Sorvagsvatn

Distance: 1.5 miles, each way / 3 miles round trip

Difficulty: Easy

Time: 1.5-2 hours round trip
 

The famous view that isn't that hard to get!

Foggy view of the cliffs above

The hike to this iconic Faroe Islands lookout is actually one of the easiest the islands have to offer.  There is little to no elevation gain, and it is relatively easy walking for most of it.  Your biggest threat is actually stepping in sheep poop or getting attacked by a bird (the sheep poop thing WILL happen; you probably won’t be attacked by a bird).  FYI, apparently back in the day workers were thrown off the top of this cliff to get rid of them.  I’m not entirely sure why they partook in this practice given there are cliffs everywhere, and it’s a hike, but that is the legend!

The best part of the hike is that it starts literally 10 minutes from the airport.  I’ve made it a tradition to hit this up after every arrival to the islands, to stretch the legs out after a long day of travel.  The hike is relatively quick, and is straight forward in nature.  You can literally see your destination from the road.  Don’t be fooled though; the Faroe Islands are vast and everything is farther away than it looks.  Even though it looks close, this hike will still take you a healthy 1.5 hours round trip if you go and come right back, but chances are you’ll want to sit and enjoy the view like this:

The hike starts at a small turn off on the road.  Coming from the airport, this turnoff will be on your right (from Torshavn it will be on the left).  It’s important to note that, when you first see the lake coming from the airport the turnoff is still a ways up the lake.  Don’t park and start hiking when you first see the lake because you’ll extended the trip a few extra miles and extra hours.  Here’s where the parking area is:

Once you park, you will have two options to start the hike.  You can walk east toward a gravel path (literally the path of least resistance) or you can go straight through the gate and start hauling.  Both will get you to the famous overlook, however, the gravel path is probably easier since it’s already at the elevation you need.  If you walk along the lake, about halfway there you will come across a small hut with a picnic table.  People do camp there, but this is an indication that you’re heading in the right direction and a good place for a pause.

Keep trekking and you’ll come to the first view you have of the ocean…just be careful approaching the cliffs!  It’s a few hundred feet to the bottom.  This is a cool place to stop and soak in the view, but you won’t get the full floating lake effect unless you keep on trekking left and up the cliff.  In 10-15 minutes you’ll reach the top and a glorious viewpoint.  If you approach the left side of the cliff, and glance back towards the lake, you’ll see the famous illusion:  a  lake floating above the ocean.  It appears this way because of the sloping landscape and the angle that you look at it, but still it is an incredible sight.

Your first glimpse of the ocean!

You can walk towards the right side of the cliff and back down towards the ocean to catch the waterfall where the lake empties into the ocean.  Depending on the water level and water flow, you can actually cross the stream/river where the lake funnels into the ocean.  In fact, I highly recommend it for an exception view of the waterfall and ocean.  It will extend your journey by 45 minutes to an hour, but it is well worth it if you are looking for a nice hike.  See below for pictures:

The way down to the other side.  This was in April and there was a way to get over the river, however, depending on water flow that might not be possible!

Aerial view of the waterfall into the ocean

On the opposite side of the waterfall

The way back is exactly the way you came!  Hopefully you’ll enjoy this hike as much as I do.  NOTE:  I’ve flown a drone there twice, and refrained once because it is usually a very windy promontory.   In March, I put my drone up and very nearly lost it to the wind.  The pictures below are from April and July, when I found much less wind.

Enjoy and please follow @keithrhollis and @faroeislandstourist for more hikes and reviews!  Feel free to leave additional comments below!