Iceland day 3: Arrived at Grundarfjordur: temperature this morning, 6 C (43 F). It is located in the Breidafjordur fjord. Grundarfjordur is in top center of the map.
The excursion, a drive around the Snaefellsnes Peninsula, which juts out the west southwest side of Iceland lasted, lasted all day. Snaefellsnes Peninsula has the Snæfellsjökull volcano, and is made of volcanic rocks. Surrounding it is Snæfellsjökull National Park.
Artic fox can be seen, and other mammals were imported or came with people. Reindeer were imported from Norway; they only live in NE part of Iceland. Eider farmers lived here. on the peninsula. Hills here very different here, more rugged. Sea coasts have birds nesting in cliffs. Falls are enshrouded in cliffs with birds, and moss covered rocks.
Quotes from our guide who said this is a land of Hidden People and Elves:
“People normally tell a story about the hidden people. Well one of them was in trouble so the hidden can show themselves to people if they want to, and he went to a human being asking for a favor. They were in trouble and if you help them and be kind to them, then you had a good thing coming. But if you didn’t help them, well you’re going to suffer a long and painful death. So I always say don’t piss off the hidden people.”
We drove west and south around the peninsula. Very picturesque. The land was very rocky and obviously from the basalt of eruptions. There were sheep nestling on the rough ground.
Our first long stop was the black pearl beach Djupalonssandur. There was quite a long walk downward to get to the level of the beach. Notice the rough basalt rock.
Looking back from the hill overlooking the beach, one had a very nice view of Snæfellsjökull Volcano: there are three “hats” on the mountain, I believe the guide said there are actually 3 peaks, usually covered by glacier and snow.
Next we had a brief rest stop to use restroom. Views back to the volcanic mountain were great! We saw the Malarrif lighthouse at this location.
We then headed to another scenic area on the south side of the peninsula, with very rocky cliff and magnificent views in the Hellnar/Arnarstapi area.
Many of us walked the coast from Arnarstapi (Stapi) to Hellnar. Beautiful views of the ocean. Rocky chunks stuck up in the water, covered with birds and vegetation, sometimes creating unique patterns. Kittiwake gulls nest on the cliffs. Puffins nest here but we did not see any on this trip. The Hellnar coast had lots of birds and old concrete piers to board vessels, no longer used. Click to enlarge photos below.
The last photo above is looking back to the mountain from Hellnar.
Also located in this area is the manlike statue, Bárður Saga Snæfellsás Statue is a diety of Mt. Snaefell. He descended from giants and men. The sculpture by Ragnar Kjartansson, 1985).
The view of the mountains and the sea was lovely. Here is a view of the volcanic range:
We drove a long way along south coast, turning in at Rjukandi, heading along the lake route to Stykkishólmur for our late lunch. After lunch we explored the town including a nice view of buildings in port and the giant rock Sugandisey Island with a lighthouse atop.
Next we headed to “The Holy Mountain”, Helgafel, first mentioned in the Book of Settlements. There is a statue on the top. On this holy land and according to the legend “anyone who climbs this sacred Hill are granted three wishes. But you can’t look back and you can’t talk on the way up, tho well you can. You get no guarantee for me but making a good wish is always good.“
What 3 wishes would you make?
We returned to port. Just prior to our way out of the fjord, across from us was a pretty building. As we watched, many people arrived in boats. We could not figure out their purpose, no luggage, so not a hotel, perhaps a retreat of some kind?
It was a long but satisfying excursion.