Day 22 started off with a little bit of rain and low clouds. We headed out and stopped at Áshildarholtsvatn for some bird watching. We had found a birding in NW Iceland map and it said this was one of the best places for it. It said there was a small lake with an info board on the west side and a bird blind on the east side so we drove around and couldn't find it! There was a small dirt road so we turned down there and then I spotted the sign behind a horse trailer! It was hidden! The sign said to just walk along the road to not disturb the birds so that is what we did.
It was a lot of fun and we saw all the birds! That sound that I always thought of a plastic tube being twirled around fast is actually the air going over the tail feathers of the common snipe. So much fun!
Saw lots of fancy ducks from the bird blind
Then we headed on as our day today included driving around Tröllaskagi - a peninsula in the north that I had read was really beautiful. First stop was going to be this infinity pool in Hofsós but when we got there it was closed for maintenance! So sad for us
Though the area around it was fun to wander
So we continued on and just down the road Raymond found a pull-off where we could wander down this sand bar. That looked like an island out there, Þórðarhöfði, but it is connected on both sides to the mainland! We didn't realize until we started walking out that we could walk the whole way over there! Then we looked at the map and saw it was connected.
The walk started with lots of bigger rocks
Then turned into more gravel
Some bird bones found on a rock
Afterwards we continued on - it kept pouring while we were driving, but wasn't raining whenever we stopped which was nice
This really was a beautiful drive
Our next stop was Siglufjörður
Which was so gorgeous!! To me this had a similar look and feel as the Westfjords, but way better! Not so much driving, much more easily accessible, and so beautiful! We drove around the peninsula in one day which is very easy to do.
These views are from an avalanche barrier which was an easy climb and oh, so gorgeous!
And from the other side of town on the avalanche barrier
Then off to a viewpoint outside of town just before a single-lane tunnel. The sun was shining, it was warm, it was so nice.
We came out of the tunnel to Ólafsfjörður which was cloudy, cold, and smelled like fish. We had been planning on swimming here as it was the next outdoor pool, but it was closed which wasn't a bad thing.
We wandered around a bit and found this small ski jump
Then we headed on to another single lane tunnel
That came out by Dalvik which was sunny and gorgeous again!
The above photos are from just outside the public pool where we swam for so long! It was the nicest pool we went to by far. It was large, it had a large area to sit and relax in the warm water and then two larger hot pools at different temps. Plus waterslides. It was so nice and you could see all these mountains while you swam!
After swimming forever we headed off towards Akureyri and the drive was still gorgeous!
Akureyri was a city with lots of shops and car and people! We did our chores then headed off to Camping Hamrar for the night. It was really nice as it is just outside the city, but out in nature with no sounds but the birds. And mountain views!
So much nicer than staying in the city!
This was a really great day! If you want the Westfjord vibes but don't want to spend the time I would suggest driving this peninsula! I loved it as it was gorgeous, we got to swim in an amazing pool and it was just a really nice drive. Total walked today 12km
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