Hiking- / Cycling Route 1 Hotel Raudaskrida – Barnafoss waterfall ROUTE OVERVIEW (See map).
1. Hotel Raudaskrida. (GPS coordinates for ref.: 65° 50,170´ N ; 17° 28,370´ W) 2. Cycling from Hotel Raudaskrida to bridge over river Skjalfandafljot (2 km, 10 min) (GPS coordinates for ref.: 65° 50,450´ N ; 17° 30,700´ W) 3. Cycling along river Skjalfandafljot to Fellsskogur forest (5 km, 30-45 mín) (GPS coordinates for ref.: 65° 47,990´ N ; 17° 32,035´ W) 4. Hiking/Cycling through Fellsskogur forest towards the pool Skipapollur and the waterfall Ullarfoss (3 km, 60 min) (GPS coordinates for ref.: 65° 46,860´ N ; 17° 32,035´ W) 5. Hiking onwards on the west bank of river Skjalfandafljot to waterfall Barnafoss. (3 km, 60-90 min) (GPS coordinates for ref.: : 65° 45,050´ N ; 17° 31,480´ W) This cycling and hiking route, from Hotel Raudaskrida, along the banks of river Skjalfandafljot towards the waterfall Barnafoss is not only an ideal way to gain an intimate connection with the nature surrounding the Hotel but also to get to know some historical facts about the area. The overall length of this route is about 13 km, a total of 26 km if you decide to enjoy the full return route. Approximately half of the route can be made by bike and half on foot. You can select the length of your own trip, and although there is of course no obligation to complete the route, the powerful and beautiful Barnafoss provides a rewarding conclusion. You start on bike from the hotel and cross the bridge over river Skjalfandafljot. Once over the bridge you turn left off the highway and follow a track along the riverbank on the west side of the river. The route is relatively flat but but slight inclines are found when you reach the forest and also along the canyons. Please be careful when hiking along the canyons especially when the ground is wet !
Birdlife is very varied along this route. In the first part there are mainly duck species and waders. Approaching the forest you will see a wide variety of passerines and in the canyon you can expect to see birds of prey like the Merlin but also the possibility of seeing a falcon or an owl. Seabirds like the Northern Fulmar also nest in the cliffs there. Here you can download a GPS track for this route: http://www.wikiloc.com/wikiloc/view.do?id=1747564
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RIVER SKJALFANDAFLJOT. River Skjalfandafljot is a dark river and has it´s origin in the Vatnajokull glacier. This river is about 180km long and is the 4th longest river in Iceland. Despite being a dark river due to it´s glacial origin, clear water also runs into Skjalfandafljot and consequently it is home to both trout and salmon. Along the course of Skjalfandafljot river there are seven waterfalls, namely; Gjallandi, Hrafnabjargarfoss, Ingvararfoss, Aldeyjarfoss, Goðafoss, Barnafoss and Ullarfoss (the word foss, means waterfall in Icelandic). The most famous of these are the Aldeyjarfoss waterfall where beautiful shapes can be seen in the rock and Godafoss, the largest waterfall, where Thorgeir Ljosvetningagodi, one of the ancient settlers, threw his religion icons when Iceland became Christian in the year 1000. On this route you can see two of these waterfalls, i.e. Ullarfoss and Barnafoss.
INTERESTING PLACES.
BRIDGE OVER RIVER SKJALFANDAFLJOT. There are a total of four bridges that cross the river Skjalfandafljot. The bridge closest to Hotel Raudaskrida was built in 1935 and is over 200 meter long. It is one of the oldest bridges in Iceland and continues to serve as a public main road. During spring the river sometimes spreads over its banks due to ice and increased water volume coming from the highlands. This has sometimes caused damage to the road the last time being in 2004 when the bridge was impassable for several days and some farms were isolated. MÁNAFELL HILL. Mánafell hill is a small hill which was named after an ancient settler called Máni (Moon) who came from the northen part of Norway. Máni first settled in Tjörnes peninsula where the river Máná flows and the Mánáreyjar islands also derive their name from him. After a few winters he fled from the area and built his home between Raudaskrida and the river Skjalfandafljot. Mountain Mánafell is 186 meters high and is on the left ,across the river, when you cycle along the riverbank to the south. FELLSSKOGUR FOREST. Fellsskogur is located on the east side of the mountain Kinnarfell and is unique in Iceland for its tall and vertically growing Birki trees (indigenous to Iceland). Usually these trees are more like bushes or small trees but here they grow up to 10-12 meters high. Many other foreign trees also grow in Fellskogur forest. There is no decent road to this forest and as such it is a very isolated and quiet location where nature can be found at it´s best. Opposite to Fellsskogur forest on the hill across the river there lies another forest named Fossselsskogur forest.
POOL SKIPAPOLLUR AND ULLARFOSS WATERFALL. Towards the middle of the Fellsskogur forest you will get a view of the Skipapollur (Ship-pool) which is about 1 km in diameter. In ancient Icelandic Sagas it is said that settlers like Bardur Bjarnason, who settled in Bardardalur valley, took his ship from the sea, up the river all the way to this pool, rather than leaving it at sea, a distance of 24 km. The last waterfall l in Skjalfandafljot, Ullarfoss, runs into the Skipapollur pool and nearby can be seen extraordinary shapes in the rock (basalt columns), similar to those seen at the more famous Aldeyjarfoss waterfall. It was the same settler, Bardur, who named the waterfall to honor one of the main Gods in Asatru (the belief of the Nordic Gods), since the settlers believed that the Gods slept in the waterfalls and therefore that waterfalls were sacred places.
THINGEY AND SKULDATHINGSEY ISLANDS. Next to the Skipapollur pool is Thingey island, from which the two counties get their name . A parliament was formed at Thingey during the settlement era. It is believed Thingey became a place for parliament no later than year 963 and was one of thirteen regular national parliaments of that era in Iceland. In Thingey there were Spring parliaments which were held in the 5th or 6th week of summer (June) and lasted from four to seven days. There is mention of Thingey in the old Saga´s (Reykdælasaga and Víga-Skútusaga). For instance, a man nicknamed Víga-Skúta (Víga meaning killing), who lived at lake Mývatn once brought charges to be heard at Thingey concerning an assasination attempt against him. There is also another story about an unsuccessful assasination by Thorgeir Ljosvetningagodi, the same chief who threw his icons into Godafoss waterfall. Chief Thorgeir wanted to hold a majority at the parliament to control some desicions and therefore gathered a group of followers to kill the clearly victimised Víga-Skútu. The plot failed however. Thingey is a relatively big island, on an Icelandic scale, approximately 5 to 6 km long from north to south and 1-2 km in width. It´s mainly flat and dry and is actually a part of lava believed to have originated about 7000 years ago from the mountain Trölladyngja which is located in the Odadahraun area close to mountain Herdubreid. Archaeological remains have been disovered in Thingey and archaeological investigations have been performed there at least four times. Mr. Daniel Bruun, from Denmark, did some investigation around 1900. He made drawings of the area and the place where the parliament used to be and described his findings. In 1905 an Icelander, Mr. Brynjolfur Jonsson also performed some investigations and in his report he describes ruins and two circles around the small hill where the parliament took place. This is believed to possibly be remains of Jury´s circle known to have existed in places like this where judgements were made. In the years 2005 – 2007 a local archaeological society and Institute of Archaeology, Iceland did accurate blueprints of the ruins in Thingey and also some sampling for age estimation. There is not much literature about inhabitants in Thingey island. A farm was built between 1843-1844 and was called Thingvellir. The last inhabitants of Thingvellir left
in 1865. It is believed, due to lack of grass and dry ground it was not an ideal place for a farm. Thingey was protected by law in 1961. Northeast of Thingey there is another, smaller, island called Skuldathingsey. Based on that name it is believed debts were settled there at same time as parliament took place in Thingey. Archaeological investigations have also been performed there and ruins have been discovered.
BARNAFOSS WATERFALL. In the final part of this route, before turning back, river Skjalfandafljot runs into very impressive canyons and the enormous force of the river is at its utmost. At the end of the route is waterfall Barnafoss. This waterfall is next to a deserted farm, that was called Barnafell (Children´s Hill). Here the river runs into a narrow canyon approximately 100 meter deep. In the old days, when the area was still inhabited, farmers used to take their sheep over the narrowest part of the canyon above the waterfall to Thingey island. This was possible since an ice bridge formed over the waterfall when the temperature fell considerably below zero. Sometimes settlers preempted this process by placing a rope over the canyon and the ice would start to form on it. The name of the waterfall means childrens waterfall. According to folklore it is said that children were playing at the farm on the slope above the river. The were playing a game involving a barrel in which they became trapped and drowned when the barrel fell into the river were the waterfall lies. In 1925 a woman and her youngest son, who lived at the farm, slipped on the icy ground and became trapped at the edge of the canyon. The eldest son who was 14 years old gathered all the ropes he could find at the farm and tied them together. He then carefully approached his mother and brother as far as he dared and was able to rescue them from certain death. His name was Sigurdur Benediktsson (1911 – 1970) and for this rescue he was honored by the Andrew Carnegie Foundation.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
Brynjólfur Jónsson. Árbók Fornleifafélagsins. 1906. Bls 3-6, Rannsókn á Norðurlandi sumarið 1905, I Suður-Þingeyjarsýsla Dögg Matthíasdóttir. Þingey. 1995. Verkefni við ferðamálabraut, Laugaskóla. Lög um afhendingu Þingeyjar í Skjálfandafljóti nr 62/1961 Óttar Indriðason. Morgunblaðið 25. Júní 1994 Lesbók. Bls 1-2, Þingey og umhverfi hennar. Fornleifastofnun Íslands, Þingey, sótt 2. Maí 2011 af http://www.instarch.is/rannsoknir/uppgroftur/thinghald_ad_fornu/thingey/
Copyright: Hotel Raudaskrida 2011