Króksfoss

Take Highway 1 east from the town of Hvolsvöllur for 47km, then turn left where signs point prominently to Skógafoss (the falls are visible and very obvious at this point). In half of a kilometer take the next left and follow the road to its end adjacent to the camping area. The trail to the top of the falls begins adjacent to the grass field at the camping area, climbing up several hundreds of stairs for about one-third of a kilometer to a viewing platform at the top of the falls. From here the trail uses a stile to cross a sheep fence, and then continues gradually uphill. This waterfall is best viewed about 4.5 kilometers past the top of Skógafoss, and about .6 kilometers past the viewpoint for Gluggafoss.The Skógá features dozens of waterfalls as it cascades down from the saddle between the Eyjafjallajökull and Katla volcanoes where it originates. The vast majority of visitors to the area are (understandably) satisfied with the spectacular Skógafoss just above the Ring road, but those looking for further satisfaction can hike the famous Laugavegur trail upstream along the river and pass many more waterfalls. Króksfoss is the fourteenth significant waterfall which can be seen as one hikes upstream from Skógafoss along the trail. After passing Kæfufoss there is a long stretch of trail where no waterfalls are immediately visible due to the gradient easing a bit and the trail moving away from the river - though there are a couple of smaller falls, the interesting Gluggafoss among them. Króksfoss however very bombastically makes itself known, calling attention to its thunderous form with a huge cloud of mist that can be seen rising from the canyon over a kilometer away. The river here does a remarkable impression of a jet engine as it explodes 144 feet into a narrow canyon, stretching out to a breadth of about 65 feet across. The canyon is however quite narrow, and as the trail approaches the falls, only about half of the falls can be seen without tiptoeing down progressively narrower and narrower steps in the side of the cliff - we urge extreme caution here.