Iceland review - 2016, Side 103

ICELAND REVIEW 101
SPECIAL PROMOTION WEST ICELAND
PIONEERING WOMEN
Let’s not forget the strong women of West
Iceland. Guðríður Þorbjarnardóttir (or Gudrid
the far-traveled), was born on Snæfellsnes in
980. She grew up to become an explorer
and, with her husband, led an expedition to
Vínland, the coastal area of North America,
where she gave birth to son Snorri Þorfinns-
son, the first European born in the Americas.
Guðríður’s story can be read in the Vínland
sagas, and guided tours are offered at her
birthplace, Laugarbakki.
Auður djúpúðga (Aud the deep-minded) is
another notable settler who is often credited
for bringing Christianity to Iceland. Having
lost her husband and son in battles in Ireland
and Scotland, Auður sailed to Iceland, where
she claimed a vast area in the Dalir region.
The ruins of her farm can still be seen and
a large stone cross has been erected in her
honor at Krosshólaborg, where she used to
pray.
GEOLOGICAL WONDERS
Snæfellsjökull National Park is the western-
most part of Snæfellsnes peninsula. It con-
sists of the famous Snæfellsjökull glacier and
its surroundings, including the old fishing
village of Hellnar. Arnarstapi, with its spec-
tacular grottoes and ravines, and the nearby
Vatnshellir cave, an 8,000-year-old lava tube
that goes 35 meters (115 feet) below the
surface, are also within the park. The glacier
itself is quite easily accessible by foot or by
booking snowmobile or snow cat tours, for
example with Snæfellsjökull Glacier Tours.
Wherever you look in West Iceland, breath-
taking landscapes meet the eye, which is
why it’s no coincidence that the most photo-
graphed mountain in the region, Kirkjufell, is
the landmark of the town of Grundarfjörður.
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Kirkjufell mountain by Grundarfjörður.
Víðgelmir, Iceland’s largest cave.
Into the Glacier offers tours of the manmade ice tunnel and caves in Langjökull.