Akureyri.org

Akureyri is so to speak the capital of North Iceland. In reality it serves the north and north east of the country but not so much the north west which look more to Reykjavik for services they can not provide locally.

The town is pretty set in a not too narrow fjord. There used to plans to bring the sea more into the town center with some water channels but these plans have been abandoned.

Being the 2nd biggest population center of Iceland after the Greater Reykjavik area the town often gets some preferential treatment. It got its own tunnel through the mountain across the bay even though the tunnel does not save a lot of time. A side effect from the tunnel creation was some hot water which has now been utilized by a spa.

On the other side of the tunnel is the North East section of Iceland, starting with Vaglaskógur, a rare forested area. Not far away is Goðafoss, a place where some Vikings got rid of their heathen ways. (See the picture above). From their you can continue to Myvatn with its wonderful birdlife and a geothermal lagoon or to Húsavík which is most famous for whale watching. Further east there is Asbyrgi, where the hoof of a giant Pagan god stepped down. At the bottom of Asbyrgi is a very tranquil little pond. Nearby is the glacier river which may have contributed to the creation of this geological phenomena. Follow the river up on the right side and you come to strange rock formations. To see the big waterfall Dettifoss that is the opposite to being tranquil we recommend driving up on the left side.

You will find more tranquility continuing up to Raufarhöfn and Þórshöfn and the Langanes peninsula with some abundance of bird life in the summer. The road that goes over the high plateau leading to Raufarhöfn and Þórshöfn we like to call the Milky Way because of the lack of man made lights. So remember to park your car and stargaze. Perhaps you will be rewarded by Northern Lights. (An alternative to visiting this area which makes a detour of the ring road would be Snaefellsnes)

To get much more information about Iceland and the places to visit go to www-iceland.com