Latrabjarg
Látrabjarg, the westernmost part of Europe is the home of one of the worlds biggest Black Guillemot bird colonies. Up to 444m high, the cliffs are occupied by millions of Puffins, Gannets, Guillemots and Razorbills. Enjoy this unforgettable bird cliff on the edge of the world with white sand beaches and Snæfellsjökull glacier in the distance. Located at the northern extreme of Breiðafjörður, it marked the start of the Westfjords in the south, but at the same time is the westernmost point of Iceland and therefore of Europe. Extending from the cliff is the 60-metre long point of Bardid which gives its name to Barðaströnd.
Látrabjarg is 14 kilometres long and reaches 444 metres high at Heiðnakinn. It is one of the worlds greatest bird cliffs, with what is thought to be the largest razorbill colony on earth. Large numbers of other species including fulmars, kittiwakes, guillemots and puffins nest and breed on the cliff. In centuries past, the cliff was a major local source of food. Farmers would catch birds and gather eggs from its face, risking their lives as they dangled precariously over the cliff top from slender ropes. Up to 36.000 birds a year were caught there and countless eggs collected. Hay was even made on its steep slopes and in its deep valleys. Eggs are still collected from the cliff today, partly to keep the tradition alive as it was when handed down from one generation to the next for centuries.
One of the bravest rescue operations in Icelands history was undertaken beneath Látrabjarg when the British trawler Dhoon stranded beneath the 200-metre Bæjarbjarg in frost and fierce weather in December 1947. Local farmers saved the lives of 14 crew members by scaling down the sheer icy cliff under treacherous conditions.
A walk along Látrabjarg cliff edge is just as remarkable for the minute subtleties of the teeming life that fidgets and flutters on every ledge as for the awesomeness of natures grandeur.
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