding in the rocks |
Vestfirðir is also famous for being the most likely place to see Iceland’s only indigenous land mammal: the Arctic Fox. While they are most plentiful in Vestfirðir, they are still rare and elusive. We saw three.
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| "You can't see me" |
We believe some may have been kits, but the foxes are so small, it is hard to tell.
Two ran across the road in front of us one afternoon and got away into the rocks before we could get any photos.
The next morning, we saw one cross the road and down the embankment. It stopped for a moment to consider me and my camera before, it, too, ran into the rocks.
I have written about Arctic Foxes before because I saw a few in Svalbard.
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| Arctic Fox in Svalbard, Norway |
The Icelandic Arctic Fox is a distinct subspecies of the ones we saw in Norway (and ones we had seen years ago in Alaska).
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| Looking for the ones that got away |
We had intended to visit Rauðasandur, a colorful sand beach below located beneath the Látrabjarg Cliffs, as we left Patreksfjörður. But in the early morning, the wet, steep, narrow and slippery road cloaked in fog was a bit to daunting. We turned around and headed to Ísafjörður.
Trip date: August 13-September 1, 2021
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