Svartifoss

Svartifoss is a 20m waterfall made famous by the surrounding hanging hexagonal basalt columns. Meaning "black falls", it's perhaps the most popular attraction in Skaftafell National Park in Southern Iceland. There's hardly any time at the falls to have to yourself as people generally come in waves of tour buses.

When we were there in early summer, there were wildflowers blooming amongst the fallen basalt stones at the bottom of the amphitheater.

You start the hike at the visitor center for Skaftafell National Park, which has a well-signed turnoff leaving from the Ring Road about 67km east of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. The hike itself from there is about 1.5km each way and mostly uphill on the way there going by a couple of other falls (Hundafoss and Magnusarfoss).

However, there is what I call a cheaters' route in which a very narrow road leads you past the Visitor Centre and continues to a small car park near its end a bit upstream from Hundafoss. This is what some tours take and it cuts the hike by about a half.