Reykjafjardarlaug

Reykjafjardarlaug is two things next to each other at the bottom of a fjord: a rectangular concrete swimming pool built in the middle of the twentieth century, kept warm and clean and free to use, and a few metres away a rough stone-walled hot pot fed directly by the spring, hotter and older-feeling. Most people use both, moving between them. There is a changing hut and nothing else. It sits directly beside the road on a stretch of the Westfjords where the driving is slow and long, which makes it a natural break rather than a destination in itself.

What you actually see

• A free concrete pool - built in the mid twentieth century.
• A stone hot pot beside it - fed straight from the spring.
• A changing hut - the only facility on site.
• A roadside stop - on a long slow stretch of fjord driving.

When to go

June to September; the road is difficult in winter. An hour.

Honest expectations

Facilities are minimal and maintenance depends on the local community, so cleanliness varies. The hot pot can be too hot at the inflow. Nothing else stands at the spot but the two pools and the hut. Showering before entry is expected.

Nearby

Bildudalur is west; Dynjandi is north along the fjord.