Hrísey

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Hrísey
Hrísey, seen from the southeast
Hrísey, seen from the southeast
Waters Eyjafjordur
Geographical location 66 ° 0 ′ 0 ″  N , 18 ° 23 ′ 0 ″  W Coordinates: 66 ° 0 ′ 0 ″  N , 18 ° 23 ′ 0 ″  W
Hrísey (Iceland)
Hrísey
length 7.5 km
width 2.5 km
surface 7.67 km²
Highest elevation Bratti
110  m
Residents 153 (2017)
20 inhabitants / km²
main place Hrísey (Syðstibær)
Hrísey
Hrísey

Hrísey is a small island three kilometers off the north coast of Iceland with 167 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2019).

The island is located in Eyjafjörður , about 35 kilometers from the city of Akureyri , to which it has also been an administrative part since 2004. Before that, the island (with a rock in front of it) was a separate municipality ( Hríseyjarhreppur ).

The island area has a size of 7.67 square kilometers, a length of 7.5 kilometers and at its widest point a width of 2.5 kilometers. This makes it the second largest island on the Icelandic coast after Heimaey . The highest point on the island is 110 m. The Eyjarhalar rock is located 60 meters north , with an area of ​​around one hectare.

You can reach the island in about 15 minutes by ferry from Ásskógssandur .

history

The church in Hrísey

Since the colonization of Iceland , the island has always been inhabited.

In the 19th century the fisherman Jörundur Jónsson began to hunt sharks; a memorial near the church commemorates him. As a result, the island was first used by Norwegians and Swedes, and later by the Icelanders themselves as a base for the fishing industry. In the late 19th century, there was a salt herring factory on the island. In the 1960s there was a downturn as a result of overfishing in Icelandic waters, and the last fish freezer closed in 1999.

Hrísey has recently gained a good reputation as a bird watcher. Due to a natural lack of enemies, Hrísey is a sanctuary for the birds.

The northern part of the island, Ystabæjarland, is a privately owned nature reserve and the killing of birds is prohibited on the rest of the island. There are around 40 bird species, such as the ptarmigan , the arctic tern and the eider .

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