Látrabjarg Cliffs

About Látrabjarg Cliffs

At the far end of a long gravel road in the Westfjords, the Látrabjarg cliffs mark the westernmost point of Iceland. The cliff face runs for about 14 kilometers and rises up to 441 meters above the sea, and in summer its ledges fill with nesting seabirds.

Látrabjarg is one of the largest bird cliffs in Europe, home to puffins, razorbills and guillemots. Puffins dig their burrows in the grassy cliff top, so you can often watch them at close range near Bjargtangar lighthouse at the western end. That closeness is the reason people drive this far.

The nesting season runs from May 15 to September 15, and early summer is the best time for puffins. Since March 2021, about 37 square kilometers of land and sea here have been a protected nature reserve. Stay behind the safety barriers, keep to marked paths and use a zoom lens instead of edging closer to the birds or the drop.

To get there, turn onto Route 62 near Flókalundur and drive about 40 minutes, then turn onto Route 612, a narrow gravel road that takes roughly another hour to reach the cliffs. Patreksfjörður is the nearest town for gas and food, and Rauðisandur beach branches off the same road. In winter the gravel road can be slow or impassable, so check road.is before you set off.

Plan on one to two hours for walking the cliff-top path east from the lighthouse parking lot. Camping is not allowed in the reserve, and pets are banned during the nesting season, while drones need a permit from the Environment Agency of Iceland.