Day 3, Part 2/2 — The Northeast
Part 1 ended with us leaving the Krafla volcano in northern Iceland. After that we got back on route 1 and headed to the mighty Dettifoss, a little more to the east. Dettifoss is huge. It is rumored to be the most powerful waterfall in Europe, and is indeed the one with the highest water flow of Iceland. The falls are 45 meters high and 100 meters wide, falling in a big canyon that the river Jökulsá á Fjöllum carved after years and years of glacial water flowing north in the area. There are two ways to Dettifoss that lead each to one side of the river. We were trying to go to the eastern side, but the road to it was closed. So we returned and got to the west side of the fall. The parking lot was full of melting ice and water, the trail to the waterfall was more of the same. As we climbed the hills that hide the falls we could already hear it, and when we got to the top the view was amazing.
After Dettifoss we walked a little to the south, where Selfoss is located. The water that falls from Selfoss flows to Dettifoss up north. The waterfall is composed of several many falls, and you can walk right next to the edge of them if you’re feeling adventurous.
It was already late in the day, but we still had one more waterfall to see. We continued on route one, which was now turning south. We stopped in Egilsstaðir to eat something and then headed south in the Ring Road and then switched to route 931, skirting Lagarfljót, a big lake in eastern Iceland. We crossed it over a bridge almost at sunset, which lasts a long time in this part of the world at this time of the year, and we could already see our next stop. Hengifoss is the third highest waterfall in Iceland, situated on the top of a hill, it has 128 meters. Following down in a sort of canyon the river that runs there falls in another, smaller waterfall called Litlanesfoss, which is surrounded by basaltic coloumns. Hengifoss is not very well known and we were the only ones there. Even though Iceland seems like a deserted, isolated place you will find it hard to be alone there if you stick to the main attractions.
The trail is not an easy one, perhaps the hardest we climbed in Iceland. It takes about one hour to reach Hengifoss. Litlanesfoss is closer, and provides a nice view to keep you motivated for the rest of the trail.
As we kept climbing, Hengifoss grew larger. Some parts of the trail were very close to the edge of the canyon, not really the safest path in the world. Looking back also gave a nice view of the landscape and the lake in which Hengifoss flows into. Sometimes you have to cross a small stream or wet area around the path, we had to be careful not to get wet and end up freezing up there.
Hengifoss is beautiful. The waterfall was falling in a block of ice, which had not melted yet. It then kept flowing downstream into the canyon. The rocks surrounding it are gorgeous, with the patterns specific to certain eras and geological events clearly marked on the walls. As we got to it we stopped and started taking pictures. I thought that was it, until Arthur saw that the trail kept going after you crossed the river. After a little dangerous rock jumping with my camera on my neck we got closer to it. Totally worth it.
As we went down almost at night, which doesn’t come until around 11pm, we were really tired, but thankful to have done this. We had decided to spend the night in Seyðisfjörður, a small village in the Eastern Fjords of Iceland, which we were going to cross in the next day. As we returned North to the main road to be able to reach it, nightfall came. We went up the mountains for a while, the landscape got white with snow and ice again. Soon we were heading down, and the view of the road skirting down the Fjord with the blue hue of dusk was breathtaking. Soon we were able to see Seyðisfjörður, which was also gorgeous. Honestly this is a place I want to live for a while, it’s amazing.
We drove a bit around the town trying to find a place to park and sleep. We decided to stop in a parking lot of a store that should only open past 9 am, which was enough for us to wake up before it and don’t bother anyone. The day had been long, but so would be the next as we took on the beautiful Eastern Fjords. But that’s Day 4.
