10 points to Gryffindor if you can pronounce the name of this waterfall, Gljúfrabúi. Give it a try!
Don’t worry, I can’t pronounce it either.
What I can say is that Gljúfrabúi truly is a hidden gem in the south of Iceland! Located right next door to its well known big sister Seljalandsfoss, Gljúfrabúi is still a bit of an unknown spot which is my kind of place!
How is it possible to miss a huge waterfall you ask?
Well, thanks to a huge cliff, the 40 meter high waterfall Gljúfrabúi is partly hidden. Neither I nor H have ever seen this waterfall and it is literally a minute up the road from Seljalandsfoss, a place I have been to multiple times.
After looking up how to find Gljúfrabúi I knew H and I had to stop by last weekend on our way to our glacier climbing trip. (ekkk yes that happened, more on that another day)
Sorry Seljalandsfoss, we are not visiting you today!
Is there even a waterfall back there? Is this a trick?
Gljúfrabúi, is that you back there?
When you first arrive to Gljúfrabúi you really just see the top bit and a bunch of rocks. Don’t let that confuse you, to get the full experience of the waterfall you have to walk back into the canyon, it is safe I promise. Warning though, your going to get wet, so if you have waterproof gear put it on.
Before H and I went into the canyon I made sure to get in my sexy waterproof gear, which made me look like a penguin instead of the Viking woman I was going for. My fashion fail was worth it, standing inside the canyon with nothing but the mist from Gljúfrabúi around me was just magical! I Even the stairs down to the entrance of the canyon look like something out of a fairytale book!
Are you guys ready for this.
Let’s look at that outfit a bit closer shall we
Penguin doppelganger am I right?
After tripping over my wide pant leg for the third time I admitted defeat. Lesson learned H, next time you tell me I should get my own pair I will listen and not try and make your three sizes to big for me rain pants work.
Back to this whole canyon exploring.
The walk back inside is just a minute or two, but be careful, you have to cross a small shallow stream and the rocks can be slippery. If you have zero coordination like me bring a strong Viking to help you inside.
As we made our way back into the canyon I was blasted with mist and thought oh great this is going to be fun. But as soon as I was the rest of the way inside the mist stopped blinding me and the rest was pure bliss. The peacefulness of this place, it was like my own fairytale spot!
Looks pretty magical don’t you think?
Now if you are not interested in getting a free bath at Gljúfrabúi, or want to get a view of the waterfall from above, head over to the hillside in front of Gljúfrabúi and follow the pathway on up.
Be careful, the pathway is not the best, I may or may not have had a mini panic attack while holding onto the chain. Yes there is a chain, and that chain is your life saver. The things I let H talk me into!
All fear of heights aside it really is worth it to make the short climb up!
And since I was already up there shaking with my fear of heights why not climb even higher.
Yup, Gljúfrabúi was a hidden gem for sure.
No wonder it is called the secret waterfall, they sure don’t make it easy for you to take in its beauty! I hadn’t even made it to the glacier climbing part of my day and already I had faced my fear of heights, oh the joys of travel and getting outside of your comfort zone.
And this my friends, this is the face of a girl who survived her fear of heights, climbed way to high up to see a waterfall, walked into a canyon to take in the waterfall from a different angle, and got soaking wet in the process.
Worth it!
Question of the Day?
Has travel ever made you face your fears? Would you go into the canyon to see Gljúfrabúi?
