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Siglufjörður Siglufjörður is Iceland’s northernmost town on the mainland, located in a fjord and surrounded by steep mountains. It is a historic fishing town famous for its fishing industry during the 20th century. After 1903, it became one of the largest towns in Iceland and the capital of herring fishing in the northern Atlantic. In 1968, the whole industry collapsed by a sudden decrease in herring stock. Today, a very recommended museum about this herring era can be visited. Dalvik Dalvík became a small village little more than a century ago. Before that, the area consisted of scattered farmsteads and few buildings dedicated to the fishing industry. Nowadays the area is suitable for a lot of hikes. Therefore we rented a small cottage for a few days. Grimsey Island Grímsey is a small island on the Arctic Circle, just 40 km off the north coast of Iceland. It is Iceland's most northern point, home of less than one hundred people and thousands of seabirds. The island stands alone far out on the horizon, a blue cliff, surrounded by the wide Arctic Ocean. It is about 5 square kilometers in area. We slept in a very nice guesthouse located directly at the small airport outside of the village, only surrounded by thousands of seabirds.
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After our stops in east Iceland, we are travelling west in the northern part of Iceland. Mývatn Lake Mývatn is a lake in north Iceland. It was formed by a large basaltic lava fissure eruption about 2300 years ago. The volcanic landscape is dominated by pseudo craters. The idyllic blue lakes, hot pools, sandy mountains and volcanic craters make up an incredible setting and build various fascinating sceneries. Goðafoss Goðafoss is a waterfall in the river Skjálfandafljót, the fourth largest river in Iceland. It is one of the most spectacular waterfalls in the country, falling over a width of 30 metres from a height of 12 metres. Húsavík The town of Húsavík is located on the eastern shore of Shaky Bay and is well-known as the “Whale Capital of Iceland”. We also went out for a whale watching tour and saw a humpback whale. Húsavík is also the place where the first house of Iceland was built, back in the year 860 by the swedish viking Garðar Svavarsson. After the stop in Höfn, we are travelling further east and exploring the villages Djúpivogur and Borgarfjörður eystri with a short stop in Egilsstadir in between. Djúpivogur Djúpivogur is one of the most beautiful villages in Iceland and lies in the southeastern part of Iceland. The pyramid-shaped peak named Búlandstindur, reaching up to 1069 meters, dominates the landscape. The long history of trading lasts back to 1589, and the oldest preserved house (built in 1790) now serves as a cultural center. Shallow lagoons, coastal lakes and mudflats around the village are rich in birdlife. Borgarfjörður eystri In eastern Iceland lies the hidden treasure Borgarfjörður eystri. It is a very small village that has plenty to offer, including some legendary elfin settlements and a variety of hiking routes. In addition, the marina has the best access to puffins in Iceland, where one can observe the birds at a very short distance. We are travelling further along the south coast direction east to our next longer stop in Höfn. Skaftafell Skaftafell is a nature reserve and part of the Vatnajökull National Park in the south east of Iceland. Its location is unique as it lies between sandy beaches at the coast and inland glaciers. The region is well known for its rich flora and there are a lot of natural attractions, from cascading waterfalls to glacier lagoons and from geological formations to black sand deserts. Jökulsárlón Jökulsárlón and the nearby Diamond Beach are one of Iceland's most fantastic natural attractions. They are famous for the free-floating icebergs and the ice blocks laying on the black beach resembling diamonds glittering in the sun. Typically, thousands of people are drawn to Jökulsárlón all year round. However, COVID-19 has drastically reduced the number of visitors, and during our stay there were only a few other tourists. Höfn Höfn i Hornafjörður is a blooming village close to the biggest glacier in Europe, Vatnajökull. Höfn's growth during the 20th century from a small village to today's town was a result of the development of a diverse fishing industry. Only a few kilometers away from Höfn lays the Stokksnes peninsula and the famous Vestrahorn mountain, a popular spot especially for photographers. After our stop in Vestmannaeyjar, we are travelling east along the south coast, which offers a lot of highlights. Skógar We spend a night very close to the Skógafoss, one of the most famous and highest waterfalls in Iceland. When following the hiking path further inland, there are some more waterfalls which are no less beautiful.   Vik The small village Vik is situated in the center of the Katla UNESCO Global Geopark. It is Iceland’s southernmost village on the mainland. Due to the sandy beaches and the rough sea, it remains the only village at the coast which has no harbour. As Vik is nestled between black sand beaches, mountains and white glaciers it offers many views and hikes which are very attractive. Before I start to write further about our Iceland trip, I think it is important to know some information about the weather conditions here: In contrast to middle Europe, spring in Iceland is very short and begins in mid-May. This means the conditions in April are often cold and can change very fast in a short time. Hveragerdi Hveragerdi is a small town in the southwest of Iceland, about half an hour from Reykjavik. It is often nicknamed as ‘the Earthquake Town’ or ‘the Hot Spring Town’, due to the active geological and geothermal forces in its region. We decided to visit this place on the way to the south coast. Vestmannaeyjar (Westman Islands) The Westman Islands, or Vestmannaeyjar, are an archipelago consisting of 15 islands and 30 rock stacks at the south coast of Iceland. They are our second stop on our trip to the south. Apart from their incredible natural beauty, the islands have the world’s largest population of nesting puffins in summer (but they aren’t still there during our stay). Vestmannaeyjar is connected by a ferry to the mainland, the crossing lasts about half an hour. After our time in the town, we decided to travel in the western part of Iceland. The area around the Snæfellsjökull national park is easily accessible all year round and not so far from the capital area. The Snæfellsnes peninsula has a lot to offer, from untouched lava fields, old volcanoes, mystical glaciers, black beaches, white beaches to hazardous cliffs along the coastline. We visited the northern coast of the peninsula and are planning to go back at the end of our trip to see the southern part as well. Grundarfjordur Grundarfjordur close to the famous Kirkjufell mountain was our first stop. We were surprised by the very cold onset of winter with strong northerly winds, but they were compensated easily by the beautiful and unique surroundings. Fortunately, the wind became a little weaker during our stay. Hellissandur Hellissandur is one of the first and oldest fishing villages in Iceland and can be traced back to the 16th century. We stayed in the former library of the village, which was an unforgettable experience. Olafsvik Olavsvik was our last stop on the peninsula. The village has a fishing harbour, and the beautiful Baejarfoss waterfall is directly behind the outermost houses. At 23 degrees 42 minutes West, Olafsvik is the westernmost settlement of its size (around 1000 inhabitants) in Europe (source: Wikipedia). Reykjavik area part II Because we have so much time for our stay in Iceland, we decided to spend some more days exploring Reykjavik and its surroundings: Hallgrimskirkja, Mosfellsbær and Akranes. The old Akranes lighthouse is a particularly recommended place to visit. Golden Circle A very popular tour which is accessible in one single day all year round from Reykjavik is the so-called “Golden Circle''. It includes some of the most famous places on the island: Gullfoss, Faxi, Geysir and Þingvellir. Under normal circumstances, we are not looking first and foremost for popular and often crowded hot spots, but during pandemics we will not miss the chance to enjoy these beauties without a crowd around us. Furthermore, the weather was so beautiful during this day, that the decision to do this tour was absolutely worth it. Reykjanes Peninsula: Garður and Sandgerði After our quarantine stay in Keflavik we explored the region near Keflavik on the Reykjanes Peninsula. Garður is at the very tip of the peninsula and provides excellent views, two famous lighthouses (the oldest and the highest one) and a long, beautiful beach. Geldingadalur volcano During the time of writing this blog entry, Iceland is popular in the world news because of the eruption of the Geldingadalur volcano, which is a fabulous nature spectacle and has grown in a very short time to an extremely popular spot. We therefore quickly realized that we won’t miss this unique experience either (the eruption site is very easy to reach from Reykjavik and lies near Grindavik on the southern peninsula of Iceland). There are no more words needed than “WOW”! It is absolutely worth the hike, and easily understandable that this volcano is so popular with the local population and the few tourists in the country. If there were no COVID-19 pandemic, this spot would probably be overcrowded - by now it is only crowded ;-). There is also installed a livecam at the eruption site: New Webcam: Livestream of Fagradalsfjall Eruption - YouTube Reykjavik area Beside the eruption site, we spent a lot of time discovering the area around Reykjavik: Seltjarnarnes, Álftanes, the small but beautiful Kermóafoss and the (reforested) wood around Elliðavatn. Every single place can be absolutely recommended to visit and is very easy to reach from the main city. The idea We like to be on our way on foot, especially in the Swiss Alps and in the Swiss Jura. Being outdoors on small trails is fun and simple. The low speed of walking allows us to discover the landscapes and opens our senses. We can feel the season and the weather. Furthermore, it gives us the chance to see the moments that are ideal to be frozen in the form of a photo. Some years ago, the idea of hiking a long distance trail started to grow. But what about the distance, the time, the motivation and the luggage? Optimizing the function and weight of our gear became increasingly a time consuming hobby. And now, we feel well prepared for a longer thru-hike with lightweight gear. After some research, we thought that the northern part of the E1 European long distance path should be perfect for us (see Hiking Europe - European long distance path E1 (hiking-europe.eu) for more information about the E1): We will get on trails in Switzerland, discover the areas that are close to our hometowns and end up in the far north. And to solve the problem of time, we decided to take a sabbatical during 2021. The original plan was to start at our home in January 2021 and to walk north through Switzerland, Germany and Denmark. In later spring, we wanted to hike the south and middle part of Sweden and ideally, the northernmost part during the short Scandinavian summer. So, at the beginning of 2021, we are ready for our hiking experience. If there were no corona-pandemic. Searching for an alternative But wait a minute: Our route on the E1 goes through five countries, and by today - during the corona pandemic - most northern European countries have closed their borders for tourists from abroad. In the beginning of March 2021, we accept that our plans are not possible for the next months, probably until summer 2021. But giving up is not an option, so we discussed a lot of alternatives and decided to go to Iceland for about two to three months. We were not able to find a real alternative for our thru-hiking plans during winter and spring, but we have ideas for many beautiful shorter hiking trips in awesome volcanic landscapes instead. Quarantine and first days in Iceland At the end of March 2021, we are staying in a hotel in Keflavik for our mandatory 5-day-quarantine. We are allowed to do some short walks outdoors, so we can share our first impressions with you. |
