Welcome to Gullfoss!
Gullfoss originates at the Langjökull glacier and the water then travels down the Hvítá river. Gullfoss is made up of two waterfalls – the first is 11 meters tall (36 feet), whilst the second fall is 21 meters (69 feet). In the summer months, around 140 cubic meters of water drop down the fall every second. In the winter this drops to around 109 cubic meters.
Despite being such a stunning location, Gullfoss has not been without its controversies. In 1907, an English businessman, Howell, wished to use the waterfall to power a hydroelectric plant. Sigríður Tómasdóttir, daughter of the landowner, led the legal battle against Howell and often walked the 62 miles to Reykjavík. Sigríður hired a lawyer to assist and threatened to throw herself into the waterfall if construction of the hydroelectric plant began. Sigríður was successful and the waterfall fell back into the hands of the Icelandic people. Sigríður's lawyer also became the first president of an independent Iceland in 1944!
We fell in love with Gulfoss on our amazing honeymoon in Iceland, in July 2022 and it seems really appropriate to place a virtual here!
Requirements to Log this Cache:
To claim a find on this virtual, please:
1. Visit the headine co-ordinates ("upstairs") and take a photo of yourself and/or GPS. Please see the example photo below.
2. Visit waypoint 1 - the lower viewing point ("downstairs") and take a photo of yourself and/or GPS. Please see the example photo below.
Both photos should then be uploaded to your log. Logs without the qualifying photos will be deleted.
Although not mandatory, have you really visited a waterfall if you have not experienced the roar of the water up close and personal?! There are bonus points if you are able to descend the footpath down to the waterfall itself – you will get wet! Good luck!
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.