Cape Ingolfshofdi is an isolated headland on the coast half way between Skaftafell in Vatnajokull National Park and Jökulsárlón ice lagoon. This historical nature reserve is home of thousands of nesting seabirds, like puffins and great skuas. The cape is named after the first settler of Iceland, Ingolfur Arnarson, who spent his first winter in Iceland there in the year 874 AD.

To get to Ingólfshöfði we cross 7 km of waters, marshes, and sands in a tractor-drawn hay cart. The drive takes about 30 minutes each way, so we spend about 1 1/2 hour hiking around the cape. The tractor driver from the nearby farm becomes the tour guide, tells stories and explains the birdlife, and leads the guests safely through the nesting grounds on the cape.

The circle we hike around the nature reserve is 2-3 km long. In the beginning we need to walk up a steep sand slope, and then through rocky terrain, but then it gets easier, mostly hiking on flat grassland and we make many stops along the way. We don’t recommend that people participate in this trip unless they can do this hike.