Icelandic Horse Round-Up — Skagafjörður Iceland
The réttir (sheep and horse round-up) in Skagafjörður Valley in September is Iceland's oldest surviving agricultural tradition — Icelandic horses that have grazed freely on the summer highlands are gathered from the mountains by riders over 2–3 days in an operation involving hundreds of horses, farmers from across the valley, and a social celebration of Iceland's Viking-era farming culture. The Icelandic horse — a compact, five-gaited breed brought to Iceland by Viking settlers 1,100 years ago and genetically isolated since — runs in groups of 50–200 free on the mountain pastures, and the round-up produces a spectacle of hundreds of horses of all colours running down the mountain passes in streaming groups, driven by riders whose horsemanship combines Viking tradition with modern efficiency. The Skagafjörður valley's combination of dramatic waterfall scenery, the Drangey island in the fjord (refuge of saga hero Grettir), and the September light on the autumn-coloured valley makes the réttir one of Iceland's finest cultural-natural events.
About this spectacle
Each September, the broad valley of Skagafjörður comes alive as hundreds of Icelandic horses—small, thick-maned, and blazingly coloured—stream down from the highland pastures in groups of 50 to 200, driven by riders moving in coordinated sweeps across the mountain slopes. The sound builds before the sight: hoofbeats and the shouts of farmers echoing off the valley walls. Horses of every colour—grey, chestnut, bay, dun, pinto—pour through narrow mountain passes in cascading rivers of mane and motion. The September light is low and golden, catching autumn reds and yellows on the hillsides and glinting off the fjord where Drangey island rises in silhouette. Over two to three days, farmers from across the valley converge in a tradition unchanged in its essentials for over a thousand years, the réttir blending hard practical work with communal celebration. Visitors witness riders demonstrating the five-gaited breed's famous tölt on rugged terrain, and the sorting corrals afterward fill with snorting, jostling horses as families reclaim their animals.
When to go
Jun — Oct, peak Sep
Getting there
Nearest airport: AEY. Nearest city: Akureyri.
Booking options
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