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Iceland

Öxarárfoss – Thingvellir National Park loop from Þingvellir National Park

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Hiking trails & Routes

Iceland

Öxarárfoss – Thingvellir National Park loop from Þingvellir National Park

Moderate

4.3

(188)

785

hikers

Öxarárfoss – Thingvellir National Park loop from Þingvellir National Park

03:11

12.2km

70m

Hiking

Moderate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is right next to a parking lot.

Last updated: July 22, 2026

Tips

Your route passes through a protected area

Please check local regulations for:

Þjóðgarðurinn á Þingvöllum

Waypoints

Start point

Parking

Get Directions

2.00 km

Rift Trail in Þingvellir National Park

Highlight • Gorge

Here the gorge path becomes narrower and narrower and leads away from the other highlights

Translated by Google •

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2.17 km

Stekkjargjá (Dead Man Walking)

Highlight • Historical Site

Dead man walking
During the time of the Old Commonwealth (930-1262) executive powers in Iceland were very limited. At the Alþingi (national assembly) at Þingvellir, laws were enacted, and cases were tried in accord with those laws, but verdicts had to be enforced by individuals.

In minor cases, fines were imposed, while
graver cases entailed exile for three years or even lifelong outlawry. If a convicted person flouted the verdict and turned up where he was not allowed to be, he might be killed by the family of his victim: such cases of vengeance are common in the Sagas of Icelanders.

After the Icelanders submitted to be ruled by
the King of Norway in 1262, legal codes provided for punishments to be implemented by royal officials, at Alpingi and regional assemblies.

Punishments and placenámes
Many placenames at Þingvellir are reminders of the harsh punishments inflicted here. Women were drowned in Drekkingarhylur (the Drowning Pool), men were beheaded on Höggstokkseyri (Execution Block Spit), which may have been on an islet in the Öxará river. Kagahólmi (Scourge Islet) is probably where offenders were flogged, while Brennugjá (Fire Gorge), to the west of Flosagjá, derives its name from the burning of alleged wizards and witches in the witch-hunts of the late 17th century.

Gálgaklettur (Gallows Rock)
Hanging was the penalty for theft. The rift
Stekkjargja is believed to have been the site of the hangings.

As follows did Einar S. Einarsen priest at
Þingvellir 1822-1828 Gálgaklettur.
"The gallow ... was between two independent
rocks that were called Gálgaklettar (Gallows Rock) in Almannagjá, east of the road that lies along the gorge toward Langistígur. I don't think that there was space for more than one each time but it is possible that two were able to hang in a row. There [Gálgaklettar] human bones were found and quite near my time a leg bone was found."

Seventy-two people are known with certainty
have been executed at Þingvellir from 1602 to 1750: 30 males were beheaded, 9 burned
to at the stake and 18 women were drowned in Drekkingarhylur. Here in Stekkjargja 15 men
were hanged.

Source: Local signage

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2.49 km

Öxarárfoss

Highlight • Waterfall

Small but very picturesque waterfall, especially in winter. Absolutely visit.

Translated by Google •

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3.60 km

Lögberg (Law Rock) — Þingvellir National Park

Highlight • Historical Site

Lögberg, also known as the Whetstone, is a rocky outcropping in southwestern Iceland, on the site of the meeting of the country's Althing parliament. The original Althing was collected in Þingvellir, an area of dramatic landscapes easily accessible from the populated areas of the southwest. The exact location of Lögberg is unknown, due to the changing geography of the rift valley over 1,000 years. Two possible sites have been identified at Þingvellir, one a flat ridge at the top of a slope called Hallurinn (currently marked by a flagpole), the other in the Almannagjá fault against a rock face. The Lögberg was the place where the legislature (lögsögumaður) took his seat as the presiding officer of the assembly of the Althing. Speeches and announcements were made from this spot. Everyone present could make their argument from the Lögberg. The meetings were also called and dissolved from there. The Lögberg fulfilled its purpose from the founding of the parliament in 930. It ceased to be used in 1262, when Iceland swore allegiance to Norway.

Translated by Google •

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3.63 km

Thingvellir National Park

Highlight • Natural Monument

We then walk down a wide path to the Almannagjá (All People's Gorge), which is not only geologically interesting as one of the largest faults in this region, but also has great historical significance as the former meeting place of the Icelandic Parliament. The legal texts used to be read out on a wide path along the gorge, along the Lögberg crowned with a flagpole.

Translated by Google •

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4.23 km

Wooden boardwalk in Thingvellir National Park

Highlight • Trail

This is indeed a beautifully constructed wooden path and also a shortcut. However, I suggest using one of the suggested routes so that you can fully enjoy all the topics.

Translated by Google •

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4.67 km

Thingvellir Church

Highlight • Religious Site

Located in the Þingvellir National Park, Þingvallakirkja is one of the oldest churches in the country. The current wooden structure dates from 185921, but the original church was consecrated in the 11th century. Inside are several bells from earlier churches, a wooden pulpit from the 17th century and a painted altarpiece from 1834. The cemetery behind the church is the final resting place of the independence era poets Jónas Hallgrímsson and Einar Benediktsson. The church is usually closed unless there are staff around.

Translated by Google •

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5.45 km

Silfra Fissure

Highlight • Gorge

Also worth a visit for non-divers.

Translated by Google •

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12.2 km

End point

Parking

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types

6.46 km

4.66 km

522 m

446 m

< 100 m

Surfaces

7.72 km

1.98 km

1.62 km

647 m

100 m

< 100 m

Elevation

Nothing selected – click and drag below to see the stats for a specific part of the route.

Weather

Today

Wednesday 22 July

12°C

8°C

98 %

Additional weather tips

Max wind speed: 18.0 km/h

to get more detailed weather forecasts along your route

Comments

June 11, 2023,Þingvellir und Þingvallavatn-Weg zurück durch die Lava

On a trip to Iceland, Þingvellir is a must...if you go early, it's not that crowded either. Lucky with the weather today, so we extended the round. It was nice.

Showing Translation

August 19, 2022,Island - Nationalpark Þingvellir - Wandern zwischen zwei tektonischen Platten

Another wonderful hike that shows the tremendous power of nature.
In the first part of the tour, the narrow path meanders through the fell landscape. However, the cracks in the earth's crust and the faults are already omnipresent here and the Almannagjá can be seen in the background.

Showing Translation

September 13, 2024,Nach Skógarkot und zurück

Nice tour. Only on the first half the path was quite narrow, rocky and muddy.

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Öxarárfoss – Thingvellir National Park loop from Þingvellir National Park

Rift Trail in Þingvellir National Park

Stekkjargjá (Dead Man Walking)

Öxarárfoss

Lögberg (Law Rock) — Þingvellir National Park

Thingvellir National Park

Wooden boardwalk in Thingvellir National Park

Thingvellir Church

Silfra Fissure

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