Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
HEIMAEY'S COASTAL TRAILS
Due to the airstrip running over the eastern cliffs, it's not possible to circuit Heimaey
completely, though that still leaves you with a decent 12km of
coastal trails
to follow. A clear
6km trail heads down the west coast from the golf course, a pleasant couple of hours
following the crumbly clifftops south. The little beach at the end is good for ducks and waders,
then it's a steep, short climb up grassy
Stórhöfði
, its top capped by a transmitter tower.
There's a viewing platform on the northwestern side for watching bird activity, while the south
cliffs house a sizeable
pu
n colony
and are a good spot to scan the seas for whales and
gannets, the latter nesting on the sheer-sided islets to the southwest.
From Stórhöfði, carry on up Heimaey's
east coast
to a steeper, rockier and weedier beach, often
with some serious surf - this side of the island catches the prevailing winds - and occasional
seals
dodging in and out of the swell. Tidal pools and a couple of interesting caves might slow you
down for a while - if you can get to them - else climb the messy scree behind up onto a ridge
and follow this north until it reaches a fence line. A stile here gives access to the high, stumpy
Landstakkur
peninsula, complete with another pu
n colony and scenic views. Continuing up
the coast, you stay high above the sea with a dramatic drop into the deep blue on one side, and a
gentle, grassy backslope on the other. Another stiff stretch uphill and you're at a
beacon
above
the airstrip, from where you'll have to cut west across country to the road and so back up to town.
2
remains from the road to the west - allow thirty minutes to get to the top. One of the
first things islanders did on returning in 1973 was to start turfing Eldfell's slopes to
stabilize the ash; aerial seed drops during the 1990s also helped, and today about half
the cone is well grassed. Views from Eldfell's 205m eastern rim take in the lava flow to
the north, the other Westman islands and the mainland's southwestern coast and crisp
ice caps. The soil is still steaming up here - in fact, 1m down it's over 500°C.
Helgafell
Immediately southwest of Eldfell,
Helgafell
looks similar but is a bit taller (226m) and
some five thousand years older. The north and southwest faces present the swiftest
routes to the summit, which was used as a lookout post during Heimaey's pirate
period; today the crater is almost filled in, a shallow, sterile depression.
Herjólfsdalur
A kilometre west of town is
Herjólfsdalur
, a dramatically scaled bowl formed from a
long-dead, partially collapsed volcano. The setting for the August festival and for the
island's
golf course
, it is also home to the remains of
Landnámsbær
, Iceland's oldest
known settlement. While only traces of the original buildings survive at the edge of the
golf course, you can see from the nearby timber, lava-block and turf
reconstruction
what this Norse-style longhouse looked like, with separate kitchen area, pigsty and
outhouses. Carbon-dating places parts of Landnámsbær in the seventh century, though
Icelandic historical records say that the farm was founded two hundred years later.
Either way, it was abandoned around 1100, perhaps due to overgrazing on the island.
The path up Herjólfsdalur's grassy crater slope looks much steeper than it is, and once
at the top you'll find yourself on a narrow rim, with a drop down the far side straight
into the sea. The peak to the west is Blátindur (273m), scaled by a slippery path, while
east is a tricky goat-track along the rim to Há - tackling either is not recommended.
Há
The easiest ascent of
Há
starts from the western side of Heimaey's town harbour on
Hliðarvegur, where there's a rope dangling down the rocks for practising
sprengur
, the
traditional method for collecting puffins and birds' eggs. Free beginners' sessions are
held here in July (ask at the tourist office when to turn up). Walk up the steep grassy
hillside behind and you're on Há, from where you can peer down into Herjólfsdalur, or
walk north along the rim to opposite the transmitter tower atop
Stóraklif
.
