Day 25–Seyðisfjörður, Iceland Waterfall Trail

I set off on the road to the river where the trail started, noting a map which was lacking in detail in the close range, but I spotted a path next to the river as well as some stakes with yellow paint to blaze the way. Temps. were in the upper 60’s with a bit of a breeze. After a short bit, the trail turned away from the river and picked up a little elevation.

Water, moss, grass and cliffs – the views that would dominate this hike 

The trail went along the hillside, and no treeline means no lack of views. I was hoping the trail might go up to the ridge, but I could feel the effects of the cold just after 200 feet of gain. It was about 60 degrees out, and bugless with a bit of a breeze. I did pass several falls coming off the ridge.

One of many waterfalls to be seen

The trail to the junction was longer than I thought, but I was making good time given the lack of elevation gain. I had a turnaround time of 2 hours to make sure I got back to the ship well before it left, and I wanted to get as far as I could. Finally I came to the junction, completely unmarked except I could see a trail going straight where the loop trail turned right. Must be it. A new shade of yellow blazes marked the way this time, and it was a good thing as the path was not obvious at times.

And so I came to waterfall number 1 in 5 minutes. This trail would live up to its name.

Some hook beaked bird decided to harass me for a quarter mile, following me and sounding its alarm call. The trail climbed some more and the views back were great.

More and more falls presented themselves, including this one near the end.

And finally the trail ended here.

I had 15 minutes left to turn around, so I decided to do a little bushwhack to a small fall up near the cliff bands. It was interesting walking, as the ground was very spongy in some places, and I’d sink in many inches as I stepped. Not wet, just spongy. I’d find herd paths here and there, and then stumbled on a blueberry patch in its peak. Time to gather.

The little falls was nice after some steep climbing.

I started to climb up a little more, but it was steep and my legs had little up in them left, so I headed back. Once back at the junction, I noted a trail on the map going up to the ridge, and was bummed I missed that, but as I said, it would’ve been grueling for me today, and I did get to see a lot of neat things. I only realized the next day that I did indeed spot this trail at the junction.

From here, I took the part of the loop I hadn’t taken yet, dismayed to find out it was a roadwalk for much of the way. Yucky. Ah well, back to the ship to get a cold beer and a shower. This was about 9 miles total with a max. elevation of 600 feet, but I felt like it was quite a workout, and saw a side of nature many haven’t seen. Good stuff.