Foss a Sidu

Waterfall South Coast

Foss a Sidu is a waterfall in South Coast, Iceland — about 260 km from Reykjavik and reached by a drive to the trailhead and a short walk in (footwear and weather check). Shoot it year-round, though winter wind, ice, and short daylight rework the shot list, then use the GPS coordinates, parking notes, and nearby waypoints below to fold this stop into a longer photography route.

South Coast · Iceland — exact GPS in the map file

Updated South Coast · All

Overview

A small waterfall in the southern part of Iceland. Foss á Síðu is a waterfall in the South of Iceland and belongs to the most beautiful and most famous waterfalls in Iceland.

Foss a Sidu sits inside the waterfall photography map for Iceland, alongside the other spots worth routing a day around.

Notes on this location

Compiled from published sources rather than a visit. Sources are listed below.

A waterfall dropping over the cliffs above an old farm on the Ring Road, about 10 km east of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. The water comes down from Lake Þórutjörn.

Where
About 10 km east of Kirkjubæjarklaustur, on the Ring Road
The fall
Comes over the cliffs above the farm
Source of the water
Lake Þórutjörn
The farm
Foss á Síðu is the name of an old farm
Widely reported, not in this source
That a strong south-coast wind can blow the fall backwards and upwards so that it never reaches the ground; the cited page does not mention it, nor the height, nor whether the land is private

If the wind effect is what you came for, it is conditional on weather rather than on time of day — which makes this a stop to take when the conditions happen to be right on the drive past, not one to schedule. Dverghamrar is close enough on the same road to treat the two as one stop.

SourcesFoss á Síðu — Visit South Iceland

Light & aurora at this spot

Calculated from this location’s coordinates (63.854, -17.872). Iceland stays on UTC year-round, so these are local times.

Summer
June: sun up 02:48–23:36 (20.8 h). Evening golden hour 21:45–23:36, light coming from the NNW.
Winter
December: only 4.4 h of daylight (10:55–15:18), but the sun never climbs above 2.9° — the entire day is golden hour. Sunrise bears SSE, sunset SSW.
Aurora
Aurora-grade darkness Sep–Mar, peaking at 12.9 h a night in December. Not possible Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug — the sky never gets dark enough.
Jan — aurora possibleFeb — aurora possibleMar — aurora possibleAprMayJunJulAugSep — aurora possibleOct — aurora possibleNov — aurora possibleDec — aurora possible
69121518212016131074

Bar height is daylight hours. Months marked have enough astronomical darkness for aurora; the rest do not.

Questions & answers

  • Foss a Sidu is a waterfall in South Coast, Iceland, approximately 260 km from Reykjavik. Exact GPS coordinates are included in the downloadable Waterfall map.

  • The recommended season for Foss a Sidu is All. For light, plan around blue hour and the first hour after sunrise; Iceland's long shoulder-season twilight extends usable conditions on either side.

  • Drive/Hike access. Bring weather-appropriate footwear and check conditions before setting out. The downloadable GPS map puts the waypoint on your phone; your own app routes you to it from wherever you are.

  • Yes — Foss a Sidu can be visited year-round, though winter conditions may require a 4x4 or storm-tolerant plans.

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