Day 9: Revenge of the Puffins at Latrabjarg

We had to catch the 2pm ferry (Ferry Baldur) from Brjánslækur (Brjanslaekur) in the West Fjords (southern part) across the bay to Stykkisholmer on Snaefellnes peninsular. It's a 3hr ferry ride and saved us HOURS of driving. Our car came for the ride for an additional $US35. Yipee!

This meant we had a couple hours to visit the bird cliffs at Latrabjarg, also the westernmost point in Europe and an hours drive from Hotel Latrabjarg. We were all excited because we love seeing wildlife (if you haven't guessed this already).

When we got to the bird cliffs at 7am and it was eerily quiet, windy, and not a soul in sight. Aren't there supposed to be thousands of birds here? Not suspecting anything we hiked up the cliffs for about half an hour and still nothing! Where were the puffins?

No people, no birds ...


I was not a happy camper at this point. Drenched by the rain and freezing from the relentless wind, while trying to find non existent puffins, I decided to give up. Anyway we learned later that the puffins left early this year. How UNFAIR! The guidebooks said they leave in August and September.

Isn't this false advertising. See the excerpt from the Rough Guide below. I was of the impression that we'd still get to see puffins at the end of August. Hrmp. OK OK rationally speaking wildlife is impossible to predict.

Although the guillemot is the most common bird at Látrabjarg, it’s the thousands of puffins that most people come here to see. The high ground of the cliff-tops is riddled with their burrows, often up to 2m in length, since they nest in locations well away from the pounding surf, ideally surrounded by lush grass and thick soil. They return to the same burrows they occupied the year before, almost always during the third week of April, where they remain until August or September. - From the Rough Guide

I am also annoyed that the folks at Hotel Latraburg failed to mention the departure of the puffins, even though we asked specifically about it.

But we saw a cute baby gull. No that isn't any consolation.


Also on the way to Latrabjarg is "The Most Beautiful Beach" in Iceland, Breiðavík. I suppose one of the few with "normal" sand.


A beautiful day for a boat ride. The captain claimed they saw orcas on the way over to Brjanslakur! But we weren't so lucky.



Sights covered: Latrabjarg, Breidavik, Ferry Ride, Stykkisholmur (Stykkishólmur), Berserkjahraun, Budir.


Accommodation: Langerholt Guesthouse near Budir on the Snaefellnes Peninsular.

What I wish I'd known:
Don't get me started on the puffins ....

Latrabjarg is about 2 hours from Brjánslakur. Leave yourself additional time because the ferry only sails twice a day in summer and you don't want to miss the boat.

More in the next post ...


My Iceland Travel Blog Index

Day 1: Hello Reykjavik!
Day 2: Battling Nature? Not for the Faint Hearted
Day 3: It's a Beautiful Day (channel: U2)
Day 4: The road to Myvatn
Day 5: Iphone Malfunction
Day 5: All Fossed Out
Day 5: Jarbodin - Spa Myvatn
Day 6: The Barren Interior and Askja
Day 7: Off the Beaten Path
Day 8: Hellish Driving Day!
Day 9: Revenge of the Puffins
Day 9: Food and Botched Reservations
Day 9: Nuni? No Nüni ....
Day 10: Time to Say Goodbye