An Icelandic Sea Captain Retires – And Starts Wild West Rocky ATV Tours in Westfjörds

“I have always been fascinated by ATVs. I got my first one when I was only 34 years old, in 1987, but back then, life revolved around building a home and raising a family. No time for horsing around” says Skúli, founder of Wild West Rocky, specializing in custom-made trips in Westfjörds.

“No time for horsing around”

A Late-Blooming Passion

His passion sat dormant for over three decades. Then, in 2021, he finally bought a new ATV. “One beautiful evening, as I was riding it, it occurred to me that if I enjoyed it this much, then others probably would too” he recalls. By 2023, he had bought a small fleet and started building a tour company. It’s a way, he says, to let others explore terrain they otherwise might never reach.

“Our tours aren’t based on action, boisterousness or messing around” Skúli explains. “We want our customers first and foremost to experience history and nature and to be inspired.”

Roots in a Remote Valley

Skúli is certainly no stranger to the West Fjord region, known for its dramatic landscapes, mountains, waterfalls, birdlife, and glaciers. He traces his roots back to Keldudalur Valley in the remote Dýrafjörður Fjord. He grew up in the 1950s and ’60s on the well-known yet isolated farm Arnanúpur, which has now been deserted since 1967. There, the family lived in isolation for 6-8 months out of the year, with no means of reaching it other than walking 10-15 kilometers each way or rowing inside the fjord. Skúli grew up with three brothers and four sisters; the second-oldest of the group. At nine years of age, he left the farm for the first time to attend school, placed in another family’s home for three months per year, until graduation four years later. The rest of the school year, he studied remotely from home.

“I learned very young that distances between places are no obstacle”

Growing up by the sea shaped Skúli’s life from a very early age. “My brother and I started fishing in the fjord with our father when I was five, and he was six. He had a rowboat. I was entrusted with the oars while they took care of reeling in the nets. It could be hard work for a little boy. My brother and I were also tasked with spinning the wheel when we landed, which hoisted the boat ashore. This was the only way to fish for food and we were the only ones able to help our father. He grew up in the valley and was therefore accustomed to this way of life, but I never really understood how my mother could possibly agree to moving there” he says.

Looking back, he says he wouldn’t have wanted life any other way. Every time I came back to Iceland after 4-5 weeks at sea, I didn’t feel like I had landed until I had visited my valley.”

A Life at Sea

Skúli became a fisherman at an early age and found immediately that it suited him well. He married his wife Jóhanna (Jóa) in 1984 and settled in the nearby village of Þingeyri raising four daughters. The family has lived there ever since, except for a three-year stay in Namibia back in the 1990s. “It was as different from the tiny village Þingeyri as could be, but the girls are still grateful for having gotten to experience a different culture.”

In 1984, he was promoted to captain, and after the years in Namibia, he spent decades captaining ships owned by foreign companies in fishing areas around the world, including Canada, Greenland, Norway, Svalbard and Mauritania. Now, he has just returned from his final tour. Long before its conclusion, he made the big decision to retire when he realised that otherwise he would miss the total eclipse happening in August 2026. He was warmly welcomed home. “The feeling was extraordinary. My entire family received me at the airport. This chapter of my life is formally over.”

Coming Home to a Family Business

Now, a new and exciting one has begun. Wild West Rocky is a bona fide family affair. Upon retiring, Skúli and his family invested in seven quad bikes, and since then he has dedicated himself to presenting his homeland and its nature, which he knows like the back of his hand. Skúli’s wife, Jóa, also born and raised in the West Fjords, is Wild West Rocky’s co-founder alongside their daughter Krista. They take turns guiding the tours, although he guides most of them himself. He also handles the bike maintenance.

Wild West Rocky – Born From a Love of Nature

Together, they have developed three signature trips: Sandafell, Kaldbakur, and Sléttanes. However, each adventure is tailor-made and planned according to the group’s wishes and abilities. “The three basic routes aren’t carved in stone; they are just the baseline. We take out one group at a time, whether they consist of two or 12 people. With us, you’ll never share a tour with strangers. All participants get an overall suit,gloves and a helmet, so everyone should be safe and warm enough.”

“With us, you’ll never share a tour with strangers”

Sandafell, which is the most popular tour, takes about two hours and is the shortest route. “We travel behind Sandafell, weaving through forest and river crossings, to the 367-meter summit for sweeping views. The Kaldbakur route takes 3.5 hours. We ride as high as possible up the West fjord’s highest mountain (1000 m.) It is possible to take some extra time and hike all the way to the top, and we wait for our guests for about two hours. In good weather, the view is amazing. The third one, Sléttanes, is a bit longer route, about 55 km, and takes 6+ hours. Therefore, we make a stop every hour to rest and enjoy.”

Recent tours reflect the range of people drawn to the region – from a private yacht group treated to a feast at Svalvogar, to a party of geologists headed for the volcanic site at Tjaldanes, reachable only by ATV.

Stories Written in the Land

For Skúli, the terrain is inseparable from its history. “The area has great historic value and endless stories to tell. It is the setting for the classic Icelandic Saga of the outlaw Gísli Súrsson. A lesser-known fact is that France wanted to found a fishing village in Haukadalur in 1855 but was denied it by the Danes, who owned Iceland at the time, as they didn’t want to anger the British. Here, we also have a French cemetery, because they brought their dead sailors ashore and buried them, whereas the British used to throw their deceased overboard. American halibut fishermen in this area impregnated some of the local girls, which was, in a way, a good thing, as during that time, new blood was important in the remote and isolated West Fjords. For example, the Diego family name derives from one of the American captains.”

What’s Next

“Time to do more of what I am most interested in and good at… playing and having fun out in nature”

Now home for good, Skúli is looking toward a simpler life. “Now my life is all about spending more time with family, playing, and tending to the ATV trips, while making sure I don’t have too much on my plate” he says. “I still have the stamina and excitement, and I thank the heavens for being in such good health. Now it is time to do more of what I am most interested in and good at… playing and having fun out in nature!”