History and Culture

Skard is a farm and church site on Skardstrond. Many of the Icelandic Saga heroes come from here. Amongst them were Bjorn Thorleifsson, governor, and his wife, Olof-the-Rich Loftsdottir. On the death of her husband by Englishmen in 1467, she is quoted as declaring: "shed no tears for farmer Björn, but gather men to avenge him..." This has become a famous quote in Iceland. The Skard church was the main church of the area for a long time. The church was rebuild between 1914-1916 and there are many old relics to be found in it, among them a preacher´s stool from the 17th century.

The little black church, Budakirkja Church is located at Budir on Snaefellsnes Peninsula. People come from around the world to seal their love at the church. 

Outermost on Malarrif on Snaefellsnes is a lighthouse that was build the year 1917, close to Londrangar.  A newer lighthouse was build 1946 and is 20,2 meters also an house for the lighthouse keeper as build, a bit later.  The lighthouse was protected the year 2003, along with six others along the coastline, when 125 years had passed since the first lighthouse was build in Iceland. 

Djupalonssandur is a beautiful pebbled beach, with a series of rocks of mysterious form emerging from the ocean. It is one of the few areas that lead down to the sea along this coast with its high dramatic cliffs. Watch out for the famous ghosts roaming the place! The rests of a shipwreck can be seen on the beach. On the beach there are also big stones which people tried to lift and test their strength in the days of the fishing stations: Fully Strong 154 kg, Half-Strong 100 kg, Weakling 54 kg and Bungler 23 kg. Weakling marked the frontier of wimphood, any man who couldn't lift it was deemed unsuitable for a life as a fisherman.

Auður djúpúðga ( Auður the Deep minded) was one of the settlers in Dalir. She was a Christian and had a cross raised at Krosshólaborg, where she went to pray. Her descentants considered Krosshólaborg a holy place. Women in Dalir set up a memorial of Auður, a stone cross in 1965. The remains of Auður´s first farm, Auðartóftir, are nearby.

Church built in 1957 as a tribute to the 17th-century hymn writer Hallgrimur Petursson, one of Iceland's best-loved poets. Hallgrimur Petursson served at Saurbaer 1651-1669, a poor leprous pastor who composed Iceland's most widely known religious work, 50 Passion Hymns. Reykjavik's Hallgrimskirkja church is also named after him. Hallgrimur was married to a woman who had been abducted from the Westman Islands by Algerian pirates and bought free again. The church contains beautiful stained glass work by one of the first widely known Icelandic woman artist Gerdur Helgadóttir.

Breið is the southernmost part of Akranes and the location of the fishing history of the town. There are two lighthouses open to the public as well as a view point.   For more information contact Akranes Information Office, tel: +354 433 1065, e-mail info@akranes.is.

Around the year 890, Audur the Deep minded (djúpúdga) from Dogurdara settled the land between the outer edge og Hvammsveit and Skaumuhlaupsa in Hordudalur. She built her farm at Hvammur and for a long time after her kin lived there. Audur was Christian. The father of Snorri Sturluson, Sturla Thordarson (1115-1183), lived at Hvammur. He was of the ninth generation counting from Audur the Deep minded. His sons Thordur, Sighvatur and Snorri were born there. Arni Magnusson (1663-1730), professor and collector of medieval manuscripts, grew up at Hvammur. Priests would remain at Hvammur. Since the Reformation until 1944 only 15 priests held the position.

Holy Mountain, 73 m with a breathtaking panoramic view across Breiðafjordur Bay. A viewing dial is at the top.   Folklore advises anyone climbing the mountain for the first time to walk straight up without looking back or speaking and three wishes will be granted. The wishes have to be of good intent and the wisher tells no one and faces east when making them.  A small remnant of a wall on the mountain top is dated 1184 and was a part of a nearby monastery built at this time. 

Beautifully kept old houses in cheerful colours line the dusty path through the settlement of Flatey island. Walk through it, and at the end of the settlement, the path becomes even narrower and more crooked, taking you through a dense population of birds, consisting mainly of Arctic terns. Two families stay on the island throughout the winter, but many more migrate during the summer, mainly for leisure but also to serve tourists. In a charming way, it feels very much like a movie set. And so it is. Many movies are set on the island, most notably The Honour of the House based on a short story by Nobel Prize winner Halldór Laxness, and White Night Wedding, a movie by Baltasar Kormákur. In fact, Baltasar’s father painted the unusual altar piece in the island’s church, making it worthy of a visit. In summertime, a ferry goes to Flatey twice a day from Stykkishólmur and Brjánslækur, and, albeit less frequently, a passenger boat offers connection to Reykhólar.

For centuries, Hellnar was among the largest fishing villages beneath the Snaefellsjokull ice cap. Valasnos, a freestanding rock, extends east of the bay. One of Iceland's most peculiar caves, Badstofa, is there. It is known for its special light exposure and colourful interior. A cold water spring is to be found at the lava's edge. It is dedicated to the Holy Virgin because it is said she appeared there once. The Hellnar church was built in 1945 on a picturesque site where a church was first raised in 1833. Located at Hellnar is a Hotel and a charming little café.

Ólafsdalur by Gilsfjörður, history of 1000 years Ólafsdalur is a small valley, surrounded by high mountains, where the first agricultural school in Iceland was established in 1880. The beautiful school-building is from 1896. Remains of many other buildings and man made remains from 1880-1900. Recently found remains of a Viking longhouse fom 9-10th century!

Eiríksstaðir is one of most historic sides of Iceland. Step back to the Viking Era and immerse yourself in the sights, sounds and scents of Eriks the Red's farm which is also the birthplace of Leif the Lucky who is said to have discovered America. Modern day vikings demonstrate the lifestyle of 1000 years ago, sharing their crafts and knowledge.

The route via Klofningsvegur no. 590 runs through Hvammssveit, Fellsströnd, Klofningur, Skarðsströnd and Saurbær. Day-to-day it is called going around the coasts.  Until 1918 the boundaries of Skarðsstrandarhreppur were from Ormsstaðir to Fagradalsá, then the district split into Klofningshreppur and Skarðshreppur. The district boundary held until 1986 that Klofningshreppur split over Klofningur between Fellsstrandarhreppur and Skarðshreppur. In Dagverðarnes, Auður Djúpúðga ate a breakfast in her search for her settlement columns. The current church in Dagverðarnes was built in 1934. Outside Dagverðarnes lies Hrappsey where the country's first secular printing house was operated. Klofningur is a natural gap and the road runs through it. At Klofningur there is a sightseeing point and a good view over the islands and out to Snæfellsnes. One of the oldest manor in the country is Skarð á Skarðsströnd. It is the settlement land of Geirmundur heljarskinn and the same family has lived there since the 11th century. Farmers church is in Skarð and there is, among other things, an altarpiece that Ólöf "the rich" Loftsdóttir is said to have given to the church. Below Skarð is Skarðsstöð. There is a lot of bird life and cultural monuments. Skarðsstöð was the first legalized trading center in Dalasýsla in 1884 and now houses a fishing port. The community center Röðull is located below the road by Búðardalsá. In Röðull there are often exhibitions related to the life and culture of the people of Skarðsströnd. In the 18th century, Magnús Ketilsson, an magistrate and a great progressive man, lived in Búðardalur and did significant agricultural experiments and wrote a number of scholarly articles. Ytri-Fagridalur is the innermost town on Skarðsströnd and is the settlement land of Steinólfur "the low". Over there you can see Hafratindur, the mountain of Dalir.

In Iceland you can find over 130 words for wind. The artist, Sólrún Halldórsdóttir, has chosen 112 words out of those 130 to include in this environmental sculpture. By choosing 112 words she is referring to the ermergency number in Iceland, 112.  Livelihood and survival of many Icelanders, especially of commercial fishermen, to this day depends on the weather, and hardly a day goes by without the weather forecast being addressed and discussed. The words are placed in escalating order, from the calmest to the strongest wind we have ever heard of. The artist uses the same color code as the Bureau of Meteorology, but shades have been added to represent each word. To decide the order of the words she interviewed elderly people around Iceland and asked about their feeling and understanding of each word.  Sólrún Halldórsdóttir (1964) was born and raised in Grundarfjörður, the second youngest of eight siblings. Her parents are Halldór Finnsson (1924) and Pálína Gísladóttir (1929). Her mother owned a bookstore in Grundarfjörður and taught Sólrún, at an early age, the love for the language.  The sculpture is 18 meters long and 60 centimeters wide, made of stone, steel and hardwood. 

Bjossarolo is a playground for children in Borgarnes, not far from Edduveröld or the Settlement Centre. It was constructed by Bjorn Gudmundsson, a man who was ahead of his time and thought about recycling. He used exclusively things that had been thrown away to build up this special place. At the playground there are for example swings, slides, an old boat, a castle and a lot more in a hollow enclosed by rocks not far from the sea. And on going there you could look for shells or nice stones on the beach. The small, but very pretty park Skallagrimsgardur is not far away. There you can even find the grave of a saga hero!

If you are into photography or just interested in exploring new things in Iceland you need to look at Akranes lighthouses. Down by the harbour you will notice two lighthouses. The bigger one that is currently in use is open to the public so you can go up and enjoy the view from there and there is even a photography exhibition to enjoy in there.

Ari-the-Wise served as a priest at Stadastadur from 1067-1148. He is well-known for his Book of Icelanders, the first work of history written in Iceland. The place is also the setting of a very known novel by the Nobel price winning Icelandic author Halldor Kiljan Laxness: "Under the glacier".

The meaning of this waterfall translates into "Children's waterfall", but the signs here indicated that there was a saga describing why it got this name. The saga said that there were two children in the Hraunsás household who were supposed to stay home while the parents went to church for Christmas Mass. When the parents returned from mass, they discovered that the children had disappeared (possibly because the children got bored and decided to go out).They then followed the children's tracks to this waterfall at the stone natural bridge where the tracks disappeared. The mother concluded that the children must have fallen into the river and drowned. Then, the mother had the arch destroyed in order to ensure no one else faces a similar fate. I've seen some accounts say it was by spell or curse, which induced the bridge's collapse by earthquake. In reality, natural bridges usually collapse over time, and given the powerful erosive forces from the rapidly moving river that undercut whatever was supporting the bridge, that could very well have been the fate of the natural arch here.

This former parsonage and estate between the villages Hellissandur and Rif was the common assembly site of the parish in the past. The present church was built in 1903 and is the oldest concrete church of the country, perhaps even the world. When it was built, it received a replica of the altarpiece of the Lutheran Cathedral of Reykjavik.

Lighthouse, Svortuloft at Snaefellsnes. 

Originally the home of Skalla-Grimur, father of Egill, hero of Egil´s Saga. Its full name means "rock in the marshes". The farmstead was defined by Kveld-Ulfur, Egill Skalla-Grimsson's grandfather, who got on the wrong side of King Harald Fairhair of Norway and fled to Iceland. As they approached Iceland on their way from Norway, Kveld-Ulfur became ill and knew he would die. He instructed his son to make a coffin for him, place his body in it and throw it overboard. The son was to select the site for the family farm where the coffin washed ashore. This happened to be at Borg, where Egill's father settled and raised his family. Today you can see a small church, the large rock that gave the place its name and an interesting sculpture at Borg by Asmundur Sveinsson commemorating Egil´s poem, Loss of a Son. A thoughtful reflection on the emptiness he felt after his son's death.

During the Sturlung Age 1220 - 1264, a company of men led by Svarthofdi Dufguson, a follower of Sturla Sighvatsson used the island Geirsholmi as a base for raiding the surrounding countryside. The tourist service at Bjarteyjarsandur nearby offers storytelling trips about Geirsholmi.

Whale Fjord (Hvalfjörður) is 30km long and 84m deep. Whale Fjord was the site of much British and US military activity during World War II. Some ruins from this period can still be seen in the fjord.

In the heart of Borgarnes is Skallagrímsgarður, a small public park which is ideal for a picnic. The park plays an important role in Egil's Saga, as the burial mound of Skallagrímur Kveldúlfsson, Egil's father, is situated there. It is a good idea to relax in Skallagrímsgarður after a visit to Borgarnes swimming pool which is next to the park.

Takes its name "Breakfast Ness" from the fact that Auður the Deep-minded, one of the first settlers, stopped to rest there one morning while searching for a place to make her home. There is a little church at Dagverdarnes dates from 1934.

The route via Klofningsvegur no. 590 runs through Hvammssveit, Fellsströnd, Klofningur, Skarðsströnd and Saurbær. Day-to-day it is called going around the coasts. The boundaries of Fellsströnd and Hvammssveit are around Hólsá and reaches Fellsströnd to Ormsstaðir, where Klofningur takes over. It used to be populated on Fellsströnd, but now many premises are not inhabited. Icelandic forest service owns the land Skógar, from where there is almost continuous forest out to Staðarfell. Staðarfell is an ancient manor and church. A housewife school was there 1927-1976, an treatment home from 1980-2018 and there is a community home. Outside Ytrafellsmúli, the lowlands increase and there is some woodland and islands out from the coast. Flekkudalur and Galtardalur go in between the mountains and there lies Efribyggð. From Efribyggðarvegur there is a large and beautiful view of the islands at the entrance of Hvammsfjörður. Kjarlaksstaðir is the settlement land of old Kjarlak. After Flekkudalsá and Galtardalsá merge, it is called Kjarlaksstaðaá. Bjarni Jónsson grew up in Vogur and was called Bjarni from Vogi, after the farm. There is a monument about him by the highway. Until 1918 the boundaries of Skarðsstrandarhreppur were from Ormsstaðir to Fagradalsá, then the district split into Klofningshreppur and Skarðshreppur. The district boundary held until 1986 that Klofningshreppur split over Klofningur between Fellsstrandarhreppur and Skarðshreppur. In Dagverðarnes, Auður Djúpúðga ate a breakfast in her search for her settlement columns. The current church in Dagverðarnes was built in 1934. Outside Dagverðarnes lies Hrappsey where the country's first secular printing house was operated. Klofningur is a natural gap and the road runs through it. At Klofningur there is a sightseeing point and a good view over the islands and out to Snæfellsnes. One of the oldest manor in the country is Skarð á Skarðsströnd. It is the settlement land of Geirmundur heljarskinn and the same family has lived there since the 11th century. Farmers church is in Skarð and there is, among other things, an altarpiece that Ólöf "the rich" Loftsdóttir is said to have given to the church. Below Skarð is Skarðsstöð. There is a lot of bird life and cultural monuments. Skarðsstöð was the first legalized trading center in Dalasýsla in 1884 and now houses a fishing port. The community center Röðull is located below the road by Búðardalsá. In Röðull there are often exhibitions related to the life and culture of the people of Skarðsströnd. In the 18th century, Magnús Ketilsson, an magistrate and a great progressive man, lived in Búðardalur and did significant agricultural experiments and wrote a number of scholarly articles. Ytri-Fagridalur is the innermost town on Skarðsströnd and is the settlement land of Steinólfur "the low". Over there you can see Hafratindur, the mountain of Dalir.

Gudrun Osvifursdottir, heroine of Laxdaela Saga, was born (973AD) and brought up at Laugar. It is said that she used the hot water pool there a lot and also met there her followers Kjartan and Bolli. There is a geothermal area at Laugar and a naturally-heated swimming pool was built there in 1932. The hot water is also used for heating up the buildings at the place. Now there is a 25 meter outdoor swimming pool, with hot tubs, sauna and more.  At about 3 km from Laugar you may find the rocky hill Tungustapi, home of elves.

Hofrungur AK 91 (Dolphin) was built in Akranes in 1955 and was for a long time part of Haraldur Bodvarsson’s herring fleet. 

Reykholt is one of Iceland's most notable historical sites. It houses a cultural centre and a church. Reykholt is most famous for being the home of Iceland's best-known author Snorri Sturluson during the years 1206-1241. An ancient geothermally-heated pool, Snorralaug, is named after him. It is one of the few things preserved whole from Iceland´s medieval period. Snorrastofa is a cultural centre and institute for research in medieval studies. Snorrastofa offers historical exhibitions and guided tours and lectures. Music recitals are held in the church of Reykholt. Visit Reykholts website www.snorrastofa.is There is one hotel in Reykholt see more here.

According to Laxdaela saga, Gudrun Osvifursdóttir used to dwell by a geothermal pool in Laugar in Saelingsdalur. The pool is mentioned in Sturlunga saga and it seems to have been used a great deal. The pool is believed to have been destroyed in a landslide. In 2009 a new pool was built near to the location where the old pool is thought to have been situated and named Gudrunarlaug. A changing facility, referred to as a ”house of modesty“ in Icelandic, was also built at the same time.

Svalthufa is a high cliff teemed with birdlife and there is a great view to Lóndrangar Cliffs, the front part is named Thufubjarg. Lóndrangar are uniquely-formed remnants of ancient basalt volcanic dikes sticking out from the sea. The higher pillar is 75 m high and the lower one is 61 m. On these cliffs, fulmars have their nests. At Malarrif is the Visitor Center for Snaefellsjokull National Park and it´s fun to walk around the area and explore the nature.  The Devil itself and Kolbeinn the Glacier-poet once sat side by sig at Thufubjarg. They were competing about whom were better poet, as is said in an old folks tale. The Devil lost and Kolbeinn became his master, as is said in the tale. 

Arnarstapi was an important trading post in the past and had a much bigger population than it has now. Columnar basalt, ravines and grottoes surround the Arnarstapi pier. There is good anchorage for small boats. There is quite a large arctic tern colony in the village itself. A walk along the coastline is recommended to watch the birds and the magnificent lava formations. The seaside and the cliffs between Arnastapi and Hellnar have been made a Natural Reserve in 1979. A very interesting old path follows the coastline where you can see old lending places of fishermen, lots of birds like the kittiwake, the Arctic tern and the fulmar and pass through a lavafield. If you take a guided tour, you will also hear a ghost story. A sculpture of Bardur Snaefellsas by Ragnar Kjartansson stands by the beach at Arnarstapi.

Brakarey is connected to the mainland by a bridge. The island was named after Egill's nanny and Skalla-Grimur´s slave Thorgerdur brak, after Skalla-Grimur killed her and she drowned in the sea near it. From the island is a great view over Borgarfjord.

Ondverdarnes in Snaefellsnes, a lighthouse. The first lighthouse was build there 1909. A new lighthouse was then made out of concrete the year 1973, taller than the old. 

Near Gufuskalar on the uttermost part of the Snaefellsnes peninsula, there was one of the many winter fisher villages consistant in Iceland in former times. If you come from Hellnar and look at the lava fields at your right, you may disover the ruins of some 200 very small stone buildings which were used to dry and stock the fish. Their age is estimated at 500-700 years. It is a 10 minutes walk from the road to one of the ruins which is still in so good condition that you can crawl inside. There, to your surprise, you may find the ceiling high enough for an adult to stand upright.

One of the heroes of the Settlement Sagas, Egill Skallagrímsson founded the rich farm of Hvanneyri at the time of settlement. Today the Agricultural University of Iceland, which is very engaged in the protection of the environment, is located in Hvanneyri as well as the Acriculture Museum of Iceland. One can also find the Wool Center in the center of the town and the town's church.  In the spring and autumn a lot of White-fronted Goose stay around the village, they are under protection in the area as well as other bird species that live in the Area. 

A goblet-shaped rock and popular resting place for tourists. Close to Hvammsvik on the old national road around Whale Fjord. An elf by the name of Staupa-Steinn has his home in this rock. Not everyone can see him. He is described as having long hair, a beard and being a kind, gentle man who loves to play ball with children who are picnicking in the area. Beautiful view. Protected since 1974.