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The Westfjords is a peninsula in northwestern Iceland, connected to the rest of Iceland with a 10 km wide isthmus between Gilsfjordur and Bitrufjordur. The Westfjords are very mountainous and as the name suggests, heavily indented by dozens of fjords. Except for the central highlands, the Westfjords are the most remote area of Iceland and the most northern part of the area, Hornstrandir is totally uninhabited – there are not even roads. It´s a natural paradise at the arctic circle and quite popular for hikers and birdwatchers in the short summer. The main emphasis in tourism is on various boat trips and experiencing the untouched nature. Hornstrandir Nature Reserve is one of the Westfjords biggest attractions. Most visitors to the Westfjords go to West Iceland first and either heading by road for the looping fjord coast or the Strandir shore, or skirting the southern Westfjords after arriving by road or ferry. Whichever route is taken, it presents a stunning cross-section of scenery and culture.
The Westfjords has remained in many ways "a world apart" from the rest of Iceland. Sparsely populated, the nature here is as wild as it was a hundred years ago – and there are probably less people now living there then there were a century ago. Majestic mountains, deep blue fjords, seals and the arctic fox – together with the natural silence is the most impressing event for many travellers visiting the Westfjords. The birdlife is also one of the major reasons to visit the Westfjords. The cliffs at Latrabjarg comprise the longest bird cliff in the northern Atlantic Ocean and are at the westernmost region of Iceland – and therefore the westernmost part of Europe. Latrabjarg is one of the three largest bird cliffs in Iceland, with the other two being Hornbjarg and Hælavíkurbjarg in the Hornstrandir Nature Reserve – all in the Westfjords. Latrabjarg is by far the easiest of the three to visit as a road leads practically to the cliff’s edge and from the parking lot a walking path traverses the edge. In summer it is a popular tourist destination and the main attraction is the puffin. In few places in Iceland, if any, are the puffins more trusting towards humans. The puffins are so fearless that if one crawls on the belly towards a perched bird, and slowly reaches out, some of these wild puffins can be touched without being flushed. This trust towards humans has been developed over a long period and there is an obvious reason for it. The Látrabjarg cliff is not harvested – these puffins are not caught. For a few months every year this massive 440 meter high and 14 kilometer long cliff becomes alive with the nesting activity of millions of seabirds. The seabird colonies at Látrabjarg are enormous, and they include the world’s largest known Razorbill colony at Stórurð, scree beneath the cliff. The puffins, which dig their burrows in topsoil at the cliff’s edge, are not the most numerous species, but arguably the most noticeable. Other auks that breed at Látrabjarg are Razorbills, Common Guillemot and the Brünnich Guillemot, a high arctic species that is at its southern breeding limit in Iceland, and is one of the target birds for any serious birdwatcher visiting the country.
The lack of flat lowlands in the Westfjords makes them unsuitable for agriculture but good natural harbours in many of the fjords and closeness to fishing grounds are vital for the local economy. The Westfjords is sparsely populated, the total population in 2004 was around 8.000 people. Some rural areas have fast depopulated in the latter half of the 20th century and now few of the fjords between Reykjanes and Vatnsfjordur are uninhabited. The largest town is Isafjordur which serves as a center for commerce, administration and transportation in the region. In the county of Isafjordur there are six towns or villages where fishing is the main industry, although the service industry has grown considerably and farming is still important in some areas. Bardastrond County is the southern part of the Westfjords and covers the area from the bottom of Gilsfjordur in the east to Langanes in Arnarfjordur to the west. Many of the islands of Breidafjordur are part of this area. The islands, now mostly uninhabited, have a rich history and are renowned for their beauty and the variety of their flora and fauna.
There are numerous places of interest such as the Dynjandi waterfall, spreading in steps down the mountainside. Dynjandi is the largest waterfall in the Westfjords and falls 100 meters down a ridged mountain side. The top of the fall is 30 meters wide and at the bottom it is 60 meters wide. The steep mountains between Dyrafjordur and Arnarfjordur are unlike most other in the Westfjords. They are sometimes referred to locally as the Westfjords Alps where as most other mountains in the Westfjords are table top mountains, totally flat on top. The highest mountain in the Westfjords is Mt. Kaldbakur 998m high. Relics from life in other once-thriving outposts can be seen in places such as the now abandoned herring centre of Djúpavik. The settlement of tiny island of Vigur is place where time seems to stand still. In olden times, the Westfjords were renowned for wizards and sorcerers, and Holmavik hosts an exhibition on witchcraft and witch hunts. When driving through the majestic landscape with fjord after fjord, towering above shore and sea, it´s easy to understand how all the tailes of witches, troll´s and black magic would thrive in this remote area. There are also plenty of heroic stories in the Westfjords, some even not so old. In a stormy and cold weather just before Christmas in 1947 the British trawler Dhoon stranded under Latrabjarg 70m from the shore at “Geldingaskoradalur” where the cliff is 200 meters straight down do the sea. Rescue mission would seem impossible for anyone. However 12 brave local farmers decided to rappel down the icy cliff down to “Flauganef” which stands out and is about 80 meters high. From Flauganef 4 men continued all the way down and managed to carry the heavy rescue gear about 1 Km over icy rocks in the ice cold and stormy weather. There they managed to shoot a rescue line to the trawler and rescued on shore all surviving 12 crew members. All crew members, some of which hardly could move due to cooling of their body temperature where eventually rescued to safety by rope up the mostly vertical 200 meters high cliff. The rescue team was later specially honoured by the Queen of England for their outstanding and successful but highly risky rescue mission.
The West Fjords account for about half of Iceland’s total shoreline. The shore is everywhere, infinitely varied, changing with the seasons, lying on the mystical border between different worlds. Seals bask on the rocks, huge colonies of seabirds are seen and the king of the skies, the white-tailed eagle watching over. The roads are challenging so take your time, during the wintertime please contact the road administration to check for if the roads are open and be careful to notice the weather.
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