Iceland behind the scenes
Ironically, the first thing I saw when I arrived in Iceland was a poster that stated: “Welcome to Iceland, if you don’t like the weather, just wait for 5 minutes”. And this is genuinely accurate! As a matter of fact, Iceland is located in the middle of a virtual zone where all the storms normally travel through. That’s the so-called Stormtrack causing a very unstable weather in this country.
But don’t worry, because absolutely everything in Iceland is wonderful to discover under any conditions. Actually, there’s one natural wonder that touched me above all, no matter if it’s rainy, sunny or stormy: I’m talking about waterfalls here! And even more precisely, the falls of the southern part of the island.
I will start by saying this: even if the biggest (and most popular, touristic) one is the renowned Gulfoss Waterfall and you surely need to see it, I was most impressed by three other ones that were bolder, wilder and truly operating magic!
The first of them is the Seljalandsfoss waterfall. It is pure majesty, 65 meters high (213 ft) and tons of water flowing. So there I was, standing like an idiot, slack-jawed with wonder. Artwork. Mother Nature really nailed it. Couldn’t take my eyes off it. And you couldn’t either!
But if you did, just for a minute, you would also notice a muddy path going all the way around the fall, leading you right into the wild, as if you were part of Earth. Special feature of the waterfall, the narrow path takes you behind the scenes, backstage, on the other side of a huge theatre water curtain, safe and sound … watch your steps though, it’s slippery!
The second fall is actually less than 10 minutes away by walk, but it is so hidden and unknown that you have to know how to get there.
Back to Seljalandsfoss, when you’re facing this first waterfall, take a left and walk across the fields. At some point, you’ll get to a river filled with stones. This is where the adventure begins.
Pluck up all the courage you have, put on your most resistant shoes and start migrating upstream jumping skilfully from one rock to the next until you reach the high cave and discover the treasure: a giant cascade falling from a bright hole. You have arrived to Gljúfrabúi, take your time. Feel it. Live it.
