The majestic Hengifoss and Litlanesfoss Waterfalls in East Iceland

Now, this is my 100th travel-blog here on Guide to Iceland, and I wanted to write about something very close to my heart - Hengifoss waterfall - the Hanging Falls.

Hengifoss waterfall is located next to Lagarfljót lake and faces Hallormsstaðarskógur forest, about which I have written another travel-blog. 

It is a beautiful waterfall, around 128 meters tall, making it the 2nd highest waterfall in Iceland if we don't count the waterfall in the Morsárjökull glacier.

Top photo: Hengifoss waterfall in East Iceland

Hengifoss

In this travel-blog I want to show you two hikes, the first hike is up to Hengifoss waterfall and the second hike is a hike into the basalt column gorge.

The spectacular waterfall drops into the gorge Hengifossárgljúfur in Fljótsdalur valley. The hike to the waterfall is a gradual climb uphill for an hour or so.

I had tried to visit this waterfall on the 12th of July 2008, but as I was hiking up to it my father died in Reykjavík. So midway up to the waterfall, I had to go back and rush to Reykjavík, where I live. It took me 1.5 days to drive back as Hengifoss waterfall is in East Iceland some 700 km away from Reykjavík.

With my husband and father-in-law at Eiðar 

It wasn't until 7 years later that I was again able to hike up to Hengifoss waterfall, this time in the company of my husband and my father-in-law. The experience I had during my first hike to the waterfall left a bitter taste in my mouth and I never felt emotionally ready to go on this hike again.

But hiking up there in September 2015 in the company of these wonderful men was a lovely experience and an accomplishment, which left me so happy and elated :)

We were staying at Eiðar just north of Egilsstaðir for a couple of days, where my father-in-law and my husband were measuring for a view-dial (hringsjá), but my father-in-law is the designer of view-dials in Iceland.

Hiking to Hengifoss

We had been waiting for sunshine and good visibility all summer long, but the summer of 2015 was not favourable for East Iceland, so it wasn't until the 19th of September that my father-in-law got the call from East Iceland that it was going to be sunny for a couple of days.

We immediately drove the 700 km from Reykjavík to Eiðar in one go and the weather was awesome, still and sunny for 2 days. They were able to finish their measurements for the view-dial on the first day, so on the second day, they took me on the hike to Hengifoss in beautiful weather.

The waterfall is in a gorge and to get the best light for photos it is best to go on this hike in the morning. We arrived there in the evening so my photos are a bit dark.

Hiking to Hengifoss waterfall

The return hike, which is 2.5 km long each way and takes about 2 hours, starts from the parking lot where you enter a gated trail.

Then you will reach a flight of stairs and from there it is an upward climb, a bit difficult, so benches have been put up so people can rest and enjoy the view.

The path is adjacent to the gorge and at times very close to the edge of the gorge. But most of the time I would have to walk towards the edge of the gorge to see the smaller waterfalls in the gorge.

Be careful while doing so, especially when taking photos.

Hengifossárgljúfur gorge

After about 1.2 km along the trail, you will reach Litlanesfoss waterfall where you have to walk to the very rim of the gorge to get a close look at it.

Litlanesfoss is not visible from the road like Hengifoss is.

Litlanesfoss is flanked by basalt columns much like Aldeyjarfoss waterfall and Svartifoss waterfall. These waterfalls, which cascade into columnar basalt settings, are in my opinion true gems of nature.

Litlanesfoss waterfall

Litlanesfoss is also called Stuðlabergsfoss, which means the Basalt Column Falls.

The waterfall is framed by the most beautiful basalt columns, some of which are standing straight and some of which are curved, creating a 30-meter long flap in the narrow gorge.

This waterfall is 30 meters high in two steps and cascades into a small pond.

Litlanesfoss waterfall

This beautiful scenery is a feast for the eyes and one of the most beautiful waterfalls I have seen here.

The basalt columns are up to 15-20 meters high here, making them amongst the tallest basalt columns in the country.

Litlanesfoss is such a pretty waterfall, but seeing that the main attraction on this hike is Hengifoss waterfall, then it kind of falls in the shadow of that bigger waterfall.

Litlanesfoss waterfall

I would gladly have hiked for a while only to see Litlanesfoss, but getting to see 2 extraordinary waterfalls in one hike is a perk.

Later on, I got a letter from a traveller who had only hiked up to Litlanesfoss waterfall and was so amazed by its beauty that she thought it was Hengifoss and didn't go any further.

She was devastated to hear that only a short hike further up the gorge would have taken her to the real Hengifoss.

Inside the basalt column canyon by Litlanesfoss waterfall from the other side of the river

In the summer of 2020, I hiked into the basalt column canyon from the other side of the river to see Litlanesfoss up close.

It was amazing standing inside this canyon almost surrounded by tall basalt columns.

The view of Litlanesfoss is better though on the other side.

I show you the hike into the basalt column canyon a little bit further on in this travel-blog.

Hengifoss and Litlanesfoss waterfalls

Now, back to my hike up to Hengifoss waterfall on the other side of the river.

Some 40 minutes into the hike I could finally get a total view of Hengifoss in the gorge, but by then there was still half a kilometer left to the base of the waterfall. 

This half-a-kilometer is very beautiful, taxing in some parts though, but being so close to the waterfall gave me additional strength.

Hengifoss waterfall

Hengifoss waterfall is characterized by the rock layers of red clay sandwiched between layers of basalt creating red strata patterns - here you can see 5-6 million-year-old basalt layers from volcanic eruptions in the Tertiary Period. 

The multiple red stripes, as I call them, are sediments and old soil and the red colour stems from the oxidation of the iron in the clay. Very distinctive surroundings for a waterfall. 

Can you see my father-in-law in the gorge behind me?

These strata in the gorge along with these 2 beautiful waterfalls make the hike up to Hengifoss so worth it. In the gorge, there is wood coal and fossilization and there are remnants of trunks from a large forest sticking out of the wood coal sediments.

The waterfall was said to be 118 meters high, but later measurements claimed that it is 128 meters high, which makes Hengifoss the second-highest waterfall in Iceland. Not counting the waterfall in Mosárjökull glacier.

I took a video of Hengifoss waterfall:

It is possible to walk behind the waterfall, where there is a small cave, but as it was getting late and dark, then I stopped at this spot in front of the waterfall, where I took the above photo.

You can hear my husband and my father-in-law talking while I was recording, they are talking about the man dressed in blue, who was trying to get as close to Hengifoss waterfall as possible, saying that this is as far as he could get on this path.

Hengifoss waterfall

My father-in-law stepped on the rocks in the river and managed to get closer than I did, to the hill in front of the waterfall. 

You can see my father-in-law in the distance as a black spot behind me in the photo above the video.

In the gorge by Hengifoss, you will see a lot of collapsed sandstone. I have seen such collapsed sandstone at Hrossaborgir in North Iceland. This scenery gives me the feeling of being in a fairytale world.

The gorge by Hengifoss

I stood in front of the waterfall for the longest time, feeling so emotional and happy that I had finally accomplished to visit Hengifoss waterfall. 

The sun was setting so we had to return as I did not want to hike by the gorge in darkness.

After this long uphill climb, it was a breeze going back downhill and the view of the Fljótsdalur valley was breathtaking.

The return hike

We visited Litlanesfoss waterfall again on our way back and by now the September sun had coloured it pink. Ever so beautiful.

A hike into the Hengifossárgljúfur basalt column gorge

Hengifossárgljúfur gorge - Litlanesfoss is hidden away, but you can see the mist from the waterfall

In the summer of 2020, I revisited the Hengifossárgljúfur gorge, with some friends.

This was the summer of the pandemic and there were only Icelanders travelling around Iceland.

I made the most of this summer and drove the ring-road three times and stayed in various places as accommodation was almost half-price.

Our friends had never hiked to Hengifoss waterfall, so they did that hike, but we did a shorter hike into the beautiful basalt column gorge, where Litlanesfoss waterfall is tucked away in Hengifossárgljúfur gorge.

Nobody was inside this extraordinary gorge while there were crowds on the hike to Hengifoss waterfall.

Massive, straight basalt columns inside the canyon

There is one story about elves in the gorge, which I found in Þjóðsögur Jóns Árnasonar - the Collection of Folklore of Jón Árnason and translated into English:

"Hengifossárgil gorge is the name of a gorge in Fljótsdalur. For many years it has been believed that there were many elves in the gorge. A couple of years ago on New Year's Day, two men were travelling below the gorge.

They heard a hymn being sung inside the rock from Grallarinn: "Heiður sé Guði himnum á" which means "Honour to God in heaven". (This hymn is found in Grallarinn, which is the mass book published by Bishop Guðbrandur Þorláksson at Hólar in 1594).

The men stopped and listened to the singing. When the singing of this psalm had ended the men heard the chime of a small bell. The men then went on their way".

No wonder that Litlanesfoss is also called Stuðlabergsfoss - the Basalt Column Falls

It is amazing standing inside this beautiful canyon with these tall basalt columns, stepping into the gorge made me feel like I had entered an art gallery.

The basalt columns in my photo above cannot be seen unless you stand inside the gorge, so on my first hikes to Hengifoss waterfall, I had no idea that it was possible to hike into a gorge with breathtaking basalt columns.

The basalt columns inside this gorge are amongst the tallest basalt columns in Iceland. I am a big fan of basalt columns and look for them all around Iceland, so I was in heaven :)

Colourful stripes inside the canyon

During our hike to and inside the gorge, I spotted these colourful stripes, which I think are so pretty. And the weather didn't spoil our visit, we got sunshine every day on this ring road tour!

We encountered one smaller waterfall on the way, which we had to visit, Jónsfoss - the Waterfall of Jón, but my husband's name is Jón, so we visit all the rivers, waterfalls, and other locations that bear his name :)

Jónsfoss waterfall in Hengifossárgljúfur gorge

The hike into the gorge is a bit rocky and it was not possible to get very close to Litlanesfoss waterfall as there is a curve in the gorge so the waterfall is kind of hidden away.

But the hike into the gorge is well worth it if only to see the basalt columns.

Inside the gorge, Litlanesfoss waterfall behind me

I didn't go any further inside the gorge than you can see in my photo above, as I am not comfortable in such a rocky and slippery terrain, but my husband went further and took a video.

I was looking for a special basalt column spot above the Litlanesfoss waterfall, a photo of which I had seen in the magazine Iceland Review, so we left the gorge and hiked above it.

Beautiful basalt columns, like artwork

I searched and searched for this spot, but couldn't find it, only to find out later that it was taken with a drone, so there was no way that I could have found that spot.

If you have enough time to spare at Hengifoss, then I would recommend doing this hike as well. 

I have stayed in various guesthouses and hotels in this area, f.ex. at Hengifoss guesthouse, which was lovely as it is so close to Hengifoss waterfall, and Lyngás and Laufás guesthouse in Egilsstaðir town.

Here you can check out hotels and accommodations close to Egilsstaðir:

Hotels and accommodation in East Iceland

It was dark inside the gorge during our visit, but the sun appeared when we left ;)

You can hire a car in Reykjavík to reach Egilsstaðir with many many stops on the way, so don't do like we did when we were measuring for the view-dial and drove all the 700 km in one day.

Allow for at least 3-4 days to reach Egilsstaðir as there is so much to see and do on the south coast and in the Eastfjords of Iceland.

The start of the hike to the gorge, photo taken from the bridge over the Hengifossá river

I have written a couple of travel-blogs about what there is to see and do on the way:

East Iceland is dotted with beautiful little villages and hidden secrets

The Beautiful Fjords in Fjarðabyggð in the Eastfjords of Iceland

Egilsstaðir in East Iceland and the Pearls of Fljótsdalur Valley

Hallormsstaðaskógur Forest in East Iceland - Iceland's largest Forest

Lagarfljótsormurinn Serpent in Lagarfljót Lake in East Iceland and:

Another beautiful gorge in East Iceland with extraordinary basalt columns is the Spectacular Stuðlagil Canyon - the Gem of East Iceland. It is a little bit further than Egilsstaðir, but everybody is visiting Stuðlagil now.

I prefer driving around the lake, but there are some 35 km on both sides of the lake, so all in all the drive to Hengifoss waterfall is 70 km. There is a gravel road on part of the route on the west side, but the east side is paved. 

Don't forget to drop by at the historic site Skriðuklaustur as well.

Hengifoss waterfall

This is my travel-blog about my visits to this area, but I refer you to the website of Hengifoss for more information about Hengifoss and Litlanesfoss waterfalls.

Here you can see the location of Hengifoss and Litlanesfoss on Google Maps.

Have a lovely time at Hengifoss waterfall :)