Hjálparfoss

Take Highway 1 east from the city of Selfoss and turn north on to Route 30 (just over 3km west of the bridge over the Þjorsá). Follow Route 30 north for 18.4km then turn right onto Route 32 and continue for another 31.5km then turn right onto a gravel road just before crossing the bridge over the Fossá where a red and white sign identifies Hjálparfoss. Follow the gravel road for one kilometer to its end at a parking area with picnic tables which overlooks the falls. A short trail leads down to the pool at its base.Hjálparfoss is a waterfall of smaller stature but moderate to considerable volume found along the Fossá several kilometers downstream of the spectacular Háifoss. The falls occur as the river flows through an area covered by a lava flow, splitting around a small island and sliding 31-feet down an inclined pitch in side-by-side drops to a large pool below. The river splits unevenly around the island such that the flow is divided about 35/65 between the two sides. The cliffs forming the basin all around the falls are composed of some of the most interesting columnar basalt formations in Iceland, in some cases wildly contorted and twisted in shapes one would not otherwise expect to see in this kind of rock.