Strandarkirkja
Strandarkirkja is a church in Reykjavik Area, Iceland — about 70 km from Reykjavik and reached by a straightforward drive from the nearest highway turnoff. Shoot it year-round, though winter wind, ice, and short daylight rework the shot list, then use the GPS coordinates, parking notes, and nearby waypoints below to fold this stop into a longer photography route.
Overview
Strandarkirkja is a Lutheran parish church in Selvogur, on the southern coast of Iceland
As a photography stop, Strandarkirkja is a church in Reykjavik Area, roughly 70 km from Reykjavik, reached by a straightforward drive from the nearest highway turnoff. Plan the shoot year-round, though winter wind, ice, and short daylight rework the shot list. The downloadable Church map pins exact GPS coordinates, parking, and nearby waypoints so you can fold it into a wider route instead of hunting for the pull-off on arrival.
Strandarkirkja is one waypoint of many — you can load the church photography map for Iceland before you leave signal.
Notes on this location
Compiled from published sources rather than a visit. Sources are listed below.
A church on the south coast at Selvogur, first built in the 12th century and completed in its present form in 1888. Sailors caught in a storm are said to have been guided ashore by an angel of light and to have built it where they landed; the bay is Engilsvík, Angel’s Bay.
- Origins
- Originally built some time in the 12th century; the present building completed 1888
- The legend
- Sailors in a storm prayed and an angel appeared before their bow, seemingly made of light, guiding them in; they built a wooden church where they landed and named the bay Engilsvík — Angel’s Bay
- Reputation
- Known as a miracle church; pilgrims from across Iceland gave generously, making it at one point among the wealthiest in the country
- Open
- Summer only, mid-May to August, with biweekly services, plus Easter, Christmas and Pentecost; a harvest ceremony in August and a fisherman’s mass in October
- The settlement
- Selvogur has fallen from 154 residents in 1703 to 14 by 2015, through erosion and economic decline
A church standing nearly alone on an eroding coast with fourteen people left in the parish is a subject about isolation, and the wide empty ground around it is the picture rather than the building’s detail. Note it is only open mid-May to August — an interior is a summer proposition, the exterior is not.
SourcesStrandarkirkja — Wikipedia
Light & aurora at this spot
Calculated from this location’s coordinates (63.833, -21.698). Iceland stays on UTC year-round, so these are local times.
- Summer
- June: sun up 03:03–23:51 (20.8 h). Evening golden hour 22:00–23:51, light coming from the NNW.
- Winter
- December: only 4.4 h of daylight (11:10–15:33), but the sun never climbs above 2.9° — the entire day is golden hour. Sunrise bears SSE, sunset SSW.
- Aurora
- Aurora-grade darkness Sep–Mar, peaking at 12.9 h a night in December. Not possible Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug — the sky never gets dark enough.
Bar height is daylight hours. Months marked • have enough astronomical darkness for aurora; the rest do not.
Questions & answers
Strandarkirkja is a church in Reykjavik Area, Iceland, approximately 70 km from Reykjavik. Exact GPS coordinates are included in the downloadable Church map.
The recommended season for Strandarkirkja is All. For light, plan around blue hour and the first hour after sunrise; Iceland's long shoulder-season twilight extends usable conditions on either side.
Drive access. A standard rental car works in most seasons; check road status in winter before committing. The downloadable GPS map puts the waypoint on your phone; your own app routes you to it from wherever you are.
Yes — Strandarkirkja can be visited year-round, though winter conditions may require a 4x4 or storm-tolerant plans.