Hella to Vik, 13 Aug 2026
We spent the morning around several waterfalls, and the afternoon looking at cliffs, a black sand beach, and puffins.
Since we had bought breakfast food the previous day, we ate that in our cottage in Hella. Several other people went to the group leader’s cottage, but we decided to stay behind to give us a slower morning.
Waterfalls
We got into the vans and drove a bit before we got to Seljalandsfoss. Instead of going directly to that waterfall, we walked a bit until we got to Gljúfrabúi, a 130-foot waterfall which is in a small canyon. We needed to walk in the river a bit (there were stones strategically placed so our feet stayed dry) until we got inside and could look up to the waterfall, getting thoroughly sprayed the whole time.
Done with that waterfall, we walked back to Seljalandsfoss, which drops about 200 feet, creating a lot of spray, giving us another layer of spray. We joined the line of people to go behind the falls and got a good look at the waterfall from all angles. For both of the waterfalls, my camera’s front filter got a lot of spray so photos didn’t turn out, but fortunately it was easier to keep my phone dry between shots so at least I got something.
Done with that set of waterfalls, we drove to Skógafoss which also drops about 200 feet. It is also quite wide, so a lot of water flows through it. To get to the base of the falls, we needed to once again rock hop at the side of the stream (this time navigating around the rock wall that was jutting out) and there was a small peninsula of gravel so you could walk right in front of the middle of the falls.
After we got back to the main trail, we went up the long staircase to look over the top of the falls. We then continued upstream along the Skógá River to find some more waterfalls. It was pretty foggy along the trail, so we knew the waterfalls might get more difficult to see.
The first waterfall, Hestavaðsfoss, was not very far. It is very wide and has a large boulder in front of it. The next waterfall was Fosstorfufoss. It had a section of water falling, then the river made a turn to a larger fall, part of which was a horseshoe shape. The last waterfall, Steinbogafoss, was mostly obscured by the mist, but we did get a peek of it.
We then went back down the trail and stairs, and found the restaurant to have lunch. Done with that, we hopped back into the vans for our afternoon excursions.
Cliffs, black sand beach, and puffins
We pulled into the Dyrhólaey Cliffs, which is a large rock which juts out into the ocean. From near the parking lot, we got a good look of the east side of the rock, as well as one of the arches where you could see through to the other side. We continued to look at more viewpoints, and got a partial look of a second, larger arch in Dyrhólaey which was further out to the ocean.
As we worked our way around, we got a look at Reynisfjara, a black sand beach, in the distance. Closer, we saw more black sand beach where people aren’t allowed, so the sand was extremely smooth. Nearby, we started to see puffins, first a bit away on a cliff, then very close, less than 20 feet away.
After doing a bit more to the east, we went back towards the parking lot, then went up the hill towards the west side of Dyrhólaey. The trail climbed, then went up the side of a hill via steps and switchbacks, then more uphill. When we got to the end, we could see both arches of the rock.
Behind us was Dyrhólaey Lighthouse which is designed kind of like a castle. It sits very high off the water, so its beam can be seen from very far away.
We made our way back to the parking lot to stop by the restroom. It is a good-sized glass building, and while you use the sinks, you look out through glass to the ocean. We then got back into the vans and went around to Reynisfjara, the black sand beach we saw in the distance from the cliffs.
At the end of the beach is some columnar basalt; the black sand is actually ground-up basalt. Cut into the basalt was Hálsanefshellir, a small cave.
Looking up at the cliffs, there were a lot of puffins flying between the cliffs and the nearby sea stacks.
After we were done at the beach, it was back into the vans to our hotel in Vik. Melody and I went to a small café to pick up something to eat in the room, then went next door for some groceries. It was back to the room, and we relaxed for the rest of the evening.
