Westfjords Way Challenge

The Westfjords Way Challenge is an ultra-endurance stage race around one of Iceland's most remote corners, a region of fjords shaped by wind, water and ice, where long stretches of gravel link small coastal communities and the midnight sun keeps the summer evenings bright. Riders can enter solo, in pairs or as a team of four.

The organisers pitch it as more than a race. The route, the Westfjords Way, was scouted by cyclists and photographers with the help of regional tourism, and the event encourages real contact with the people and places along the way, from museums and sheep farms to hot pots and sea swims. The road switches constantly between tarmac and gravel, with the closing stage the most gravel-heavy of all.

It is run by Cycling Westfjords, a local company founded in 2021 to bring bikepackers to the region, whose race director has led the event since its first edition in 2022. Their stated aim is to connect towns and strengthen communities through bicycle tourism.