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19-408: The Hvítá river flows southward, and about a kilometre above the falls it turns sharply to the west and flows down into a wide curved three-step "staircase" and then abruptly plunges in two stages (11 metres or 36 feet, and 21 metres or 69 feet) into a crevice 32 metres (105 ft) deep. The crevice, about 20 metres (66 ft) wide and 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) in length, extends perpendicular to

38-556: A name not currently used in this context, extending mainly to the south of about 12 km (4.6 sq mi), now covered by up to four more recent lava flows in part. This central area of the field also has the vent Rauðhólar to the south–east, that contributed some of the youngest lavas in the area, which is part of the many vent Rauðhólahraun [ˈrœyðˌhouːlaˌr̥œyːn] flow, although true young Rauðhólar [-ˌhouːlar̥] lava flows (Svönkuhraun [ˈsvœyŋkʏˌr̥œyːn] ), that erupted more recently that 7050 BP , at

57-469: A small eruption at 0.004 km (0.00096 cu mi) more recent than 7050 years BP (cal) and so did Borgarhóll 0.001 km (0.00024 cu mi). To the south of Selhóll I is the most southern vent of the field Álftarhóll [ˈaul̥tarˌhoutl̥] (Álftarhólar [-ˌhouːlar] ) that produced the larger 6.2 km (2.4 sq mi) (0.126 km (0.030 cu mi)) Álftarhólshraun [-ˌhoulsˌr̥œyːn] flow, that

76-600: A sub-plot of the TV series Vikings , and one character kills herself by diving into it. Gullfoss appears in the penultimate episode of the thirty-fourth season of the American reality competition The Amazing Race . Hv%C3%ADt%C3%A1 (%C3%81rness%C3%BDsla) Hvítá ( Icelandic [ˈkʰviːtˌauː] , "white river") is a river in Iceland that begins at Hvítárvatn glacier lake on Langjökull glacier in

95-547: A volume of 0.009 km (0.0022 cu mi) are much smaller. To the east of the Rauðhólar vent are the also young Kolgrafarhóll [ˈkʰɔlˌkraːvarˌhoutl̥] and Borgarhóll [ˈpɔrkarˌhoutl̥] vents and east of that the Selhóll I (Selhóll south) [ˈsɛlˌhoutl̥] vent that is one of oldest vents and erupted 0.01 km (0.0024 cu mi) more than 9500 years BP (cal). Kolgrafarhóll had

114-500: A volume of 0.26 km (0.062 cu mi) dated accurately by tephrochronology to 9500 years BP (cal) and Kerhóll that produced a volume of 0.36 km (0.086 cu mi) also dated well to 7050 years BP (cal). The Kálfshólar [ˈkʰaul(f)sˌhouːlar̥] vent just to the east of Seyðishólar and Kerhóll [-ˈhoutl̥] produced the Kálfshólahraun [-ˌhouːlaˌr̥œyːn] field that flowed to

133-563: Is known. It has been classified as part of the Western Volcanic Zone , but is also part of the South Iceland seismic zone . The northern parts of the lava fields overlay lava fields erupted before the last ice age by the shield volcano Lyngdalsheiði [ˈliŋkˌtalsˌheiːðɪ] to the north. This is known as the maar volcanic crater of Kerið towards the middle of the field has 7–8 m (23–26 ft) of

152-574: Is less than 7050 years BP (cal). The most eastern vent and its Borgarhólar lava field (Borgarhólahraun [ˈpɔrkarˌhouːlaˌr̥œyːn] ) is separate from the rest of the Grímsnes lava fields with a small eruptive volume of 0.03 km (0.0072 cu mi) and dated to 8200 years BP (cal). The largest lava field to the north and east of Kerið is the 23.5 km (9.1 sq mi) Seyðishólar-Kerhólahraun [ˈcʰɛrˌhouːlaˌr̥œyːn] field. Its vents are Seyðishólar that produced

171-545: Is widely believed, the very popular story that Sigríður saved the waterfall from exploitation is untrue. A stone memorial to Sigriður, located above the falls, depicts her profile. Gullfoss is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Iceland. Together with Þingvellir and the geysers of Haukadalur , Gullfoss forms part of the Golden Circle , a popular day excursion for tourists in Iceland. Gullfoss appears on

190-588: The Hvítá . From these river boundaries at about 20 m (66 ft) the field reaches its highest point at the Seyðishólar [ˈseiːðɪsˌhouːlar̥] cone of 214 m (702 ft). Most of the lava fields are covered by birch and willow. Tephrochronology approximates the volcano's last eruption as about 7000 years ago. There are at least ten vents and all have erupted olivine tholeiite basalt in effusive eruptions although one small tephra eruption

209-524: The highlands of Iceland at 64°37′N 19°50′W  /  64.617°N 19.833°W  / 64.617; -19.833 . The river flows for 40 kilometres (25 mi) before dropping down into a narrow gorge at Gullfoss waterfall. Thereafter, the river flows between Biskupstungur [ˈpɪskʏpsˌtʰuŋkʏr̥] and Hrunamannahreppur districts. Here, Hvítá combines with three other rivers: Tungufljót [ˈtʰuŋkʏˌfljouːt] , Brúará , and Stóra-Laxá [ˈstouːra-ˌlaksˌauː] , doubling

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228-519: The cover of the album Porcupine by the British band Echo and the Bunnymen . Additionally, the falls are referenced in the novella The Odd Saga of the American and a Curious Icelandic Flock ; during a dinner, Snorri expresses a preference for Gullfoss, while Dr. Gustafsson favors Glymur . Gullfoss features in the music video for the single " Heaven " by the band Live . Gullfoss appears briefly in

247-533: The distinctive Lyngdalsheiði basalt exposed. The maar has a total depth of 55 m (180 ft) with 10 m (33 ft) being water filled. . In a crater row line extending 800 m (2,600 ft) to the south–east from Kerið are the Tjarnarhólar [ˈtʰja(r)tnarˌhouːlar̥] craters. These erupted what was historically called the Tjarnarhólahraun [-ˌhouːlaˌr̥œyːn] lavas,

266-656: The east to the Sog within area of 8.0 km (3.1 sq mi) (0.14 km (0.034 cu mi)) and is more recent than 7050 years BP (cal). . The most northerly vent to the north of Kálfshólar is old at 9500 years BP (cal) or more and called Selhóll-north (Selhóll II) with a lava erupted volume of 0.04 km (0.0096 cu mi). To the east of this is Rauðhóll [ˈrœyðˌhoutl̥] (Kerlingarhóll [ˈcʰe(r)tliŋkarˌfjœtl̥] ) lava field (Rauðhólshraun [-ˌhoulsˌr̥œyːn] ) dated earlier than 7050 BP (cal). The total volume of lava produced in

285-531: The en echelon group of volcanic systems extending across the Reykjanes Peninsula , that erupted last in the Holocene . The lava fields are spread out to the south-east of the older edifice of Búrfell [ˈpurˌfɛtl̥] being bounded to the east by the water body of Álftavatn [ˈaul̥taˌvahtn̥] , on the river Sog (Sogið) and reaches to the south the confluence of the Sog with

304-484: The flow of the river. The average amount of water running down the waterfall is 141 cubic metres (5,000 cu ft) per second in the summer and 80 cubic metres (2,800 cu ft) per second in the winter. The highest flood measured was 2,000 cubic metres (71,000 cu ft) per second. 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,

323-568: The river. The river is bridged at 4 locations, thrice at the lowland and once near the source in the highland where it is only open over the summer. This article related to a river in Iceland is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Gr%C3%ADmsnes Grímsnes ( Icelandic pronunciation: [ˈkrimsˌnɛːs] ) is a relatively small fissure or crater row volcanic system located in South Iceland , located south–east of Lake Thingvallavatn and east of

342-506: The volume of the river. It proceeds to run through the flatlands near Grímsnes [ˈkrimsˌnɛːs] and behind Ingólfsfjall mountain. Just north of Selfoss town, it meets Sog River where it becomes Ölfusá as it flows into the Atlantic Ocean . Because of danger of flooding, especially during winter, Hvítá has a reputation of being the most dangerous river in Iceland. Organised rafting excursions take place on parts of

361-435: 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, and is now protected. Sigríður Tómasdóttir , the daughter of Tómas Tómasson, was determined to preserve the waterfall's condition and even threatened to throw herself down. Although it

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