Eyrarbakki Village
Eyrarbakki Village
Eyrarbakki is a picturesque village, its main street lined with well-restored timber houses, painted in a variety of colors.
The black timber house by the church, called Husid, dates back to 1765 and is now a folk museum. On the other side of the church is Rauda húsið, ‘The Red House’, a restaurant and cafe.
As the road leaves the village, it passes a cluster of white buildings fenced in by barbed wire; this is Litla-Hraun, Iceland´s biggest jail, with room for 100 inmates, all male. Most crime in Iceland is related to drug use and fraud.
Eyrarbakki was for centuries the main port on the south coast through its rocky shore was far from safe.
Protecting the village is a sea wall, erected following the catastrophic storm and flooding of 1799, that badly damaged the village.
In April and May, many migrant birds arrive along the shore. Some will stay in Iceland to breed, while others take a break here then continue their journey to Greenland.