Yesterday I wanted to link two hiking routes up to the hairpin bends approaching Seyðisfjörður where the valley is sprinkled with pretty waterfalls. The only problem was no one was entirely sure where one started so after heading over to Búðaáa falls I followed the road up from Seyðisfjörður instead and then planned to take the Fossar í Fjarðará (Waterfalls in Fjarðará) route.

Hiking in Seyðisfjörður

These maps which I got in the Egilsstaðir campsite are great and have descriptions on the routes so are good if you don’t have a hiking guide. The only problem being it took me ages to get to the start because there were so many pretty places to stop and take pictures on the way. I honestly wondered if I’d ever get there. Starting from the monument you follow the path with the usual yellow markers except that for the first time I got lost. Well not exactly true. I knew where I was, I could see the path below but for the life of me I couldn’t find how to get there. Either a marker was knocked down or they neglected to put one at a critical point. So I went a bit cross country and apart from the ground being quite wet and slippery (I fell three times. Twice on my arse and once in my face.) it’s easy going. There’s about fifteen falls in the Seyðisfjörður valley and they are as good if not better than the so-called must see’s (even though I do love Goðafoss and always will). The streams were pretty high as it was late in the day (and had been fed by melting snowcaps all day) so I had one bit of paddling to do but it was a nice, picturesque if tiring 20km.

If I’ve one gripe about pretty waterfalls is the spray makes it impossible to keep the lens clean. I’m constantly polishing them, trying to keep a cloth over the filter before I whip it off to take the shot, setting up the camera well away from the water and running over to take a photo before running back again. The Cokin filters get filthy very quickly so I’m not sure if they are the best choice, though they work out a bit cheaper as they all fit into one holder. I’m not a big fan of setting up tripods every five minutes either but for slow water shots… Are these becoming an Icelandic cliché now?

After getting back to the town of Seyðisfjörður all I was fit for was hot food and a beer. I’ve been drinking Surtur, a porter with a whopping 10%. I also like this Myrkvi chocolatey one (obviously). And all I was fit for was bed. So I couldn’t understand waking up at 2am, not being able to get back to sleep and them deciding I may as well get up, wash myself and the clothes I muddied the previous day and even get a blog post in before getting the ferry to Torshavn. Night is starting to creep back in and last night there was the prettiest pink sunset. Though I love the eternal day.