Iceland review - 2012, Page 70

In the early summer, the farmers in Fnjóskadalur drove their
sheep—6,000 in total—northwards to pastures in Flateyjardalur,
a 40-kilometer (25-mile) long valley with heaths on either side,
which was abandoned a century ago. The area is too cold for mod-
ern agriculture but the moor is perfect for free-range sheep.
Göngur refers to going to the mountains to find and collect one’s
sheep. In Flateyjardalur, it takes a group of 20 people three days to
round up the herd on foot. And it’s a hard walk—30 kilometers
(18.5 miles) a day, 90 kilometers (56 miles) in total—up and down,
down and up, and up again. Not until after reaching the rough
dirt road leading out of the valley can vehicles be used. For the
remaining stretch, four jeeps and one all-terrain bike were brought
to help chase the sheep back to Fnjóskadalur. So it was tired but
happy people who returned with more than 3,000 sheep from the
mountains on September 15. Around 2,000 sheep came to the low-
land on their own account during and immediately after the storm
but a second göngur may be necessary to find the remaining sheep,
which usually takes place a couple of days after the first round.
ROUNDUP
The sheep being driven to Lokastaðarétt pen. The farm Þverá in the background.
Opposite page: Eighteen sheep on their way home, crossing Ólafsklettslækur river.