At 30km long and 5km wide, Hvalfjördur (‘Whale Fjord’) is the longest fjord in south-west Iceland. The fjord’s name originates from the large number of whales that were caught and processed in the area. During the second world war, the fjord served as an allied shipping naval base, and one of the pontoons built by the Americans was being used by the Hvalur whaling company until 1980 when commercial whaling was temporarily shut down in Iceland. The 198-metre Glymur waterfall, the second-tallest waterfall in Iceland, is also situated in the fjord, which is considered an area of outstanding natural beauty.
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