Djúpalónssandur black sand beach and the fisherman’s ancient lifting stones
Snaefellsness Peninsula, Iceland
There also lies rusted metal from the English trawler Eding, which was wrecked at the beach in 1948. Fourteen died and just 5 survived. The rusty iron remains of the vessel haven’t been touched and serve as a moment to those who perished.
Here on Djúpalónssandur beach, there are 4 stones of varying weight and sizes — Aflraunasteinar – Steinatök, or lifting stones — which were used to measure the strength of fishermen in Iceland and their respective positions on the ships. The larger the stone you could lift, the better your position and heightened your respect.
Attempting to lift the stones was on our bucket list! Here’s the rundown:
Biggest stone: Fullsterkur (meaning Full-Strong) weighs 154 kg or 339.5 lbs
Second biggest stone: Hálfsterkur (meaning Half-Strong) weighs 100 kg or 220.4 lbs
Third stone: Hálfdrættingur (meaning Half-Carrier, or half as good) weighs 54 kg or 119 lbs
Fourth stone: Amlóði (meaning Hamlet or Weakling) weighs 23 kg or 50.7 lbs
*If the fishermen could not lift Hálfdrættingur (54 kg) they were not accepted as oarsmen on the fishing boats rowing from Dritvík.
I was stronger than a “weakling” but not quite “half good” (third stone) while Luke was “half-strong” (second stone). So basically, back in the day, I would have been left behind while Luke rowed off with the crew. 
#WomanProblems 
Test your strength and be amazed here at our favorite black stone beach in Iceland!
