Facts & Figures

Area: 22.271 km2; (8.598,9 sq.mi)

Population: 7.260 (source: www.hagstofa.is)

Main settlements:

Reykholar (pop132)

Patreksfjordur (pop 618)

Talknafjordur (pop 276)

Bildudalur (pop 178)

Thingeyri (pop 277)

Flateyri (pop 275)

Sudureyri (pop 308)

Isafjordur (pop 2.704)

Bolungarvik (pop.908)

Sudavik (pop 182)

Holmavik (pop 364)

Drangsnes (pop 65)

Bordeyri (pop 32)

Main economic activities: Fishing indurstry, agriculture, services, industry, tourism

The West Fjords are made up of Ísafjarðar-, Barðastrandar-, and Strandir-Counties. The last stretches furthest south along the western side of Hrútafjörður. Barðastrandar County includes two thirds of the numerous islands in Breidarfjörður.

The West Fjords region is the oldest part of the Icelandic landmass. The oldest rock in Iceland has been found on the Breiðadalsheiði Heath between Önundarfjörður and Skutulsfjörður. Dated at 14-15 million years old, the rock is old for Iceland but young, compared to rocks elsewhere on the earth.

Glaciers have been the major force in shaping the land. Everywhere there are glacier-eroded valleys and cirques, and unglaciated nunataks rise from the tops of the mountains. On the northern shore of Ísafjarðarðjúp snowdrifts often extend down into the sea as late as summer, the reason the coast is named Snæfjallaströnd (snow mountain coast). Drangajökull Glacier, broad and pure white, rises from this shore, a relic of the last Ice Age, the only glacier in the West Fjords and the most northern one in Iceland. The glacier known as Gláma has melted away as the climate turned warmer.

The landscape of the West Fjords is varied. Promontories with sheer cliffs and rocks dashed by the sea line the shores between grassy valleys and shallows and beaches of shells ground fine by the sea. In Strandir, the southern part of the West Fjords, the outline of the land is bowed and softer, but to the west and north the landscape becomes increasingly indented and Cyclopean.

The main part of the West Fjord highlands reaches 300-500 m above sea level, rising slightly to the north and west. The land is indented by a great many fjords, more than half of all the fjords in Iceland, with narrow valleys leading back from the sea. In the north Ísafjarðarðjúp almost divides the landmass in two.

The many rivers that cascade from the highlands are impressive, even though they flow for only a short distance. They tumble over a myriad of waterfalls in their rush to the sea, often passing through majestic chasms. The largest is Dynjandi in Arnafjörður, which spreads in a blue veil as it drops 100 m down the mountainside.

There are no large lakes in the West Fjords but rather a large number of small tarns and lakes and seaside lagoons, many good for fishing. The rivers are home to trout and the larger ones, like Langadalsá, have salmon. Geothermal heat is found widely in the West Fjords and is used for heating houses, swimming pools and raising fish.

Then there are the lowland areas and grassy islands teeming with nesting birds, of which the best-known are the islands of Æðey and Vigur in Ísafjarðarðjúp and Grímsey in Steingrímsfjörður. The islands and skerries in Breidafjörður number into the thousands, many of them formerly the site of homes and communities. The best-known in the northern part of Breidafjörður are the islands of Flatey, Hergilsey, Hvallátur, Svefneyjar and Skáleyjar, to name a few. Today few live on the islands though some are used for summer residence.