Wowed by the Westfjords

Westfjords’ epic nature towers over sightseers at Dynjandi.

Chasing waterfalls

I’m not exactly a morning person, so I load up on coffee at Reykjavik airport before my 8 am flight. Sure, the caffeine does its job, but it’s the breathtaking landing into Isafjordur’s small, mountain-ringed airport that jolts me awake. Supercharged Westfjords scenery from my window seat, plus a small adrenaline thrill – now that’s a winning start to the day.

Iceland is exceptionally well endowed with untouched natural splendour, and the Westfjords may just top the charts on the country’s pristine scale. Only 7,000 people live here, on the misshapen hand that reaches out towards the Arctic Circle in the country’s northwest. Added to this: only 10% of visitors to Iceland reach this corner. Rest assured, this is a region offering grand nature and solitude.

Today I’m joining Wild Westfjords’ summer tour known as “Dynjandi and the Westfjords”, for a scenic sampler of all the best the region has to offer. Our guide is Gudbrandur Baldursson, who has strong roots in the region. He regales us with factoids and anecdotes in typically dry Icelandic style, topics ranging from local avalanches to sea monsters.

TEXT: Carolyn Bain PHOTO: Arni Saeberg

The tour begins by driving through Iceland’s longest tunnel (over 9 km; 5.6 mi), then it’s a cinematic eyeful of deep fjords, flat-topped mountains, and vast views as we follow the undulating road all the way to Dynjandi.

Dynjandi means “thundering noise”, and this is the poster-child for Westfjords’ waterfalls, standing 99 m high and up to 60 m wide (325 x 197 ft). The river below Dynjandi flows through seven waterfalls below the main cascade – as we set off from the car park, the walking path reveals these photogenic chutes as we climb rough-cut steps to Dynjandi’s base (a walk of around 15 minutes). From here, it’s a 360-degree panorama over watery torrents, heath-covered hillsides and the dark waters of Arnarfjordur (popular for whale-spotting in summer).

When we’ve had our fill, we re-board the bus to retrace our route back to Isafjordur, but at a more leisurely pace. More stories are told, and photo stops made. The most memorable is the view from Hrafnseyrarheidi, a mountain pass where winter leaves its mark. Work on a new road tunnel has begun far below this mountain pass, and so there are only a few more years of this spectacular road opening and closing with weather whims.

Weather, timing and demand dictate the stops the tour makes on its final stretch – this could be at the golden sands of Holt on Dyrafjordur’s edge, or the plucky botanic gardens at Skrudur. There was time for a spin around Isafjordur (and a pastry from its awesome bakery) before boarding the flight back to Reykjavik, and a final bird’s-eye vantage point to savour those magical fjords.

GETTING THERE:

Isafjordur Dynjandi

Reykjavik

Air Iceland Connects offers daily flights to Isafjordur. The Dynjandi and the Westfjords tour, which includes the roundtrip by plane from Reykjavik, is available on Mondays, Wednes- days and Fridays from mid-April to mid-October.

→ airicelandconnect.com/tours