Today we sailed to the beautiful and remote village of Djúpavík, nestled at the back of a deep fjord on the Strandir coast of the Westfjords. After landing ashore, we split into small groups to explore the highlands on foot. Our hikers looking for a more strenuous route scaled the towering basalt cliffs and hiked a beautiful loop atop the plateau overlooking the fjord. We put our boots to use crossing several streams that fed the waterfalls framing town. Other hikers looking for a more leisurely route hiked a scenic loop that ended at the historic Herring Factory Museum where we were given a tour by a local guide. We also timed our visit well because the President of Iceland happened to be visiting the fjord and a few lucky members of the group were able to meet him! We were grateful for the sun and are looking forward to more adventures tomorrow.
8/14/2024
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National Geographic Explorer
Grundarfjörður, Iceland
After a comfortable morning with a fascinating presentation by National Geographic Photo Expert Paolo Verzone, we arrived at Grundarfjörður. This small town is perhaps best known for the iconic mountain sitting on its doorstep. Kirkjufell, or Church Mountain, was famously featured on Game of Thrones as Arrowhead Mountain. After lunch, we disembarked National Geographic Explorer to visit either the Berserkjahraun lava field or Kirkjufellsfoss Waterfall. Berserkjahraun is an old lava field that is still covered by the mosses that settled it 4000 years ago. On our hike, we were treated to some delicious and healthy blueberries and crowberries. The second group was treated to the lovely sight of Kirkjufellsfoss, or the waterfall of Kirkjufell. As the name implies, it is situated very close to the roots of Kirkjufell Mountain, which certainly made for an impressive backdrop to the waterfall. In the afternoon, both groups were reunited in the beautiful church, Grundarfjarðarkirkja, where we were treated to an amazing concert by one of Iceland’s best-known musicians, Hafdís Huld. After the concert we all returned to the ship where we were expected by Captain Peik Aalto, who gave us a warm farewell before our last dinner aboard National Geographic Explorer for this expedition.