Northern Lights Forecast for Ísafjörður

Northern Lights in Ísafjörður

Ísafjörður is the main town of the Westfjords, home to about 2,800 people, with its old center built on a sand spit in Skutulsfjörður. The fjord is narrow and walled by steep, flat-topped mountains, so from town much of the sky is hidden. The open direction is north, out of the fjord toward the wider waters of Ísafjarðardjúp.

The path to Hnífsdalur and the road to Bolungarvík

The whole Westfjords region has only about 7,300 people, so outside the towns there is almost no artificial light. What limits you here is the mountains and the weather, not light pollution. A paved path runs beside the road for about 5 km north to Hnífsdalur, a village of about 200 people, so you can get away from the center’s lights on foot. Bolungarvík, a fishing village of about 1,000 people, is about 14 km north-north-west through a tunnel and faces Ísafjarðardjúp near its mouth.

Clear nights are not common. In long-term Icelandic Met Office records the Westfjords average around 80% cloud cover through the aurora season, more than other parts of Iceland, and the town gets strong winds and few clear days through the year.

Sólarkaffi and the weeks without sun

The mountains are high enough that the sun does not clear them for about two months in winter, from late November until about 25 January. When the first rays reach the town, people celebrate with sólarkaffi, sun coffee, with pancakes and whipped cream.

The turn into Ísafjörður airport

Icelandair flies from Reykjavík’s domestic airport in 40 to 50 minutes. The airstrip is on the fjord about 5 km from town, and the approach is tight: aircraft fly close to the surrounding terrain, and when landing to the north-east they make a turn of about 180 degrees before touchdown.

By road it is about 455 km from Reykjavík via Hólmavík, five to six hours in good conditions. The main roads into the region are serviced in winter, though some other roads close for months under snow, and long-distance buses only run in summer. The Icelandic Met Office issues avalanche forecasts for the region at vedur.is; read them alongside road.is before any winter drive here.

Neðstikaupstaður, Ski Week and Aldrei fór ég suður

Neðstikaupstaður has a group of timber houses from the 18th century. Ski Week fills the town at Easter, and the Aldrei fór ég suður rock festival, started in 2004 by the musician Mugison and his father, is held every spring. The town is also home to the Fossavatnsgangan cross-country ski race.