nature, Photography

Volcanic Sand Beach

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We stopped to brave the cold, rain and extremely windy conditions of Dyrhólaey bird sanctuary and viewpoint on Iceland’s south coast. This sanctuary is on a high cliff overlooking the beaches far below.

This is the North Atlantic ocean and there is nothing between Iceland and the Horn of Africa – more precisely, the Horn’s interference is minor, so there’s not much between Iceland and Antarctica – stopping that wind, so it really gets up to incredible speeds.

M and I had a hard time keeping our feet, as did others; the wind literally almost sent me flying since it was about 65 kph (40 mph). There were few birds about; most were sheltering in the cliff crevices.

The beach is comprised of black volcanic sand, and we would have loved to take a walk along the trail to the beach, but the wind was just too strong. We opted to get back in the car – literally without breaking the door hinges – to admire the view in dry comfort as we ate our lunch. But what an incredibly picturesque view, even if the weather was terrible!

24 thoughts on “Volcanic Sand Beach”

  2. I can feel the cold again just like the last post! How amazing to stand at a point in the frozen North where (almost) the next landfall is at the other end of the world. The volcanic activity in Iceland is still making the news here – apparently a 1.5 mile fissure has opened up …

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    1. Yes, we read about that fissure opening up as a result of the lava that was shooting 50m into the air! Apparently officials are still taking these eruptions in stride and are now pumping water from the ocean onto the lava as well as extending the barriers around Grindavik. There seem to be no atmospheric concerns at present, either.

      That wind was extremely cold! Blowing off an Antarctic glacier, it seemed! We lived in the subarctic for six years and are prepared for and know how to handle cold, but this tested us. 🥶

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    1. That’s very true, Linda! We had a lot of trouble literally keeping our feet. People were seriously being pushed along by the wind; it was definitely no place for children or anyone unstable on their feet. I’m glad we stopped though as the beach was beautiful, even under those conditions.

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    1. Jude, it really was. And that comes from someone who lived in subarctic Canada for six years. I’m glad we stopped (and had good gear with us) but I happily admired the views from inside our rental car!

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    1. It was definitely worth stopping and almost getting blown away, but I was happy to get back inside the car! It’s for sure not for children or anyone with compromised balance or walking issues. Yes, the more southerly black sand beaches are very different.

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  6. We enjoyed our visit to Vik and Dyrhólaey, but it was far less windy that day. It looks windy enough there to blow the wings right off the puffins. Happy Sunday Lynette. Allan

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    1. Thanks, Allan. It’s no surprise that the birds were sheltering. I did see a couple that were literally still in the air. I’m not sure how they were even able to get aloft! It was worth visiting, even though the weather was terrible. Cheers.

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  10. Oh my; I remember when we were there last year at this time and how incredibly cold it was. But, the wind was unlike anything we had ever experienced. Like you said, it nearly blew us away; wild! Stay safe and enjoy Lynette!

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    1. Thank you very much, Tricia. 😊 You were here at the same time last year! We are apparently missing the largest crowds so it’s a good time to visit. We have had very mixed weather from the extremely cold to pleasant spring warmth. We just had a couple of days of 18C (64F). The wind has been unbelievably strong at times; today our car was badly buffeted as we drove through the subarctic high plains. Definitely wild!

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    1. Thank you very much, Belinda. 😊 It’s quite typically northern in that sense. July and August have highs around 25-30 mostly because of the midnight sun – it’s almost there now. Over the last couple of days we had 18 and sunny, so it’s starting.

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