North West Iceland: Westfjords

Day 8: we woke up early, relaxed a little around Gladheimar cottages (in Blonduos), and continued our long drive into the Westfjords.

The Westfjords are the most remote part in Iceland. We generally didn't see many cars along the Ring Road, but the emptiness is taken to another level in the Westfjords.

Our first stop was at Drangsnes Hot Pots. It was cold and raining lightly, and after a long drive, dipping into these hot pots was a wonderful reward.

Each pot had a different temperature, so we could move to one that's less hot if it got too steamy. Karim took this nice portrait as I relaxed.

We drove further along Djupavik, a beautiful coastal road. The mountains were imposing, absolutely no people or cars were around, and the clouds added drama.

We fell in love with this area and how remote it is.

This mountain has varying inclinations, with the steep inclination on top emphasizing how grand it is.

We had to do our own exploration of this part in the Westfjords, since people don't talk about it online, and the guides briefly mentioned it. This is a river flowing straight into the ocean.

Along the way, I spotted this simple house with a large river flowing right next to it.

Day 9: the day also started with few hours of driving. The roads in the Westfjords are often just gravel roads, so driving becomes slower. Also, even though one spot seems close to another on the map, the detour to reach it could be hours long.

The Westfjords is called as such because it's packed with fjords - all picture worthy.

We started approaching Látrabjarg, our main destination for the day.

As we parked near Látrabjarg, Dad pointed out the cascade of fjords.

As we hiked upwards to Látrabjarg, the importance of the cliff became obvious, with thousands of birds all around us. Karim is in awe.

Látrabjarg is a very long cliff, and it's topped with endless grass fields.

As is the case with every tourist visiting the island, we were hoping to see a puffin, Iceland's signature bird.

There were plenty of endemic bird species, but I was constantly peeking down from the cliff to try and find a puffin.

And there it was! As I was peeking, a puffin stood still right under me from the cliff. It did not fly away, but rather seemed like it was waiting for someone. The puffin gave us ample time to observe and photograph.

The path in Látrabjarg is beautiful. It winds safely around the high cliff, which is also the westernmost point in Iceland.

Our time at Látrabjarg has ended. We had to drive to the campsite, and started heading back to Reykjavik.