Asbyrgi

Region: North Iceland
Coordinates: 66.0178° N 16.5055° W
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Asbyrgi certainly is one of nature’s wonders. It is a 3½ km long canyon with up to 100 m high walls occupied by fulmars during the breeding season. It is the northernmost part of the National Park Jokulsargljufur under the management of the Forestry Service.

The well vegetated area between the canyon walls is a very popular recreational area, especially among families, and local festivals are celebrated there. In its middle is a freestanding and precipitous rock called “The Island”.

Sagas of Iceland The canyon is partly wooded, mainly with birch, willow, larch and fur. It was created by two catastrophic flood waves from the icecap Vatnajokull far in the south, the first one about 8-10 thousand and the second about 3000 years ago.

According to the mythology Wooden, the chief pagan god, was once riding his eight legged horse around the world and it put down one of its legs and created this hoof like expression in the landscape. A road lies almost all the way to its bottom, where it is nice to walk about and enjoy the surroundings.

After the founding of Europe’s largest national park, Vatnajokull, on June 7th, 2008, Asbyrgi became one of its visitors’ centres.