Hvitserkur — Attraction in Nordic countries

There are so many beautiful rock formations along the Icelandic coastline and Hvitsekur is yet another. This one is so odd in its composition as its tall and narrow. You wonder how it remains standing in its place battered by the tidal sea and, more so, how it got there in the first place!

It is best visited at low tide so that you can walk along the beach sand...right out to it. When the tide is in, it is surrounded by water and therefore only accessible to view. There is a viewing platform on the cliffs above but this is best savored from down below.

To access by beachfront, forego the walk to the viewing platform and instead follow the trail from the parking lot that is signed beach access. It has an image of a seal on it. Its a fairly steep descent and when you reach the beach, turn left. You cant miss it at this point.

The beach is said to have seals sunning on the rocks at low tide. There were none today when I visited around 8:30pm. I will note that on arrival the rock still had beach access but the tide was moving in swiftly. Check your tide schedules.

Also of worthy note...to visit Hvitserkur requires a lengthy drive on a gravel road (711). We started at Hvammstangi and went first to the Skardsviti lighthouse and on to Hvitserkur. In this direction, it is about 42 km of driving on a rather rough gravel road. With a 4-wheel drive vehicle...no issue...but we had a low clearance 2 wheel drive and it required slow, deliberate travel to avoid ruts, holes and rocks. It wasnt a fun passage. I advise traveling in the opposite direction on 711 by way of Breidabolsstadir. While it is the same number of kilometers this way, the roadway is much better passing. Its smoother by a lot and the journey in this direction has paved sections. It saved us 15-20 minutes time to come back this way. Im not 100% certain if the road is open...

This is a super cool spot — the rock formation really does look like a rhino! But there's much more to see than just the rock itself. In the area, we spotted seals, seagulls with chicks, and ducks with ducklings. 30-minute dirt road drive each way is well worth it! There is a bathroom before you go into the parking lot.

We visited in early July around 3 pm, and the tide was low, exposing a large stretch of beach, so we were able to take a long walk along the beach.

To get down to the beach, make sure you take the trail on the right side of the parking lot (see the first couple of photos). It’s a longer walk but much smoother and easier to go down, and that's how you see the seals. There’s also a very steep path near the viewpoint on the left side of the parking lot — better suited for the way back up if you’re feeling adventurous.

When we got down to the beach, we saw seals lounging on the beach across the water, and a few swam over to our side, popping their heads out of the water to check us out — a really cool experience! As you approach the rock, you can clearly see seagulls nesting on it, with plenty of...

Gorgeous views of a black sand beach, snow capped mountains and the large basaltic rock formation. It’s a bit out of the way. You need to take route 711 north of Hvammstangi. If you are coming from the east, you can take 711 before you get to Hvammstangi and get to the site that way. 711 is a loop around the Vatnsnes peninsula. Be aware it’s a gravel packed road, and follow it until you see a big sign for Hvitserkur. There is an overlook platform for viewing the rock. The seal colony is adjacent to the big rock on the beach and can be reached by a separate path - this is called Osar and there is a sign for it in the same small parking lot that leads to the rock. We saw 8-10 seals swimming and playing in the sea - they seemed quite content. The small road to the parking lot is rough with some potholes, but you can manage by being careful. Side note - there is a nice waterfall and gorge off route 715 just east of Hvammstangi - nice place to visit for some cool...