Grimsey bird island
A few years ago, I went to the island of Skomer in Wales to photograph puffins. Since, I have looked for another opportunity to take images of this cute bird with its colourful beak.
One day I watched a video on YouTube from Gudmann & Gyda about puffins on Grimsey in the north of Iceland and I started to investigate some more about the location. I even bought their book “Grímsey – The Arctic Wildlife Wonder” to get more insight about the island including what else to photograph.
Then, I decided to give it a try and arranged a trip to Iceland and Grimsey in June 2024.
Travelling to Grimsey
Grimsey is situated about 45 km from the north coast of Iceland crossed by the Arctic Circle. You can get to the island by a three-hour ferry journey from Dalvik which is operated four or five days a week during summer. Also, there are scheduled flights from Akureyri two times a week. The flight time is 30 minutes in a small plane.
The small ferry from Dalvik to Grimsey
My wife and I had rented a car in the capital of Reykjavik and drove about 400 km through Iceland from south to north to take the ferry to Grimsey. There is space for a couple of cars on the ferry so we decided to bring ours.
However, a car is definitely not needed on the small island unless you are having trouble with walking. There are very few roads anyway.
Accommodation on Grimsey is limited to three guesthouses with a total of 25 bedrooms. We stayed at Guesthouse Sveinsstadir run by Halla Ingolfsdottir. It was a very nice place and Halla makes you feel very welcomed as a guest.
The very nice Guesthouse Sveinsstadir with nine rooms and shared bathrooms.
Down by the harbour is the Restaurant Krían. It is the only place on the island where you can get lunch and dinner. The food is fine although a bit expensive for what it is. Next to the restaurant is the only grocery store on Grimsey and having limited opening hours.
Restaurant Krían to the left with a small grocery store behind the red mailbox.
First impression
We arrived to Grimsey around noon after a very rough and windy crossing. The guesthouse was 800 meters down the road so it was nice to have the car although the weather was dry.
Beside the windy conditions it was only 5 degrees Celsius in the middle of summer. If going to Grimsey you need to bring warm and waterproof clothes. Also, some good walking boots is a must as you have to walk a lot. The island is only about 5 kilometres long but expect to go back and forth between locations several times during the day.
Just outside Guesthouse Sveinsstadir we got our first puffin images. The cute birds were down by the cliffs only a few meters from the road.
One of my first puffin images from Grimsey - there were more to come.
Then we went to the restaurant for a light meal before exploring the southern part of Grimsey where you find the lighthouse.
The lighthouse in the southern part of Grimsey.
On the way to the lighthouse there were lots of different bird species to photograph including fulmars, dunlins, eiders, golden plovers and a black-tailed godwit.
Following a dinner at Krían we decided to explore the area of Stórimúli above the Básavik bay in the northern part of Grimsey. This should be one of the most accessible locations to photograph puffins.
And lots of puffins were there. However, they mainly stayed at the cliffs and the puffins seemed shyer than I have been used to before.
Having been to Skomer in Wales photographing puffins I had expected to sit on the ground surrounded by puffins.
This is not possible on Grimsey. There are puffins everywhere you look but they stay by the steep cliffs. It is still possible to get great images of this beautiful bird but you have to work hard.
One of my favourite puffin images shot on the first evening above Básavik Bay.
It had been sunny all day so we looked forward to photograph puffins at sunset. Actually, the sun is not setting at all this time a year but it still gets close to the horizon allowing for silhouettes and amazing light.
Unfortunately, some clouds formed in the area of the “setting” sun so we didn’t get the opportunity on the first evening.
Although it is possible to photograph around the clock on Grimsey at the end of June, we decided to get some sleep hoping for better luck the next day.
Summer on Grimsey
Next morning we woke to a blue sky and no wind. Furthermore, it became 14-15 degrees Celsius during the day – this was definitely summer in this part of the world and the locals were happy.
For a wildlife photographer this is not the best conditions as the light is too strong in the middle of the day. However, we still went out to explore the island preparing for better light in the evening.
One of my goals of the trip was to photograph the red-necked phalarope that live on the island.
They are very tiny birds and you can find some in the Sandvikurtjörn pond just north of the harbour. Despite the sun I decided to get some images anyway before returning for better conditions in the evening.
Got my red-necked phalarope image in the sunny morning.
Later in the afternoon we once again went south to the lighthouse. This time, we walked further out along the coast to explore the area. It turned out to be a great part of the island with lots of opportunities to photograph puffins and razorbills sitting at the top of the cliffs.
Following dinner, we returned to the area of Stórimúli and Básavik Bay. This is a good spot to photograph puffins and some golden plovers are active on the ground being very curious.
Golden plover from the area of Stórimúli.
Despite the sunny day clouds were coming in during the evening and deprived us from a nice sunset.
As it was getting quite dark the photo conditions in the pond with red-necked phalaropes were poor and the birds not that cooperative. Thus, we went to bed early at midnight.
Sunset at last
In the morning, we walked to the “Orbis et Globus” being a landmark for the Arctic Circle. The nine-ton concrete sphere is situated in the upper northern part of Grimsey about 4 km from the harbour.
It is a long walk and there is not much wildlife to photograph although we passed some sheep along the way. However, you cannot visit Grimsey without standing on the Arctic Circle.
A heavy marker of the Arctic Circle on Grimsey - don't worry, I didn't move it ... ; - )
Back at the guesthouse in the afternoon I found some snow buntings. It seemed that they were nesting close by the terrasse bringing food to their chicks. Also, a lot of arctic terns were nesting in the grassland across the road and kept flying around in the area.
I had a great time photographing these birds although it was challenging to get images of the terns in flight.
Arctic tern in flight.
This was our last evening on the island and the prospect looked promising with no clouds.
The basalt rock of Borgin.
I had been told that guillamots could be found on the cliffs down by the basalt rock of Borgin in the south before coming to the lighthouse.
Therefore, I went down the cliffs to the Arctic Ocean hoping to get some images.
Unfortunately, there were no guillamots at all but the basalt rock was beautiful in the late evening sun.
I had not prepared for landscape photography with a wide-angle lens so I had to use my iPhone – regret that I didn’t go back to the room to get some proper equipment!
Black-legged kittiwake.
At least I got an image of a black-legged kittiwake on a nest.
Then, we went further south to the area by the lighthouse to get puffin and razorbill images in the soft evening light.
However, it turned out to be a bad idea as the surrounding hills covered for the sun this late in the evening.
As midnight was approaching, we quickly went by car to the north hoping for some sunset images of puffins.
The best spot for this is Básavik Bay and some other photographers were there when we arrived.
Not that you see a lot of visitors on the island apart from the few hours from noon when one-day tourists come with the ferry.
Despite a few clouds in the horizon, we were blessed with a beautiful red coloured light and a single puffin was cooperative sitting on the cliff with the midnight sun in the background. I finally got the silhouette image I had hoped for.
Silhouette image of a puffin by midnight.
Closing remarks
Map of Grimsey with guidelines.
On our final day on the island, we mainly enjoyed the amazing nature and wildlife without a lot of photography.
The sun was too strong to get proper images. As a wildlife photographer you would prefer some overcast conditions outside the golden hour.
We had to take the ferry at 5 o’clock in the afternoon and fortunately the wind was calm for the crossing.
Grimsey island is definitely a great place to visit for wildlife photographers and bird enthusiasts.
The birdlife is second to none and the birds are much less shy and accessible than in my home country of Denmark.
It is easy to get around on the island but you need to have a reasonable physical ability to walk between the various locations. Despite being a small island you still have to walk many kilometres every day.
Also, it is important to bring warm clothes and be prepared for rainy days. Even in the middle of summer the average temperature is only 7-8 degrees Celsius.
You need to dress warm on Grimsey even in mid summer.
To me, a huge advantage is also the opportunity to walk in complete solitude on this amazing bird island with a very small number of visitors.
Photographing puffins was the main reason for me and my wife going to Grimsey. Although more than 40,000 pair of puffin breed on the island – and you see puffins everywhere – they were not that accessible as expected.
I had imagined sitting in the scurvy-grass which grows amongst the coastal rocks photographing puffins doing their daily business. However, on Grimsey the puffins mainly stay on the steep cliffs and are a bit shy.
Still, you cannot go to Grimsey without returning home with lots of images of the cute bird. But if you really want to concentrate on photographing puffins, I would recommend going to the island of Skomer in Wales.
Puffins on Grimsey are a bit shy and often sitting on the steep cliffs.
On the other hand, Grimsey is much more than puffins. It was a great surprise to find that there are so much more to photograph on this bird island.
About 30 bird species are known to breed on the island and especially razorbill, golden plover, dunlin, snow bunting, red-necked phalarope, arctic tern and redshank were my favourites.
Finally, you don’t need to book and pay for an organised photography trip to Grimsey.
Unless you prefer the company of fellow photographers it is easy to find the interesting locations without a guide. In June/July it is possible to photograph almost 24 hours a day and you may often be on your own anyway.
Grimsey is an arctic wildlife wonder and I would like to return.
