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| Located in Iceland's Westfjords, the breathtaking Latrabjarg sea cliffs are the most western part of Europe. |
"Come on, just take my hand," says my boyfriend Chris. My legs feel weak. My heart is racing. I'm paralyzed with fear.
"No that's okay," I say as I sink to my knees and choose instead to crawl cautiously to the edge of the cliff towering high above the churning sea. I peer nervously over the grassy ledge hovering 440 metres above the Denmark Straight. The waves below crash against the rocks in a fit of rage. I grip the grass nervously with my hands, hoping it will prevent me from rolling over the edge and falling to my death.
"Oh don't be such a chicken," Chris says as he snaps endless photos. He isn't just standing near the edge of the cliff, he's on it, attempting to capture the perfect image.
"I can't even watch you. It makes me uncomfortable," I say, as I slide away from the edge, rise to my feet and continue the hike -- away from the edge but within my comfort zone.
The sheer cliffs form a continuous rock wall extending about 14 km from Bjargtangar in the west to Keflavik in the east. They are home to millions of birds, including puffins, northern gannets, guillemots and razorbills, and claim the title of Europe's largest bird cliff.
I arrived there during a self-drive tour arranged with Icelandic Farm Holidays, which spends six days exploring Iceland's remote Westfjords. The tiny Nordic country of 323,000 people is known for its active volcanoes, the biggest glaciers in Europe, spewing geysers and monstrous waterfalls, but I wanted to get off the beaten path and stay in rural guesthouses with people who know the countryside inside out.
Getting to Latrabjarg is an adventure itself, filled with narrow, winding, bumpy roads that hug the side of moss-covered table mountains encompassing sparkling ocean fjords. Other roads in the region cross over the mountains with challenging switch-backs that leave me speechless.
Every turn looks like a postcard, prompting Chris to stop the car and capture the endless visual feast before our eyes.
Walking along the sea cliffs is not for the faint of heart. The
further I walk, the higher they rise into the sky like a giant green
carpet. A handful of travellers creep cautiously towards the edge to
pose for photos, sparking a plethora of reactions that are entertaining
to observe.It's late summer and most of the birds have left for the season. All I can hear is the waves muffled by the gentle breeze ruffling the few tufts of blonde hair sticking out from underneath my toque. Finally, I muster up the courage to get closer to the edge, where Chris stands without a care in the world. A look of disbelief is etched upon his face as he stares at the landscape before him, uttering words of excitement.
"Let's take a photo," he says enthusiastically, extending a hand toward me. With much hesitation, this time I accept his offer and reluctantly step onto what feels like the edge of the world.
I cling onto Chris like a barnacle on a ship, terrified of the plunging cliffs on either side of the little ledge we're standing on. Forcing as smile, I stare at the camera for what feels like an eternity. The world is my oyster.
NEED TO KNOW
-- The Westfjords are an 8,600-sq-km peninsula attached to the mainland by a narrow isthmus of land barely 10-km wide. Only 3% of all foreign visitors make it to this dramatic landscape, which consists of majestic fjords created by intense glaciation.
-- The Icelandic Farm Holidays Association was founded by farmers in 1980. The majority of the travel agency of the same name is still owned by the farmers. For information on their various adventures, visit farmholidays.is.
-- published by Sun Media November 2014
