I heard there are some things out here so I rented a car and went to explore. Summiting Kirkjufell was the highlight, but the rest of this side quest was still pretty amazing!
Waterfalls
On the drive up, I stumbled upon the gorgeous Selvallafoss waterfall when I pulled over to take some photos of the nearby lava fields. I heard the sound of running water and hiked towards it, soon after finding a gorgeous reward. I then did a short hike to Grundarfoss and saw some ponies along the way, and even an elusive rock ptarmigan on my hike out.
Hellissandur Murals
The street art capital of the country. This tiny fishing village began encouraging artists to paint murals and it just became a thing. I opted to make a quick stop after my Kirkjufell hike and then continued on down a winding road through yet another jagged lava field and ogled at the neon orange Svörtuloft Lighthouse.
I cowboy camped in the (partially restored) ruins of a viking village, Beruvíkurbæir, which is below the Snæfellsjökull glacier. What a fantastic ending to a fantastic day!
Djúpalónssandur
This beach is littered with amazing lava rock formations as well as fragments from a 1948 British trawler shipwreck (only 5 of the 19-member crew survived) and also the famous lifting stones. I hiked a bit further than the usual tourist trails and found a gorgeous little lagoon that was begging me to take a dip. I read a legend about a fisherman who was swimming in this water and got caught in a riptide which pulled him underneath the rocky wall and spat him out in the ocean on the other side!
Arnarstapi
A tiny town of the southern coast of Snæfellsnes which attracts many tourists to see it’s jagged coastlines, hippy coffee shops, and the Bárður statue. Also along the south shore are some gorgeous attractions; the Bjarnarfoss waterfall, the Sönghellir Cave, and the Rauðfeldsgjá Gorge, Búða beach, and Búðakirkja the famous black church.
