About Thorufoss
Thorufoss (Icelandic spelling is Þórufoss; pronounced “THOR-oo-foss”) was an obscure yet attractive waterfall we saw on the Laxá í Kjós River.
Not only did it have a pretty satisfying size in a raw and Naturesque landscape, but it also featured a somewhat trapezoidal shape.
I called this waterfall obscure because it didn’t seem to be well signposted (if at all) during our first visit in June 2007.
It basically came down to trusting our GPS
The waterfall and ravine that it was in was not visible from the small pullout (see directions below).
So we had to walk a short distance towards the river (and the source of the noise of falling water) onto a wide bluff overlooking the river before the falls finally revealed itself.
On that first visit of the falls, we were content to with the elevated and contextual views of Thorufoss without getting a closer look at its base.
Anyways, when we came back in August 2021 (14 years after our first visit), we found that the obscurity of this waterfall was no more.
We observed that there was a dedicated signposted car park, and the once-obscure use-trails that weren’t so obvious back in 2007 now were quite pronounced.
I even stumbled upon a video showing a scene from the Game of Thrones (even though I’ve never watched the HBO series), which undoubtedly brought it more attention.
Speaking of the use trails, given the reputation of the river Laxá í Kjós (upon which Þórufoss flowed on) for its quantity of feisty Atlantic Salmon, I suspected these use-trails were probably started by anglers reaching the banks of the river.
So given the more obvious use-trails that we noticed on our second visit, we managed to scramble down one of these trails to reach the banks of the river.
Then, we were able to follow the narrow “trail” hugging the south side of the river towards the mist zone at the base of the falls.
There’s nothing official about this narrow and slippery trail so we really did this at our own risk.
Of course, after the lemmings effect of other people watching us do this, pretty soon many other people did the same, and I’d imagine these use-trails will continue to become more pronounced (and more eroded) over time.
Authorities
Thorufoss resides in the Capital Region of Iceland near Reykjavik, Iceland. It is administered by the municipality of Kjósarhreppur. For information or inquiries about the general area as well as current conditions, you may want to try visiting their website.
This was the approach we took as we had come from the direction of Hvalfjörður (after having visited Glymur and Sjávarfoss.
From the route 47 and 48 junction (at the mouth of the river Laxá í Kjós), we drove about 17km southeast on the unpaved route 48 (essentially running parallel to the river) until we saw a pole and a pullout on our left.
That pole basically served as a landmark (maybe the sign that was attached to it was taken off or blown down?) to hint to us that perhaps this was the correct place to stop.
It’s a little over 42km from Reykjavik to the route 47 and 48 junction.
The route 47/48 junction was about 12km east of where the Ring Road goes under the Hvalfjörður.
We left the Ring Road to go onto Road 47 at this junction.
Overall, the drive to go this route from Reykjavik was about 48km (taking under an hour).
Alternatively, you could also drive from Reykjavik to the Ring Road, then take the Ring Road north for about 10km then turn right onto Route 36.
Follow Route 36 for about 17km then turn left onto Route 48.
Follow Route 48 for about 5.5km and look for a small pole on the right.
The total driving going this way is roughly 40km (a little over 30 minutes drive).
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Semicircular downstream to upstream sweep along the banks of the Laxa i Kjos ending up with somewhat distant view of Thorufoss
Downstream to upstream view from the base of Thorufoss in its mist zone
Downstream to upstream sweep from the ridge overlooking Thorufoss
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