Informasjon om Gufuá Farm

Icelandic goat at Gufuá farm

Gufuá (Icelandic: Gufuá, "steam river") is a small family farm and visitor site about 13 km by road north of Borgarnes in Borgarfjörður, West Iceland.

The farm takes its name from the salmon river Gufuá that runs through the land, and it is best known for its goat walks: one-hour strolls along the riverbank in the company of tame Icelandic goats.

It is a working farm with horses, sheep, goats and chickens rather than a conventional attraction, and visits are by booking.

Key Takeaways About Gufuá

• One-hour goat walk along the Gufuá river with halter-trained Icelandic goats; advance booking only
• About 13 km north of Borgarnes just off Route 1; roughly 1.5 hours (about 87 km) from Reykjavík on paved road
• Season 1 June to 31 October; minimum age 10 on the Guide to Iceland tour
• Icelandic goats are a rare native breed brought by the first settlers
• No shops or café at the farm; Borgarnes has services about 15 minutes away

Why visit Gufuá

The goats are the reason to come. Gufuá keeps a small herd of Icelandic goats, a breed that came to Iceland with the first settlers and fell below a hundred animals around 1960.

The walking goats have names from Tolkien, among them Gandalf, Frodo and Sam, and they are halter-trained, so each visitor can lead one.

The goats browse birch and willow along the way and set the pace, which makes this an easy outing for anyone who does not want a strenuous hike.

The land itself is quietly attractive: low hills with native Icelandic birch, small waterfalls, gorges and a short canyon on the Gufuá, and open views over the Borgarfjörður lowlands. The farm's history adds another layer.

According to the farm and to Bændablaðið, the Icelandic farmers' newspaper, the site was a settlement-age farm first called Rauðabjarnarstaðir after Rauða-Björn, a settler who came to Iceland with Skallagrímur Kveldúlfsson, and it changed names more than once before taking the river's name.

It was abandoned in 1964 and lay empty for roughly half a century until the current owners, Sigríður Ævarsdóttir and horse trainer Benedikt Líndal, bought it in 2017–2018, built an access road and moved in.

They have since planted woodland with the Icelandic Forest Service in a 10-year reforestation project and enrolled part of the land in a High Nature Value farming scheme, which the farm says makes it one of the first in Iceland to do so.

Besides the goat walk, the farm offers "Along the Cairn Path", a two-hour guided walk for groups in which the farmer tells the story of the land, its settlement and its wildlife. The main horse-riding route between Þingvellir and Snæfellsnes crosses the property, and the farm also breeds and trains Icelandic horses.

Goat walk at Gufuá

How to get to Gufuá

• Gufuá is just off the Ring Road (Route 1) about 13 km north of Borgarnes, on the stretch towards Bifröst. The postal address is Gufuá, 311 Borgarnes, and the Guide to Iceland tour meeting point is the farm itself (plus code J5GQ+V4).
• From Reykjavík, drive Route 1 north through the Hvalfjörður tunnel to Borgarnes (about 75 km, 1 hour 15 minutes) and continue north for roughly 15 minutes. Total driving is about 87 km and around 1.5 hours.
• From Borgarnes it is a drive of about 15 minutes (13 km). There is no public transport to the farm; the Strætó bus stops in Borgarnes.
• The farm is reached from a paved main road by a short gravel access track, so any car will do. Parking is at the farmyard.
• The goat walk follows the riverbank for about an hour at an easy pace; the Cairn Path walk is two hours on uneven ground.

Exact meeting instructions are sent when you book through gufua.com or through the tour listing below.

Best time to visit

Gufuá runs its experiences from 1 June to 31 October.

June and July bring the spring-born kids (young goats) and long evenings, August often has the most settled weather, and September and October offer autumn colour in the birch and fewer visitors, though days are shorter and wetter.

Walks go ahead in light rain, so bring waterproofs. Outside the season the farm is not open to visitors.

Safety and practical tips

• Visits are by advance booking only; this is a private working farm, not a drop-in site. Book through the farm or the tour link below and confirm the start time.
• The Guide to Iceland goat walk has a minimum age of 10. Ask the farm directly about younger children.
• Wear sturdy shoes: the riverbank path is grass, moss and rock and can be slippery. Dress for wind even on sunny days; Borgarfjörður is exposed.
• Goats are gentle but curious. Keep bags closed and do not feed them anything other than what the farmers provide.
• Ask the farm before bringing a dog; there are goats, sheep and horses on the land.
• There are no shops or cafés at the farm. Borgarnes, about 15 minutes away, has supermarkets, bakeries, a swimming pool and the Settlement Center.
• Prices and group sizes are set by the farm; check the booking page for current rates.

Goats at Gufuá farm