August 11, 2025 (Isafjordur, Iceland)
We’re baaaack! We are back in Isafjordur, where we made an initial visit just six days ago on August 5th. Having already explored the local area and town on our previous visit, this time around we opted for a 4-wheel drive adventure to the jewel of Westfjords, Dynjandi Waterfalls, and the outlying area. It was a great time!
For a minute it was the trip that almost wasn’t. Our guide noticed some smoke coming out from under the hood and heard a slight whistling sound. He pulled over to check things out and decided we could make it to the falls, where he would do some minor repairs that would get us through the rest of the day. Fingers crossed…
Dynjandi Waterfall is approximately three-hundred feet tall, one-hundred feet wide at the top and two hundred feet wide at the bottom. We started at the bottom and worked our way up. Ken got some beautiful shots.
Pam couldn’t decide which was harder….going up…
…or coming down!
Either way, it was worth the effort…
Clearly Icelanders are not as litigious as Americans. There are no handrails or steps anywhere, and no barriers to keep you from falling into the falls. They’re big on common sense and good balance.
After our visit to Dynjandi, we stopped by a private farm for cake and coffee. There did not appear to be any reason to stop here except that the owner’s daughter is running the place and making the money from the coffee and cakes. But it was pretty and the cinnamon rolls were good. The guy who owned the place before had his own church.
From here it was time to engage the 4-wheel drive. Do you see the road in this picture? This is only a portion of what we “drove” up. There was no way to take pictures as we made our way up up up the shortcuts and around the hairpin bends in the road. Only a local would know about the route we took. It was a fun, of bumpy, ride.
Our last stop was to the top of Mt. Sandefell. We didn’t have a photo op, so Pam tried to find a picture to give you a sense of the experience. This is the best she could find. We were headed to the top of that brown mountain peak on the far right of the second photo by way of the green line in the last photo. The picture is dark, we know, but if you follow the green line, and imagine a one-lane dirt trail going straight up with no shoulder on either side, you get a sense of our experience.
The views at the top were the reward.
During the spring the mountain is covered in these beautiful purple flowers, lupine. We tried to find a picture to help you imagine it, but this is the best we could do.
When it came time to come down off Mt. Sandefell there were those who did not want to be part of the 14-point turn it would take to get the vehicle turned around. They asked our guide to get the vehicle turned around without them in it, but he just laughed and waved them back in. As we were backing up he said, “I just look for the church in the village below in my rearview mirror. When I see it I know I’ve gone far enough on the ledge; if I see the cemetery I’ve gone too far!”
We drove through that little village on our way back to town. You can see Mt. Sandefell in the background of the church. Our guide told us a great story about the green building in the following photos. The home was old and uncared for that the village council was going to tear it town. A man and a woman vacationing here drove past on a tour like ours, heard the story, and decided to make an offer to save the building. They bought it for $300, moved here and created what is now a bustling cafe, with so much business they had to add the bus out back.
Some of you have asked who is taking care of Sophie while we are off on this grand voyage. Sophie is living her best life with Ken’s sister, Cathy, and brother-in-law Craig. She’s going for rides with the top down, checking out concerts in the park, cooling off in the lake and maintaining her beauty routine. We sure do miss you, Sophie Girl!
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