Steindórsstaðir

The Troll Books and the Troll and Folktale Walks

When the host in Fossatún, Steinar Berg, first arrived Fossatún, he found a rock with the shape of a troll's face by the Troll Waterfalls. This inspired him to write folk stories about trolls. His books have been well received and successful in Iceland. The book Tryggdatröll (The Last Troll) is available in 6 languages apart from Icelandic: English, French, German, Norwegian, Japanese and Spanish. The book is illustrated by Brian Pilkington.

The Troll Walk and the Folktale Walk.

The walks are connected with the books. The Troll walk is a short walk viewing The Troll Waterfalls and the scenery and background of The Last Troll story - and you learn about trolls on the way. The Folktale Walk is a new walk, extension of the Troll Walk, that will be set up in April/May 2018. It is based on the Trunt, Trunt book and you learn about folktales and locations in the West Region of Iceland. In addition you enjoy a wonderful panorama view of the Borgarfjördur area and mountain circle.

Reykholt is one of Iceland's most notable historical sites. It houses a cultural centre and a church.

Reykholt is most famous for being the home of Iceland's best-known author Snorri Sturluson during the years 1206-1241. An ancient geothermally-heated pool, Snorralaug, is named after him. It is one of the few things preserved whole from Iceland´s medieval period.

Snorrastofa is a cultural centre and institute for research in medieval studies. Snorrastofa offers historical exhibitions and guided tours and lectures. Music recitals are held in the church of Reykholt.

Visit Reykholts website www.snorrastofa.is

There is one hotel in Reykholt see more here.

The Troll Waterfalls of the Grimsa river. There is a clear formation in the form of a troll face in the cliff by the river bank.

Take the troll walk and learn about trolls, folk tales and places that connect to the nature and scenery at Fossatun.

An extraordinary view and good spot to see the Skessuhorn mountain peak. Excellent for witnessing jumping salmon in the summer.

The meaning of this waterfall translates into "Children's waterfall", but the signs here indicated that there was a saga describing why it got this name. The saga said that there were two children in the Hraunsás household who were supposed to stay home while the parents went to church for Christmas Mass. When the parents returned from mass, they discovered that the children had disappeared (possibly because the children got bored and decided to go out).

They then followed the children's tracks to this waterfall at the stone natural bridge where the tracks disappeared. The mother concluded that the children must have fallen into the river and drowned. Then, the mother had the arch destroyed in order to ensure no one else faces a similar fate. I've seen some accounts say it was by spell or curse, which induced the bridge's collapse by earthquake. In reality, natural bridges usually collapse over time, and given the powerful erosive forces from the rapidly moving river that undercut whatever was supporting the bridge, that could very well have been the fate of the natural arch here.

Hraunfossar - Lava Falls - are beautiful and unusual natural phenomena. Clear, cold springs of subterranean water seep through the lava and run as tiny waterfalls and rapids into the Hvita River.

Hraunfossar have been protected since 1987.

There is a viewpoint at the car park offering an amazing view over the Lava Falls and Hvita River.

A coffee shop at the waterfalls is open during the summer months.

In Húsafell surrounding nature you can expect to find dense woodlands, waterfalls, glaciers, rugged lava, crystal springs, wildflowers plus remarkable archaeological remains.Here is a good map with ten hike trails.

Hallmundarhraun includes the longest and largest caves in Iceland.
Hallmundarhraun lava field was formed in giant eruption close to the Langjökull glacier around the year 930 and is 8-9 cubic kilometers. Hallmundarhraun includes three caves Surtshellir/ Stefánshellir they are together 3500 meters, longest lava cave in Iceland. Viðgelmir lava tube is the largest of all lava caves in Iceland the tubes volume is well over 150,000 cubic meters.

Deildartunguhver highest flow hot spring in Europe !
Deildartunguhver is Europe's most powerful hot spring. It provides 180 l/sec of 100°C hot water.
Most of the water used for central heating in the towns of Borgarnes and Akranes is taken from Deildartunguhver. The hot water pipeline to Akranes is 64 km long, the longest in Iceland and the water is about 78 - 80 degrees when it reaches Akranes. If you take a shower anywhere within a 65 km radius of the spring, you have already bathed in the hot water from this powerful spring!