Aldeyjarfoss

The landscape surrounding the Aldeyjarfoss is stark, weathered, and beautiful. You can see for miles over barren lava fields in all their glory. Walking up to the falls is a wonderful surprise; as you head up the path, the river comes into view, and you see that the sides of the gorge are lined with black basalt columns.

In one section, the columns curve up in testament to the movement of the earth. There is also a large cave on the Skjalfandafljot river, very near the falls. The falls themselves are spectacular, among the most beautiful in Iceland. Yet few people make this trip, making it likely you will be the only one there.

Though it’s not a huge cascade, the water pouring into its pool is quite glorious. To the right of the main falls are three smaller falls—you have to walk pretty far out on the edge to see them. The hike to the top of the falls is easy and from there you can walk out onto the rocks to see the power of the water as it heads over the crest and plunges in a 65-foot drop. 

The remoteness of the location, as well as the barren landscape, makes this place an otherworldly experience. It’s easy to imagine that you have been dropped on an alien planet. Or that you are an intrepid explorer discovering the falls for the first time ever!

You must have good hiking boots for this site. The path to the falls is rocky and gravely and skirts the side of the hill with a pretty steep, and potentially dangerous, drop in many places. But the drive in and the walk to the falls are absolutely worth any effort you put in.