Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

is well suited for

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

s (Icelandic: s. ''foss,'' pl. ''fossar''). This Nordic island

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

lies along the

Mid-Atlantic Ridge The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is a mid-ocean ridge (a Divergent boundary, divergent or constructive Plate tectonics, plate boundary) located along the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, and part of the List of longest mountain chains on Earth, longest mountai ...

which separates

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

near where the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for ...

and

Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five oceanic divisions. It spans an area of approximately and is the coldest of the world's oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, ...

s meet. Frequent

rain Rain is a form of precipitation where water drop (liquid), droplets that have condensation, condensed from Water vapor#In Earth's atmosphere, atmospheric water vapor fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is res ...

and

snow Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

is caused by its near-Arctic location. Large

glacier A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires ...

s exist throughout the country whose summer melts feed many

river A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...

s. As a result, it is home to a number of large and powerful waterfalls. It is estimated that there are more than 10.000 waterfalls in Iceland.

North

Dettifoss Dettifoss () is a waterfall in Vatnajökull National Park in Northeast Iceland, and is reputed to be the second most powerful waterfall in Europe after the Rhine Falls. Dettifoss is situated on the Jökulsá á Fjöllum river, which flows from ...

is the most powerful waterfall in Iceland. * Gljúfursárfoss * Selfoss * Hafragilsfoss *

Goðafoss Goðafoss () is a waterfall in northern Iceland. It is located along the country's main ring road at the junction with the Sprengisandur highland road, about 45 minutes from Akureyri. The water of the river Skjálfandafljót falls from a height of ...

* Aldeyjarfoss

South

* Faxi or

Vatnsleysufoss The Faxi (, or Vatnsleysufoss ) waterfall is located on the Golden Circle (Iceland), Golden Circle, a popular tourist trail approximately 120km east of Reykjavik. The waterfall is located on the Tungufljót river, a tributary of the river Hvita. ...

in Tungufljót river *

Foss á Síðu Free and open-source software (FOSS) is software available under a license that grants users the right to use, modify, and distribute the software modified or not to everyone free of charge. FOSS is an inclusive umbrella term encompassing free ...

Gluggafoss Gluggafoss () is a waterfall in southern Iceland, specifically in the Fljótshlíð area. As the most prominent member of a series of waterfalls running from the river Merkjá , it is also known as Merkjárfoss ; both names are acknowledged on an ...

Gljúfrafoss Gljúfrafoss () or Gljúfrabúi ("one who lives in the canyon") is a small waterfall north of the larger falls of Seljalandsfoss in Iceland. The falls are partially obscured by the cliff rock, but hikers can follow a trail to enter the narrow c ...

Gjáin Gjáin () is a small valley with small waterfalls, ponds, and volcanic structures situated in Þjórsárdalur in the south of Iceland. It is to be found at about half an hour walking distance from the historical farm Þjóðveldisbærinn Stöng. ...

has many small waterfalls *

Gullfoss Gullfoss ("Golden Falls"; ) is a waterfall located in the canyon of the Hvítá, Árnessýsla, Hvítá river in southwest Iceland. It is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the country, and is included in "Golden Circle (Iceland), Gol ...

(''Golden Falls'') *

Háifoss Háifoss () is a waterfall situated near the volcano Hekla in southern Iceland. The waterfall Granni is next to it. The river ''Fossá'', a tributary of Þjórsá, drops here from a height of 122 m. This is the fourth highest waterfall of the isla ...

(''High Falls'') *

Hjálparfoss Hjálparfoss () is one of several waterfalls in the south of Iceland situated in the lava fields north of the stratovolcano Hekla near the point where the rivers Fossá and Þjórsá join. Hjálparfoss is located about east of the village Flúði ...

* Kvernufoss * Merkjárfoss *

Ófærufoss Ófærufoss () is a waterfall situated in the Eldgjá chasm in the western part of Vatnajökull National Park, Iceland. Until the early 1990s a natural bridge spanned the falls, but it collapsed from natural causes. See also * List of waterfall ...

used to be noted for the

natural bridge A natural arch, natural bridge, or (less commonly) rock arch is a natural landform where an arch has formed with an opening underneath. Natural arches commonly form where inland cliffs, coastal cliffs, fins or stacks are subject to erosion fro ...

which stood above the falls, but it collapsed in 1993. *

Seljalandsfoss Seljalandsfoss () is a waterfall in Iceland. Seljalandsfoss is located in the South Region in Iceland right by Route 1 and the road that leads to Þórsmörk Road 249. The waterfall drops and is part of the Seljalands River that has its origin ...

Skógafoss Skógafoss (pronounced ) is a waterfall on the Skógá River in the south of Iceland at the cliff marking the former coastline. After the coastline had receded (it is now at a distance of about from Skógar), the former sea cliffs remained, paral ...

(''Forest Falls'') *

Svartifoss Svartifoss ( Icelandic for "black waterfall", ) is a waterfall in Skaftafell in Vatnajökull National Park in Iceland, and is one of the most popular sights in the park. It is surrounded by dark lava columns, which gave rise to its name. The ...

(''Black Falls'') is one of the many waterfalls of

Skaftafell Skaftafell () is a preservation area in Öræfi, southeast Iceland. It was once a major farm, later being named a national park. Originally known as Skaftafell National Park, it was subsequently joined together with other nearby regions to form t ...

National Park * Systrafoss, in

Kirkjubæjarklaustur Kirkjubæjarklaustur ( Icelandic for "church farm cloister", pronounced ; often referred to locally as just Klaustur) is a village in the south of Iceland on the hringvegur (road no. 1 or Ring Road) between Vík í Mýrdal and Höfn. It is pa ...

Þjófafoss Þjófafoss (, "thieves' waterfall"; also Thjofafoss) is located on the river Þjórsá on the east side of the Merkurhraun lava fields in the south of Iceland, at the southwest tip of the hill Búrfell. A viewing point for the waterfall can be ac ...

on the Merkurhraun lava fields * Öxarárfoss, at

Þingvellir Þingvellir (, anglicised as ThingvellirThe spelling ''Pingvellir'' is sometimes seen, although the letter "p" is unrelated to the letter thorn (letter), "þ" (thorn), which is pronounced as "th".) was the site of the Althing, Alþing, the annual ...

National Park * Fagrifoss, near

* Morsárfoss, 228m waterfall formed from the retreat of Morsárjökull that is now Iceland's tallest. * Urriðafoss

West

Álafoss Álafoss (; ''eel falls'') is a waterfall on the river Varmá in Mosfellsbær, Iceland. In culture A wool factory of the same name has adjoined the waterfall since 1896, when a local farmer imported machinery to process wool using the energy f ...

* Barnafossar (the Children's Falls) in Hvítá river * Glymur in the

Hvalfjörður Hvalfjörður (, "whale fjord") is situated in the west of Iceland between Mosfellsbær and Akranes. The fjord is approximately long and wide. The origin of the name Hvalfjörður is uncertain. Certainly today there is no presence of whales i ...

area. At 198m, it was long regarded as the tallest waterfall in Iceland until being surpassed with a new falls by Morsárjökull in 2011. * Hraunfossar (the Lava Falls) in

birch A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 3 ...

woods, a stone's throw from Barnafoss.

Westfjords

* Dynjandi, sometimes called Fjallfoss.

East

Hengifoss Hengifoss () is the third highest waterfall in Iceland, 128 meters. It is located in Hengifossá in Fljótsdalshreppur, East Iceland. It is surrounded by basaltic strata with thin, red layers of clay between the basaltic layers. Fossilized trun ...

Litlanesfoss Litlanesfoss () is a waterfall in Hengifossá in Fljótsdalur, Eastern Iceland, also known as Stuðlabergsfoss . The waterfall is about 30 meters high and forms an apron in a cliff. The waterfall is in a large rock choir with an unusually regul ...

, surrounded by columnar basalt, it is on the way up to

* Fardagafoss near

Egilsstaðir Egilsstaðir () is a town in east Iceland on the banks of the Lagarfljót river. It is part of the municipality of Múlaþing and the largest settlement of the Eastern Region (Iceland), Eastern Region with, as of 2024, a population of 2,632 inha ...

* Gufufoss ("Steam falls") In

Seyðisfjörður Seyðisfjörður () is a town in the Eastern Region (Iceland), Eastern Region of Iceland at the innermost point of the fjord of the same name. The town is located in the Municipalities of Iceland, municipality of Múlaþing. A road over Fjarðarhe ...

* Klifbrekkufossar in

Mjóifjörður Mjóifjörður (, "narrow fjord") is a village of 7 people in East Iceland, sitting on a fjord of the same name. It is part of the municipality of Fjarðabyggð. History In the early 20th century, the village was a Norwegian whaling station. The ...

. A beautiful row of waterfalls

List of waterfalls by height

References

External links

Iceland's Best Waterfalls

Photos of Skogafoss waterfall, Iceland
{{Iceland topics, state=autocollapse

Waterfalls A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several ...