Stuðlagil Canyon: Iceland’s Basalt Column Gorge

Stuðlagil canyon is a gorge in Jökuldalur valley, East Iceland, with one of the country’s largest collections of basalt columns. The east side takes you to river level after a hike, while the west side gives you an overview of the canyon from an elevated platform reached by a short walk and long staircase. Much of the formation became visible after the river level fell, exposing tall columns. The water is most likely to appear blue-green from June to early August, and entry to the canyon is free.

The east side gives you the river-level view seen in most photos of Stuðlagil canyon, but reaching it requires a hike. The west side leads from Grund farm to viewing platforms above the canyon, with toilets and seasonal food near the parking area.

Reaching river level on the east side requires a 2.5 or 5 km (1.5 or 3.1 mi) hike each way, depending on where you park. The hike brings you to the canyon floor, where you can walk beside the river and view the basalt columns from below. After leaving the east-side lot near Stuðlafoss waterfall, you won’t find any toilets, food services, or other facilities along the trail or at the canyon. These services won’t be available again until you return to the parking area.

The west side is the quicker and more elevated option: roughly 5 minutes on foot from the Grund parking area, then a long staircase down to the platform. You'll see the columns and the river beneath you, but there's no way down to the canyon floor from here. A 2025 upgrade to the platform and steps did let visitors get lower toward the water than the old viewpoint allowed. 

Toilets and visitor facilities beside the canyon are only available at Grund on the west side. Its seasonal food truck and farmers market also make this side convenient for a shorter stop, a meal, or time to browse locally made food and crafts.

Choose the east side when the river-level view and photography are your priorities. The west side is easier to fit into a full loop of Iceland’s Ring Road when you have less time or a long drive ahead, but you’ll still need to manage the staircase.

Leave the Ring Road and turn onto Route 923, also called Jökuldalsvegur, just past Skjöldólfsstaðir. The same road leads to both sides of Studlagil canyon. For the west side, continue about 19 km (12 mi) to the Grund parking area. For the east side, drive about 14 to 15 km (9 mi) and take the turn toward Klaustursel.

From the East Iceland hub town of Egilsstaðir, travel west along Route 1 before turning south onto Route 923. The journey covers about 70 km (43 mi) and takes roughly 1 hour. If you’re driving east from Akureyri, follow Route 1 through the Mývatn area until you reach Jökuldalur valley. This drive is 214 km (133 mi) and takes close to 3 hours to complete. From Reykjavík, it’s much longer at about 600 km (373 mi), or 7 to 8 hours without longer stops.

A regular car can reach the Grund parking area on the west side and the east-side lot before the white Klaustursel bridge under normal summer conditions. A 4x4 is only helpful if you continue about 2 km (1.2 mi) past it to the parking area near Stuðlafoss waterfall, where the gravel road becomes rougher and more uneven.

Route 923 doesn’t follow a fixed winter-maintenance schedule. The municipality and Icelandic Road Administration decide when to clear it based on current conditions, while the section beyond the white bridge receives no winter service. Snow, ice, and storms can make the road difficult or temporarily impassable in winter.

Our Ring Road tours skip Stuðlagil whenever road conditions make access unsafe. Review the latest status through Vegagerðin’s traffic information service if you’re going on a self-drive tour.

The hike is 5 km (3.1 mi) round trip from the east-side parking lot near Stuðlafoss waterfall. Starting from the lot before Klaustursel bridge doubles the total distance to 10 km (6.2 mi). Most of the route follows a relatively flat gravel farm track and isn't technically difficult. The drive from Klaustursel bridge to the lot beyond it continues along a bumpy gravel road through sheep farmland, so take your time and watch the road ahead.

Stuðlafoss waterfall is about halfway along the hike if you start from the lot before Klaustursel bridge, and it’s surrounded by its own basalt columns. A marked viewpoint gives you a clear look at the falls. Stay on the designated path when stopping for photos, as the ground near the waterfall can be wet and uneven.

The trail becomes more difficult as you descend toward river level. Here, you walk over large boulders, smaller stones, gravel, and patches of mud. Some boulders may shift slightly underneath you, while gravel and mud can reduce your grip, particularly after rain or melting snow. Walk slowly and test each step before putting your full weight down.

At river level, the basalt walls rise on both sides. From below, your eyes follow the columns upward from the water toward the canyon rim, making their height easier to grasp. Both walls fill your view from the riverbank, with Jökla moving between them. After seeing Stuðlagil canyon from a distance along the trail, standing beneath the columns changes your sense of its scale.

Allow 2 to 3 hours from the lot beyond the bridge or up to 4 hours from the lot before it, including stops for water, photos, and Stuðlafoss waterfall. The return drive toward Egilsstaðir passes close to the floating pools at Vök Baths, making them an easy stop after the hike.

Stuðlagil’s water is most likely to look blue-green from June to early August. The Kárahnjúkar dam collects much of the muddy glacial water from Jökulsá á Dal river in the Hálslón reservoir. Tunnels then carry most of it to Fljótsdalur Power Station.

Below the dam, clearer spring water fills the river instead. With less glacial sediment in the water, the blue-green color becomes easier to see. Later in the year, Hálslón may become full and overflow. Muddy glacial water then returns to the river and turns it gray-brown, sometimes as early as August.

For photography, aim for early morning. Both parking areas fill quickly by mid-morning in July and August, so arriving before 8 AM brings quieter conditions and better light. Blue-green water isn’t guaranteed even in the best months, because the date Hálslón overflows shifts from year to year.

Stuðlagil’s basalt columns formed through a process called columnar jointing. As thick basaltic lava cooled and shrank, stress split the solid rock into regular shapes, much like cracks forming in drying mud. Many fractures met at angles, producing five-sided or six-sided columns. Broken ends make the pattern easiest to see. Some columns stand upright, while others curve or lean in different directions.

Few travelers knew about the site even after the lower river exposed more of the columns. In 2016, Icelandic photographer Einar Páll Svavarsson photographed the columns from river level and helped bring Stuðlagil to wider attention. Visit Austurland describes it as one of Iceland's largest collections of basalt columns on land. In East Iceland, the layered red cliffs at Hengifoss waterfall reveal another part of the area’s volcanic history, with red clay bands separating the darker basalt.

Entry to Stuðlagil is free, but parking costs 1,000 ISK ($8 / €7) per vehicle at both the Grund and Klaustursel access areas (prices as of September 2026). You can pay through Parka or by scanning the QR codes displayed at the parking areas.

Toilets are available at Grund on the west side throughout the year, although access and maintenance may be limited outside the main visitor season. The parking fee includes Wi-Fi, use of the seating area, and snow-clearing service.

The west side also has a seasonal food truck, open from May through the end of October. It may remain open longer when weather conditions allow. It serves food, freshly baked goods, soup, coffee, tea, and hot cocoa, with most seating outdoors. Depending on the day’s selection, you may find Icelandic hot dogs and happy marriage cake, an oat-based Icelandic cake made with rhubarb jam and served with whipped cream. Opening hours and menu items can change during the season.

The nearby Studlagil Market, also on the west side, usually opens from early May to October. You’ll find handmade wool products, artwork, crafts, and food from producers in Jökuldalur and nearby areas.

The east side has two places to buy food before starting the hike. HAK Bistró & Café is near the lower parking area, before the Klaustursel bridge, and serves hot food and drinks. A seasonal food cart may also be available at the upper parking lot after the bridge, near Stuðlafoss. Once you leave this second lot, there are no further services along the trail, so carry enough food and water for the walk.

The Stuðlagil Canyon campsite at Grund farm is about 200 m (660 ft) from the canyon and open from May 1 to October 31, with toilets, showers, cooking and dishwashing facilities, and electricity for caravans.

Don't enter the Jökla river at Stuðlagil. The water is extremely cold year-round, and strong currents can move below the surface. You can’t judge their strength just by looking at the water. Swimming and wading are prohibited.

Take particular care on the east side when descending to river level. Ropes are available where the final descent begins and can help you balance on the steep bank. Use them for support, but don’t treat them as a complete safety railing. Wet basalt is slippery, and mud or gravel stuck to your shoes can reduce your grip.

Stuðlagil is on private farmland, so remain on marked paths and leave gates as you find them. Pink-footed geese nest here from roughly May 1 to June 10. Give them plenty of space and don’t leave the trail to approach them.

You can fly drones at Stuðlagil because the site isn’t within a protected area. General Icelandic aviation rules still apply. All drone operators in Europe must register, regardless of the drone’s weight. If your drone weighs 250 g or more, you must also complete the required training and pass the online A1/A3 exam. Stay below 120 m (394 ft), keep the drone visible to your own eyes, and don’t fly directly over visitors. Review the current rules before takeoff.

On the west side, a long metal staircase leads to the lower viewing platform. Visitors who find long staircases difficult can remain at the upper viewpoints. Neither side has wheelchair access to its lowest viewing area: the platform below the staircase on the west side or river level on the east.

Stay up to date on weather, road, and travel alerts before leaving. Conditions near Stuðlagil may differ from those along Route 1, so reassess the trail, staircase, and river when you arrive.