The inhabitants of Árneshreppur, a rural district in the remote West Fjords (pop. 52), can expect to be snowed-in for three months in winter as the authorities have not financed clearing the 90-kilometer long gravel road that leads there from Hólmavík in the past three years.
From Árneshreppur. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.
The community must rely on flights to Gjögur for transport of goods as there is no transport by sea to the community either, visir.is reports.
Elísa Ösp Valgeirsdóttir, principal of the local elementary school, Finnbogastaðaskóli in Trékyllisvík, recently moved to Árneshreppur with her husband and three children.
She says improved road connections is what the community needs the most, stating Árneshreppur is the country’s only independent municipality which cannot rely on road connections year-round. The inhabitants are usually snowed-in from January to March.
Elísa does not find the situation fair. It is, for example, difficult to practice fishing in the winter because the fishermen cannot drive their catch to buyers when the road is impassible.
Opportunities to run tourism companies over the winter is also limited, Elísa points out. A hotel is run in Djúpavík and the swimming pool in Krossnes, which is located on the beach with a view of the Arctic Ocean, is frequently visited by travelers in the summer.
Click here to watch an audio slideshow from the Strandir region, including Árneshreppur.
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