Reyðarfjörður – Trails and History

Discover Reyðarfjörður along trails by the wooded banks of the Búðará and at places that tell the story of its past. If you enjoy combining nature and culture on a trip, you’ll find plenty of ideas here: a trail leading up to a waterfall, a museum about the war years, and a historic house that has been preserved. You can shape your stay around whether you’d rather spend time outdoors or explore the town’s past.

Hiking Trails by the Búðará and to the Waterfall

A hiking trail starts in the town centre and follows the wooded banks of the Búðará. Another walking route leads from the centre through the Búðarárgil gorge and up to the Búðarárfoss waterfall. Along the way, it passes the Icelandic Wartime Museum. The two routes offer different landscapes: one follows a wooded riverbank, while the other takes you through a gorge to a waterfall. Since no route distances or walking times are given, it makes sense to choose a walk to suit your plans for the day rather than assume it will take a particular length of time.

There are also hiking opportunities in the surrounding area. Grænafell lies just west of the built-up area of Reyðarfjörður. From Fagradalur, an easy, marked trail leads up the mountain. If you’re considering a hike outside town, you can plan to take this route. Further afield, the Geithúsaárgil gorge lies below Grænafell, at the innermost end of Reyðarfjörður fjord. Its steep rock walls were carved by the Geithúsaá river over centuries.

Wartime History in the Museum and Around Town

The Icelandic Wartime Museum shows what life was like during the war years and how the occupation affected Iceland. Visitors can enter barracks and a cinema, and view objects and numerous photographs from the war years. The museum has seasonal opening hours: from 1 June to 31 August, it is open daily from 13:00 to 17:00. If you’d like to combine a museum visit with a walk through the Búðarárgil gorge, you can take these hours into account when planning.

Traces of the Allied base from the Second World War can also be found around town, including old barracks and small gun emplacements. An annual town festival, Hernámsdagurinn, commemorates the British occupation of the town on 1 July 1940. The festival includes art exhibitions and live music at the Icelandic Wartime Museum.

A Historic House and the Barkurinn Pier

Sómastaðir was built in 1875 and is Iceland’s only surviving house with exterior walls made of roughly hewn blocks of grey stone and mortar made from glacial clay. Its distinctive construction makes the house a destination in its own right for anyone interested in the town’s history and architecture. Visits are possible from 1 June to 31 August, on Mondays and Thursdays from 14:00 to 16:00. If you’d like to visit both places, you can take their different opening days and hours into account when planning.

The restored Barkurinn pier tells a different story. Visitors can fish there, read about the pier’s history, and enjoy the scenery. Its origins date back to 1884, when part of a barque was sunk below Bakkagerðiseyri to support the pier later known as Barkurinn. At low tide and when the sea is calm, the original ship is still visible below the pier. Anyone interested in the site can explore both how it is used today and its unusual origins.

More Ideas for Your Trip

The Kollur golf course, run by Fjarðabyggð Golf Club, has nine holes, a par of 70, and is set on a hillside in Reyðarfjörður. Tees 3, 4, and 7 offer lovely views. This offers a different focus from the hiking trails and historic sites: here, the emphasis is on a round of golf and the views from particular tees.

If you’d like to extend your trip planning to include other destinations, you can also discover these places: Vallanes, Vopnafjörður, Höfn Í Hornafirði, Fljótsdalur, Breiðdalsvík, Brunnholl, Eskifjörður and Bjarnanes.

When choosing your holiday apartment, consider which of these interests you’d like to shape your stay: trails and a waterfall, insights into the war years, historic architecture, or time by the pier.

For the wider travel overview: Austurland.