Fjaðrárgljúfur

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The two kilometer long and almost 100 meter deep canyon Fjaðrárgljúfur is located on the south coast of Iceland near the village of Kirkjubæjarklaustur and is easily accessible via the ring road. Over thousands of years, the river Fjaðrá, which gives it its name, formed a breathtakingly beautiful gorge with impressive waterfalls that can be hiked and admired today.

Although Fjadrargljufur is known as a year-round destination, snow and ice make it difficult to get to the area. However, if you take the difficult route and want to see the unique landscape in winter, you have to be careful not to slip on the icy paths. Due to the nature of the paths, accidents can easily occur here. Mid-spring to mid-autumn is the best time to visit the gorge.

Fjaðrárgljúfur really became famous when Justin Bieber filmed parts of his music video ‚I’ll Show You‘ there in 2015. The number of visitors in 2017 almost doubled compared to the previous year. Here, as in other parts of Iceland, excessive visitor numbers have increasingly become a problem for the sensitive nature, especially since the area is a nature reserve. That’s why the path along the gorge or parts of it is repeatedly closed for long periods of time to give nature time to recover.
The biggest storm has now passed and Fjaðrárgljúfur is far less crowded than other places in the area, such as the Skaftafell nature reserve or the Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon. Its beauty and remoteness make it a dream destination for photographers and hikers alike.

The trail of history

Although the valley was only formed at the end of the last ice age around 10,000 years ago, the rock here is much older, around two million years old. The gorge was created by the runoff of a glacial lake, which removed the soft layers and left only the more resistant rock.

The gorge was formed by the Fjaðrá River. The river rises in the highlands and has dug up to 100 meters deep into the palagonite rock.

Useful information

At the start of Fjaðrárgljúfur there is a small gravel parking lot with toilet facilities.
There are always paths branching off from the main path directly to the edge of the rock. However, these really dangerous narrow trails are no longer allowed to be walked on, as there is a risk of falling due to the unstable edge of the gorge. But even from the official paths you have a wonderful view of the truly impressive canyon in many places.

The entire route into the two kilometer long gorge takes around 20 minutes. With lots of photo stops, you can easily spend over two hours there. At the upper end, water enters the gorge from three different directions via waterfalls. There is also a large viewing platform installed here from which you have a wonderful view back to the gorge exit.

Fjaðrárgljúfur is very popular with photographers because of the contrasts between the dark rocks, foamy water and green moss. Of course, when the midnight sun or the Northern Lights are visible, it is a photographer’s paradise.

The nearest settlement is Kirkjubæjarklaustur, a place with a long religious history, as the first monastery in Iceland was located here and probably the only place in the country where the Old Norse faith was never practiced. Many of the local attractions are named after the nuns from the monastery, such as Systrastapi (Sisters‘ Rock) and Systrafoss (Sisters‘ Falls).

How to get there?

You can reach Fjaðrárgljúfur via road 206, which branches off 6 kilometers west of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. After another 2 kilometers, this turns right towards the highlands as road F206. F-roads in Iceland are usually only accessible to off-road vehicles, but the F206 shouldn’t pose much of a problem for normal cars either. In any case, we had no problems with our micro-camper.
If you follow the straight path you will reach the lower parking lot at Fjaðrárgljúfur. Alternatively, you could also follow a section of the highland road and reach a parking lot at the upper end of the gorge.

Conclusion:

For us, the Fjaðrárgljúfur gorge is part of a trip to Iceland.
A day trip from Reykjavik will probably only take just under 3.5 hours. But if you start a circumnavigation of Iceland, for example from Seyðisfjörður, you should definitely stop here on the way.