Northern Lights Forecast for Egilsstaðir

Northern Lights in Egilsstaðir

Egilsstaðir is the main town in the east of Iceland, founded only in 1947 and home to about 2,700 people, or about 3,100 counting Fellabær across the bridge. It sits inland on Lagarfljót, a long, deep lake that is said to hold a serpent, the Lagarfljót Worm. Unlike the fjord villages on the coast, it is not boxed in by mountain walls, and the lake gives long, open views.

Inland, away from the coastal cloud

East Iceland’s tourism board notes that the inland valleys around Egilsstaðir often stay clear when low cloud sits on the coast. In long-term Icelandic Met Office records, Egilsstaðir averages less cloud through the aurora season than Akureyri, roughly the same as Reykjavík.

Lagarfljót, Vök and Hallormsstaðaskógur

Egilsstaðir is small, and a short drive takes you clear of its lights.

• The Lagarfljót shore: the lake is a few minutes from the center, and its flat, open shoreline gives a clear view across the water.
• Vök Baths: floating geothermal pools on Urriðavatn lake, about 5 km from town just off the Ring Road. The pools are open all year and into the evening, with a wide view in most directions.
• Hallormsstaðaskógur: about 25 km from town along Lagarfljót, a 740-hectare forest that became Iceland’s first national forest in 1905. It has very little artificial light, but find an open spot by the lake rather than under the trees.

The airport, the Norröna and Fjarðarheiði

Icelandair flies daily from Reykjavík’s domestic airport, and Egilsstaðir Airport is about 2 km from town. By road it is on the Ring Road, about 250 km east of Akureyri past Mývatn, roughly three hours in good conditions.

The other way in is by sea. Smyril Line’s car ferry Norröna sails to Seyðisfjörður from Hirtshals in Denmark via Tórshavn in the Faroe Islands, with sailings that vary by season. Seyðisfjörður is 27 km from Egilsstaðir over Fjarðarheiði, a 620 m pass where snow has long been a problem for drivers coming off the ferry, so look at its status on road.is before crossing in winter.

Hengifoss and Seyðisfjörður

Hengifoss, a 128 m waterfall in Fljótsdalur, is a 40 to 60-minute walk up from its car park, past the basalt columns of Litlanesfoss. Seyðisfjörður, a village of brightly painted wooden houses and artist studios under steep fjord walls, makes a short trip over the pass when the road is open.