South Iceland · Easy · There and back

Almannagjá and Öxarárfoss at Þingvellir

Down into the Almannagjá rift at Þingvellir, past Lögberg, the Law Rock, to the waterfall Öxarárfoss, and back the same way.

Distance
3.7 km (2.3 mi)
Ascent
43 m
Time
About 1 h
High point
137 m
Grade
Easy

Line © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), checked by Global Adventurer.

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Move along the height chart to see each point on the map.
Almannagjá and Öxarárfoss at Þingvellir
McKay Savage from London, UK · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The walk

From the P1 car park at Hakið, by the visitor centre, take the broad path down into Almannagjá, the gorge between the cliff wall and its fallen outer slab. Walk north-east along the floor of the gorge past Lögberg, the Law Rock, marked by a flagpole, and cross the Öxará on the footbridge at Drekkingarhylur. Carry on north past the Kastalar car park, then up steps and a boardwalk to the foot of Öxarárfoss. Return the same way.

It is 3.7 km there and back with 43 m of ascent; allow about an hour. The grade is Easy: broad, well-made paths with some steps and boardwalk.

The park's longer round past Þingvellir church used a walkway from Lögberg that was closed after a flood in early 2024, and we found no notice that it has reopened, so this walk keeps to Almannagjá both ways. Keep back from the edges of the rift walls and open fissures. In winter the paths, above all the one to the waterfall, can be very icy and the park advises crampons; snow can hide cracks, so stay on the marked paths.

Parking costs 1,000 ISK for a car, one payment for the day at the P1, P2 and P5 car parks, paid at the machines or online through Checkit; cameras read number plates. No bus serves Þingvellir; road 36 from Reykjavík is open all year.

Route drawn by Global Adventurer along OpenStreetMap paths (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), with figures worked out from it. Check the forecast and the ground on the day: paths change.

Good to know

  • Almannagjá is the western wall of a rift that widens as the North American and Eurasian plates pull apart
  • The Alþingi met in the open air here from 930, and the laws were recited at Lögberg, the Law Rock
  • Öxarárfoss drops about 13 m into the rift; the river is thought to have been led into Almannagjá by people long ago
  • Þingvellir is a national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, under an hour's drive from Reykjavík on road 36

Getting there

Start: P1 Hakið car park, Þingvellir. 64.25540, -21.13220

Directions to the start

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Paths change, and the weather decides the day. The line and figures come from OpenStreetMap and our own checks; take a map, check the forecast, and turn back if it isn't right.