Westfjords

Geographical location

The Westfjords ( German "West fjords " ) comprise a peninsula and region with an area of ​​9409 km ² in the north- west of Iceland.

European Arctic

With the " actual" Iceland Westfjords is connected only by a narrow neck country. The peninsula is surrounded in the north west of the Denmark Strait ( Isl Grænlandssund ) and in the north east of the Greenland Sea. Around 30 % of the coastline of all of Iceland attributable to the Westfjords.

The eponymous Western Fjords reach deep into the land and fracturing the inhospitable area. Through the fjords, the country roads are very wide. Outward and return journeys a day are hardly possible. When storm and snow, the dirt roads are often impassable. Refuges with telephone and food can save lives. Nevertheless, the domestic freight transport is dependent on the streets; Ferries because there is not. Shipping is solely the fish processing industry in the remote port cities. Small aircraft can land on unfired gravel roads.

At the beginning of the 17th century came Basques as the first European whalers in the West fjords, where they founded fishing stations. For communication with the Icelanders, they used a mixture of Basque and Icelandic. They were followed by Norwegians, British, French, Dutch, Spanish and German.

Places of interest

The main towns in the region are Isafjordur and Bolungarvík. Also of importance are Þingeyri, Patreksfjörður, Suðureyri and Hólmavík Tálknafjörður, Flateyri, Súðavík, Hnífsdalur Bíldudalur Reykhólar and Reykjanes.

Population

The region is relatively sparsely populated, with a total population of 7374 (1 December 2008), which represents less than 3 % of Iceland's total population ( in 1900 still about 16 %) and a population density of 0.784 inhabitants. / Km ².

The reasons for this extreme rural exodus are firstly the relatively isolated location of the different places and on the other hand in the declining demand for labor in the agricultural and fisheries sector, which form the main sources of income of the Westfjords. Transportation is even now ( especially in winter ) relatively difficult. Many roads consist only of gravel roads. And the often rainy or stormy weather hampered air traffic ( according to Isafjordur and Gjögur ). The northern peninsula Hornstrandir in winter is even entirely uninhabited.

Many people move to the capital region or emigrate to other countries, such as after an avalanche disaster in 1995 ( see also: Súðavík ). In the second half of 2008 for the first time in a long time, a direct reversal of the previous trend was apparent. While Vestfirðir, like most other capital distant regions, has experienced a more or less distinct population growth, losing up to that ever-growing regions in and around the capital in the southwest significantly inhabitants. Whether this is with the financial crisis, with the in the metropolitan areas concentrating banks and a return to "old ways of life in Iceland " related or just a temporary phenomenon is remains to be seen.

Tourism

Meanwhile, to build tourism as a new source of income, as the fjords are very scenic. Tourist undeveloped is still about the area near the Dynjandi (also Fjallfoss ), the highest waterfall with 100 meters of the Westfjords. Since 2006, the fishing tourism has greatly increased in the West Fjords. The zone at the output of the ice fjord Ísafjarðardjúp offers very good opportunities for fishing for cod, halibut, wolffish and sometimes haddock, saithe and redfish.

Division into districts and municipalities

The Westfjords region is divided into four districts and two county-level municipalities. The former district Vestur - Isafjardarsysla (Code 4700) has now been fully incorporated into the community Ísafjarðarbær.

Division into communities

The Westfjords region is divided into ten municipalities.

Pictures

Airstrip with bridge house a trawler as " Tower" in Westfjords (2002)