Our second day here in Iceland was one of wonder and came with the spirit of expedition. As we headed off Flatey, we moved into the area of Westfjords in the northwest portion of Iceland. Westfjords is, as the name suggests, an area of massive fjords that were carved out by slow-moving but relentless glaciers. These geologic behemoths combined with volcanic activity were the processes that created this island nation, and today we were able to see this history on the exposed sheer fjord walls of Arnarfjordur. At the end of Arnarfjordur, a portion of those steep cliffs is covered by thunderous, roaring water. This water is the famous and massive Dynjandi Waterfall. Spanning over 300 ft and itself feeding into five other waterfalls, Dynjandi is a sight to behold. Here we disembarked the ship, taking Zodiacs to nearby beaches and hiking to the base of the falls. Along the way, we passed fields of buttercup flowers, guarded by terns who squawked and dive-bombed would-be invaders to deter them from heading near their nests. We then made our way to the lowest of the falls, taking in the beauty of each step as mist flew off the turbulent waters, pushed across the desolate landscape by the constant breeze. Finally, at the top of the trail, we arrived at Dynjandi itself. The waterfall stretched towards the sky; those who wanted to take in all of its beauty needed to crane their necks to have a look at the layers of rock stacked on top of each other, creating steps for the water to quickly work its way down.
After our time at Dynjandi, we embarked the ship again and made our way out of the fjord, eventually docking in Isafjordur, where a myriad of adventures awaits us tomorrow.
Photo caption and photographer: Dynjandi Waterfall with one of the many smaller waterfalls it feeds into. Photo by Kayvon Malek
