Elliðaárdalur - a countryside walk in the heart of the city
Elliðaárdalur with Kermóafoss waterfall in the foreground
Elliðaárdalur valley is an absolutely gorgeous little oasis in Reykjavík itself. When we first found it, we thought we´d stumbled into a bit of a fairy tale, as it is utterly unlike being in a city, even though Reykjavík is all around it. Elliðaárdalur is only a few minutes away from the heart of the city but is a perfect place to go walking or cycling; it has forest and woodland, many many wild flowers, rivers and waterfalls, wild rabbits, abundant birdlife, and dozens of perfect picnic spots. It is named for its beautiful river, the Elliðaár, which runs through the valley, with several waterfalls along the way. During the summer many people fish in the river which is full of mostly salmon and trout. You do have to have to buy a fishing licence to be able to fish there. It really is quite unique to have a salmon fishing river flowing through a capital city.
There are plenty of little paths leading you through the area and even though it´s not huge you can walk for hours along all the little winding paths and tracks. There are benches dotted around for people to stop and relax, along with educational information boards about the geology and vegetation of the valley and also all sorts of sculptures and artwork pieces dotted around seemingly at random in the woodland. It is such a joy to wander at random, taking in the colours and scents of the flowers, enjoying the dappled light of the sun through the trees and listening to the sound of the river babbling away in the background; its presence felt even when it is not in view.
In the middle of the valley there is an old power station which produces some of Reykjavík´s green energy. The City of Reykjavík acquired the Elliðaár river in 1906 to harness hydroelectric power, and drinking water was first drawn from the river in 1909. The electric power station was commissioned in 1921 and since the 1960s the hot water utility has extracted water from boreholes in the valley.
The City of Reykjavik entrusted the Reykjavík Electricity Utility with the supervision of the river from 1925, when fish farming began in the river and a hatchery was operated for decades. Reykjavík Energy then took over these duties when the company was created in 1999. The Reykjavík Angling Club was founded in 1939 and has been leasing the river ever since.
We discovered Elliðaárdalur almost by accident one spring day when I had wanted to practice long exposure shots of waterfalls, in an attempt to get that silky, misty effect that looks so pretty, but didn´t want to drive for miles to find a waterfall and jostle with dozens of tourists to take pictures. After googling where I might find a picturesque waterfall near Reykjavík I came across an article about Elliðaárdalur and realised I could find one within the city itself.
Since then it has become a favourite summer walk on days when I don´t want to drive for miles out of the city but want to be surrounded by the beauty of nature. It really is a perfect place and most of the time you can be completely alone if you want to be. It is common to pass other locals out walking their dogs or just taking a wander, but for most of the time you can explore undisturbed. It is particularly pretty in the summer when it is a riot of colour from the lupins, buttercups, cow parsley and rowan berries.
On one such trip in the summer, when I just wanted to get out of the apartment and enjoy the fresh air, despite it being a rather wet and drizzly day, I headed down to Elliðaárdalur and saw a group of people gathered together, looking far too well dressed to be walkers, I realised I had come across a wedding party. Clutching their umbrellas against the rain, they were gathered together awaiting the bride. Moving away as I didn´t want to intrude, I spent some time photographing a group of greylag geese with their goslings on the bank of the river, and as I followed the geese, I looked up and saw the bride arriving with her father. I couldn´t resist following at a discreet distance and watching some of the ceremony which was just delightful. The celebrant hopped up onto a rock and spoke from there, there was a group of musicians playing in the rain, amongst the family and friends and it felt so very special and magical; a little woodland wedding service which felt as if it could have taken place any time at all over the past few hundred years and been little different. It felt like such a privilege to be there and I snapped a few pictures from my position way back in the trees, away from the wedding party.
That encounter just seemed to sum up the magical quality of Elliðaárdalur for me. It is a place that is much loved by locals and probably hardly ever found by tourists. As I wandered down through the woods and then spent a happy hour or so taking photographs of the river and the Kermóafoss waterfall which was the reason we first discovered Elliðaárdalur, I reflected on the irony of the fact that most of Iceland´s tourists get packed into coaches to travel to the famous waterfalls such as Gullfoss in the Golden Circle, or Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss on the south coast, and have no idea that there is an equally pretty waterfall in lush green surroundings just a few minutes from their hotels.
Kermóafoss waterfall
Pretty in every season Elliðaárdalur is one of the many things that makes living in Reykjavík so special, and a walk through the woods and along the path of the river is guaranteed to lift your spirits. We really are very lucky to live in this gorgeous city.
