Reykjavík Grapevine - 01.08.2018, Page 32

The Reykjavík Grapevine
Best of Iceland 2018
32
One of the most beautiful places in Iceland,
just two hours drive from Reykjavik.
A charming atmosphere, and a restaurant
known for its exquisite cuisine.
REMOTE LUXURY
hotelbudirhotelbudirhotelbudir.is budir@budir.is +354 435 6700
The Artist With A
Child’s Heart
The Samúel Jónsson Museum
Words: John Rogers Photos: Timothée Lambrecq
It’s a surprising sight, after driv-
ing the snowed-in mountain
passes and grey, rocky coastline
of the southern Westfjords, to
round a tight corner on an ob-
scure coastal dirt road and see
a vast pink sand beach sprawl-
ing towards the horizon. Vio-
lent blue waves race far up onto
the sand as the tide comes in,
causing a fog of spray to hang
over the snow-streaked expanse;
in the distance, a hulking flat-
topped mountain emerges from
the fog. Across the fjord, vast
glacial valleys appear and disap-
pear behind fast moving clouds
and bands of rain, each one cra-
dling a band of mist. I open the
car window, stunned by the raw
and vivid view, and taste sea salt
on my lips. The Westfjords, even
after plenty of exploration, never
cease to amaze.
The dirt road in question is
Route 619, an unserviced 25km
track that runs from the tiny
town of Bildudalur to the re-
mote and mostly unpopulated
valley of Selárdalur. It’s an ob-
scure spot that wouldn’t usually
be much of a destination—the
road is rough, and although the
nature is spectacular, there are
many more accessible places to
see it. But at the end of the road
is a true Icelandic oddity: Lis-
tasafn Samúel Jónssonar, or The
Samúel Jónsson Museum.
Westfjordian lions
Samúel Jónsson (1884-1969)
was a farmer who spent his life
working at the Brautarholt farm
in Selárdalur. Upon his retire-
ment, he started creating art,
having never trained or estab-
lished an artistic practise pre-
viously.
Distance from
Reykjavík:
401km
How to get there:
Drive Route One North, Then
Routes 60, 62, 63 & 619
Car provider: gocarrental.is
Hotel: fosshotel.is Westfjords