Vestrahorn
There are two Icelandic mountains and rivers that photographers love most - the Kirkjufell Mountain on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, and the Vestrahorn next to the town of Hofen. And because Vestrahorn is not in the regular tour group route, most tourists have never seen the true face of the Mountain.
In fact, for those who drive in Iceland, Vestrahorn is not difficult to reach at all. Compared with the Kirkjufell Mountain, this mountain has a richer level of modeling, and its charm is not lost. Although there is no super-production and high-profile American drama like "A Song of Ice and Fire: Game of Thrones" to shoot here, in fact, Vestrahorn has also contributed to his screen debut - the movie "Stardust".
From the town of Hofen, continue on the No. 1 Road towards the winter, and soon you will reach a tunnel entrance. Before entering the tunnel, there is a branch road, which is the road to Vestrahorn.
The intersection is clearly marked; or use the GPS positioning system, you will not miss it. After turning into the small road, it is a typical Icelandic gravel road section. Although it is not too bumpy, it is still recommended to drive slowly, especially the road has many turns, and sometimes the vision is not good, and it is difficult to see the opposite car.
A few small houses can be seen at the end of the road, and this is the entrance to Stokksnes Beach for the best view of the Vestrahorn. From the town of Hofen to here, it is no more than 16 kilometers away, and it only takes 20 minutes to drive there.
Speaking of Vestrahorn, you can almost always see a matching name - Stokksnes. Stokksnes is a private black sand beach on the front of the mountain, from which you can enjoy the best view of the Vestrahorn.
Vestrahorn and Hofen are obviously in the southeast corner of Iceland. Why is it called West Cape Mountain instead of East Cape Mountain? The reason couldn't be simpler - further east of Vestrahorn, there really is an east corner mountain - Eystrahorn, and there is a third Horn series mountain - Brunnhorn.
These three mountains all have sharp corners protruding upwards, and they are not far from each other. Among them, Vestrahorn is the westernmost, and Eystrahorn is the easternmost, as the name suggests.
Famous photographer Iurie has photographed countless stunning works on Vestrahorn, which shows his love for this mountain. Indeed, Vestrahorn is extremely malleable, with a wide-angle panorama and partial close-ups, coupled with different foregrounds and features of different seasons such as aurora, Lubinghua, snow, and ice, which are ever-changing.
If you want to shoot reflections, this is not the lake, but the tide washing on the beach, or the snow melts, the rain accumulates, etc. The water depth is generally not more than a few centimeters. It is best to have waterproof shoes and boots.
If you want to shoot long exposures, you will need to bring a tripod. Because the Vestrahorn is relatively wide, if you have the ability, you can take a panoramic view with a wide-angle lens. Of course, the panoramic shooting mode of the mobile phone is also a simple and convenient alternative.
Because it is only a short distance from No. 1 Road, it is easy to drive to Vestrahorn all year round. Of course, with very occasional extreme weather, there may be stormy days where the area cannot be reached.
Because the gravel road from No. 1 Road to Vestrahorn is not a mountain road, a two-wheel drive car is also competent in summer. In winter, although the road from the south bank to the Jökulsárlón glacier lake is easy to walk most of the time, it may suddenly become snowy and slippery from the glacier lake to the town of Hofen.
Therefore, from December to March or even April, it is safest to choose a four-wheel drive vehicle when driving to Vestrahorn.