Reykjavík Grapevine - 19.07.2019, Page 50

The Secret
Greenhouse
The hidden bathing
paradise of Heydalur
Words & Photos: John Rogers
It’s approaching midnight when
we turn down Route 633 towards
Heydalur. The rough dirt road
traces the coastline of Mjóifjörður
past paddling ducks with proces-
sions of ducklings, and swans glide
smoothly past rocks that look like
basking seals in the midsummer
twilight.
At the crook of the fjord a large
building comes into view, flanked
by summer houses and barns. Hav-
ing phoned ahead to report some
car trouble and our late arrival,
we’re welcomed by Gísli, a member
of the family who owns and runs
the place. Gísli hands over a key
with a smile, and says the bathing
area is open 24/7 should we fancy
a dip. It’s music to our
ears, and we drop off
our bags in our smart
summerhouse and
head out to soak the
road away.
Through the pool-
house door lies an
unexpected paradise.
The roof is transpar-
ent, and the space is
lit by the dim mid-
night sun; birds chirp
and fly between the
branches and fronds
of manifold trees,
bushes, flowers and
shrubs, thriving and
blooming in the warm
air. The pool itself is
through a corridor
of plants; a splash
of bright blue in the
verdant space. A hot pot sits un-
der some low-hanging branches,
steaming invitingly. As we sink
into the water, it’s like a vision in
a dream.
Special plants
The next morning we meet Gísli’s
mother, Stella, who runs the place
alongside him. After leading a
friendly and raucous staff meet-
ing from the head of a long table,
she sends the staff to go about
their business, and comes over for
a chat.
“We bought it
in the year 2000,”
she says. “My hus-
band and my two
sons were looking
for a place where
they cou ld f ish
and grow trees in
1997. My son found
this, but we were
afraid it was too
far from Reykja-
vík. My husband
called a friend who
lives on the island of Æðey, and he
said we shouldn’t hesitate. There
were other people interested, so
they signed… and then we came to
the Westfjords to see what we had
bought.”
Blind purchase
T he b old bl i nd pu rcha se
couldn’t have turned out better.
“It was a farm back then,” says
Stella. “This room was a barn, and
the bedrooms were part of a cow
house. Later on, we built another
ten rooms, and added the new
summerhouses two years ago.”
The pool building was converted
from a sheep house. “We moved the
sheep out, turned it into a green-
house, and planted a lot of special
plants,” Stella continues. “There
were three deep holes. We filled
up two of them, and the third one
is now the pool.”
Future dreams
Today, Heydalur has 19 rooms,
three well-appointed cabins and
a campsite. Working on an eco-
friendly basis,
the majority of
the food that’s
ser ved is lo-
cal, with eggs
and vegetables
from the farm
and trout from
the lake. Geo-
thermal water,
found through
repeated drill-
ing, f i l ls the
pool and heats
the buildings.
Horse riding and kayaking are of-
fered as summer activities.
But there’s still more to be done.
As we finish our conversation, we
notice a telescope of quite a consid-
erable size sitting in a corner. “Ah,
yes,” says Stella. “We do walks to
see the northern lights in the win-
ter. I want to build a small house
around this, but we haven’t got
around to it yet.” She smiles, with
a gleam in her eye. “We’re always
doing something. We still have sev-
eral future dreams.”
Travel Distance from Reykjavík: 340 km How to get there: Route One North, Routes 60 & 61 to the Westfjords, Route 633Further information: heydalur.is
Heydalur's unexpected pool is in a barn converted to a greenhouse
“We moved the
sheep out, and
turned it into a
greenhouse. There
were three deep
holes there, and
one of them is
now the pool.”
Stella, the matriarch of Heydalur
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