Unique West fjords

WORK/PROJECT:

SEEDS volunteers will take part, for the third year in a row, in a very successful environmental project in the Icelandic western fjords. We will mainly be working on one main task, simple outdoors work, collecting berries.

The locals are collecting berries to make their own home made jam and berry juice. We might get the chance to learn how to make them. Part of the work may take place on the island of Æðey.

We will also be doing some general cleaning and tiding up of the area, which has become a very popular hiking place for nature lovers and hikers that want to enjoy the isolated and amazing nature of this area of the West fjords. This will depend on the weather conditions.

Our hosts run an accommodation hut (guesthouse) where hikers can stay overnight and sometimes food is prepared for the visitors; volunteers may be assisting in diverse tasks connected to the mountain hut when needed. Our hosts usually assign different tasks to the volunteers according to their needs and the skills of each one of the group. Since the guesthouse might be busy at points, no strict plans are made and require high flexibility of everyone.

Volunteers will be assisting in the kitchen and guest house tasks if needed.

ACCOMMODATION:

We will be hosted in the hut/guest house, sleeping on mattresses on the floor. Please bring your own sleeping bag. At the time of our stay there may be some visitors as well.

The house is a fully equipped home, with access to a kitchen, bathroom and a washing machine. We will share the different duties of cooking and cleaning.  Since the location is very remote, no internet is available; the mobile network however is good with constant signal.

Do not forget some traditional/typical food from your home country for the international evening. Food is provided, with access to fresh fish, wild meat and vegetables, it is used for guests and volunteers and may include meals as: reindeer, fresh salmon or cod, rhubarb, berries, mushrooms.

LOCATION:

The West Fjords is one of the most breathtakingly beautiful places in Iceland, with its high mountains of extreme beauty and dramatic fjords cutting deep into the landscape.

The area has a mythological aura and the landscape draws people into the world of elves, trolls and other supernatural creatures. Here we have stories of monsters, ghosts and of the locals’ ways of dealing with them, showing the strength and resourcefulness of the once inhabiting the land.

The driftwood has always been one of the people’s main valuables and it has been used for building houses, boats and heating up accommodation for centuries. The numerous hiking ways in the area attract many visitors during the summertime to enjoy the beautiful landscape.

Perhaps one of Iceland's most remote areas, it is a sheltered bay in a remote region, largely untouched by modern developments where silence reigns and nature continues to shape a rugged, mountainous landscape. You can hardly get further away from the bustle of the towns to enjoy life in the beautiful and peaceful landscapes of this remote area.

This is among the least frequented parts of the country. The roads up there are only open during the few months of the short summer; it is one of the remotest corners of Europe, where the coastline is covered with vast expanses of driftwood that originated on the other side of the Arctic Ocean, in Russian Siberia; the region is stunningly beautiful to really experience Iceland’s wildness.

LANGUAGE:

English will be the language in the camp; high proficiency in not a requirement.

TERMINAL:

Closest international Airport: Keflavík/Reykjavík (KEF). Domestic Airport: Ísafjörður (IFJ).

EXTRAS / SPECIAL REMARKS:

Participation fee EUR 200 (Euros).

Remote location, extreme beautiful natural surroundings with countless opportunities to hike and discover by foot; allowing for multiple excursions to nearby sights (mountains, waterfalls, islands).

Age: 18+