Patience and luck at the ready: The incredibly dreamy "northern lights" at Iceland’s Kirkjufell

Text and photos byKavanah

(Jan. 30–31, 2017) Having already visited Iceland in 2015, my main goal in returning was to see the "blue ice caves" and the "northern lights." While the northern lights can appear anywhere in Iceland, I was especially eager to witness them above Kirkjufell, the "Church Mountain." That’s why I stayed two nights near Kirkjufell in Grundarfjörður, hoping to see this iconic mountain paired with the aurora. After two days of effort and waiting, I finally managed to see the northern lights dancing above Kirkjufell. Although the lights weren’t very strong and fell short of my expectations, I still achieved my primary objective for this revisit to Iceland.

Several friends who traveled to Iceland in winter didn’t see the northern lights at all. It turned out they had only gone out for casual strolls at night and gave up quickly after not seeing anything. In reality, seeing the aurora depends not only on good weather (high KP index, thin or clear skies) but also on "patience." During our two days in Grundarfjörður, the KP index was quite high (above 5), but thick clouds obscured the lights. I checked the cloud forecast and headed to Kirkjufell during the times when the sky was clearer. On the second night, I barely slept and made multiple trips to the mountain, finally succeeding in seeing and photographing the aurora around 5:00 a.m.

On January 30, the KP index for the northern lights was very strong (I recall it was around 6–7), but the clouds were thick all night. The cloud forecast predicted clearer skies only around 5:00–6:00 a.m., so we got up early and went to Kirkjufellsfoss waterfall near Kirkjufell, hoping to catch a glimpse of the lights.

The allure of the northern lights is truly unmatched. Despite it still being pitch black, the parking lot was already packed with cars. We couldn’t even drive in, so we parked on a small usable roadside spot and walked over. In the darkness, we climbed to the famous photography spot near Kirkjufellsfoss waterfall, where there was already a row of tripods waiting to capture the aurora. That night, the lights were actually quite bright—even through the thick clouds, you could still see the aurora peeking out from behind them.

Kirkjufell itself, covered in snow, was incredibly beautiful that day, and the aurora danced wildly across the sky. It was just a shame that the clouds interfered, cutting short everyone’s dreamlike encounter with the lights.

From this photo, you can see how intense the aurora was, slicing through the sky like laser beams. Just imagine how stunning it would have been if there were no clouds...

As we kept shooting, the clouds showed no signs of clearing, and it even started to rain. We hastily packed up our tripods and drove back to our accommodation.

The next evening, on January 31, I returned to Kirkjufellsfoss at 10:00 p.m. It had rained heavily all day, and the beautiful white Kirkjufell from the morning was nowhere to be seen. The clouds in the sky hadn’t cleared either...

There were auroras, but they weren’t what I had imagined. My mood was very heavy because if I missed this night, I wouldn’t get another chance to photograph the northern lights above Kirkjufell during this trip.

I went back to sleep for a while, then got up at 2:00 a.m. From the window of my lodging,Grund í GrundarfirdiI spotted faint auroras appearing in the sky above Kirkjufell.

After checking the cloud forecast, I saw that the sky would become clearer after around 5:00 a.m., so I decided to sleep a bit more and head out again around that time.

When I returned to Kirkjufellsfoss at 5:00 a.m., well... the sky did have some auroras and was a bit clearer, but it still didn’t make for great photos...

Alright, I gave up...

Just as I was about to call it quits and head back to the hotel, I turned my head and noticed a faint green glow behind the mountains on the other side. When I took a photo with my camera, I realized the sky on that side was full of auroras.

The sky on the other side had very few clouds, and the auroral activity was getting more intense.

But when I tried to photograph Kirkjufell, I found the clouds behind the mountain were still thick, making for unappealing shots.

But the view from this other side was clearly beautiful. Can’t I just move the clouds?

Then it hit me—if I couldn’t control the clouds, I could at least choose my shooting direction. So I walked back to the parking lot, got in the car, and drove back to the town of Grundarfjörður, hoping to find an angle by the sea to shoot Kirkjufell.

Kirkjufell as seen from the seaside in Grundarfjörður.

From this side, Kirkjufell and the auroras looked much more stunning than from the waterfall viewpoint.

It was almost 7:00 a.m. by then (yes, you read that right). Though the auroras weren’t very intense, their spread was vast, with lights dancing across nearly the entire sky.

When I returned,Grund í Grundarfirdiit was already dawn, but I could still see the auroras dancing in the sky. A bit more patience and determination can really increase your chances of witnessing the northern lights.

Kavanah @ Kyoto, independent stay.
Kavanah x Japan Travel Frenzy