Gullfoss is a
waterfallA waterfall is a place where flowing water rapidly drops in elevation as it flows over a steep region or a cliff.-Formation :Typically, a river flows over a large step in the rocks that may have been formed by a fault line. As it increases its velocity at the edge of the waterfall, it plucks...
located in the
canyonA canyon, or gorge, is a deep valley between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Most canyons were formed by a process of long-time erosion from a plateau level. The cliffs form because harder rock strata that are resistant to erosion and weathering remain exposed on the valley walls...
of
HvítáHvítá is a river whose source is in the glacier lake Hvítárvatn at Langjökull glacier in the highlands of Iceland at . The river flows for 40 km before dropping down into a narrow gorge at the waterfall Gullfoss....
river in southwest
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
.
Gullfoss is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the country. The wide
HvítáHvítá is a river whose source is in the glacier lake Hvítárvatn at Langjökull glacier in the highlands of Iceland at . The river flows for 40 km before dropping down into a narrow gorge at the waterfall Gullfoss....
rushes southward. About a kilometer above the falls it turns sharply to the left and flows down into a wide curved three-step "staircase" and then abruptly plunges in two stages (11 m and 21 m) into a crevice 32 m (105 ft) deep.
Gullfoss is a
waterfallA waterfall is a place where flowing water rapidly drops in elevation as it flows over a steep region or a cliff.-Formation :Typically, a river flows over a large step in the rocks that may have been formed by a fault line. As it increases its velocity at the edge of the waterfall, it plucks...
located in the
canyonA canyon, or gorge, is a deep valley between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Most canyons were formed by a process of long-time erosion from a plateau level. The cliffs form because harder rock strata that are resistant to erosion and weathering remain exposed on the valley walls...
of
HvítáHvítá is a river whose source is in the glacier lake Hvítárvatn at Langjökull glacier in the highlands of Iceland at . The river flows for 40 km before dropping down into a narrow gorge at the waterfall Gullfoss....
river in southwest
IcelandThe Republic of Iceland is a European island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of about 320,000 and a total area of 103,000 km². Its capital and largest city is Reykjavík, whose surrounding area is home to approximately two thirds of the national population...
.
Gullfoss is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the country. The wide
HvítáHvítá is a river whose source is in the glacier lake Hvítárvatn at Langjökull glacier in the highlands of Iceland at . The river flows for 40 km before dropping down into a narrow gorge at the waterfall Gullfoss....
rushes southward. About a kilometer above the falls it turns sharply to the left and flows down into a wide curved three-step "staircase" and then abruptly plunges in two stages (11 m and 21 m) into a crevice 32 m (105 ft) deep. The crevice, about 20 m (60 ft) wide, and 2.5 km in length, is at right angles to the flow of the river. The average amount of water running over this waterfall is 140 m³/s in the summertime and 80 m³/s in the wintertime. The highest flood measured was 2000 m³/s.
As one first approaches the falls, the crevice is obscured from view, so that it appears that a mighty river simply vanishes into the earth.
During the first half of the 20th century and some years into the late 20th century, there was much speculation about using Gullfoss to generate electricity. During this period, the waterfall was rented indirectly by its owners, Tómas Tómasson and Halldór Halldórsson, to foreign investors. However, the investors' attempts were unsuccessful, partly due to lack of money. The waterfall was later sold to the state of Iceland. Even after it was sold, there were plans to utilize Hvítá, which would have changed the waterfall forever. This was not done, and now the waterfall is protected.
Sigríður Tómasdóttir, the daughter of Tómas Tómasson was determined to preserve the waterfall's condition and even threatened to throw herself into the waterfall. Although it is widely believed, the very popular story that Sigríður did save the waterfall from use is not true. A stone memorial to Sigriður, located above the falls, depicts her profile.
Together with
Þingvellir, is a place in Bláskógarbyggð in southwestern Iceland, near the peninsula of Reykjanes and the Hengill volcanic area. Þingvellir is a site of historical, cultural, and geological importance and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Iceland...
and the
geyserA geyser is a hot spring characterized by intermittent discharge of water ejected turbulently and accompanied by a vapour phase . The name geyser comes from Geysir, the name of an erupting spring at Haukadalur, Iceland; that name, in turn, comes from the Icelandic verb gjósa, "to gush".The...
s of
Haukadalur-Haukadalur, Golden Circle:This valley lies to the north of the Laugarvatn in the south of Iceland at .There are to be seen some of the most famous sights of the island, the geysers. The biggest geysers of Haukadalur are Strokkur and Geysir itself, which gave others their name...
Gullfoss forms the
Golden CircleThe Golden Circle is a popular tourist route in South Iceland, covering about 300 km looping from Reykjavík into central Iceland and back.The three primary stops on the route are the national park Þingvellir, the waterfall Gullfoss , and the geothermally active valley of Haukadalur, which contains...
, a popular day tour for tourists in Iceland.
Gulfoss appears on the cover of the album
PorcupinePorcupine is the third studio album by the British post-punk band Echo & the Bunnymen. First released on 4 February 1983, it became the band's highest charting release when it reached number two on the UK Albums Chart despite initially receiving poor reviews. It also reached number 137 on the U.S...
by the British band Echo and the Bunnymen.
See also
- Geography of Iceland
Iceland is the second-largest island in Europe. The island is located east of Greenland and immediately south of the Arctic Circle, atop the divergent boundary of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the North Atlantic Ocean. It lies about from New York City and from Scotland.Iceland has extensive volcanic...
- Iceland plume
The Iceland Plume is an upwelling of anomalously hot rock in the Earth's mantle beneath Iceland whose origin probably lies at the boundary between the core and the mantle at ca. 2880 km depth. It is generally thought to be the cause of the formation of Iceland and its volcanism, which characterizes...
- Lakes of Iceland
- List of islands off Iceland
- List of volcanoes in Iceland
- Rivers of Iceland
- Volcanism in Iceland
- Waterfalls of Iceland
Iceland is unusually suited for waterfalls. This small island country has a north Atlantic climate that produces frequent rain or snow and a near-Arctic location that produces large glaciers, whose summer melts feed many rivers...
- List of waterfalls
External links