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HJÖRLEIFSHÖFÐI CAVE
CREATED BY #62321
HJÖRLEIFSHÖFÐI IS A 221-METER-HIGH INSELBERG (ROCK MONOLITH) MADE OF PALAGONITE TUFF, LOCATED ON THE MÝRDALSSANDUR PLAIN, ABOUT 15 KM EAST OF VÍK Í MÝRDAL, ON THE SOUTHERN COAST OF ICELAND
THE CAVE, KNOWN AS GÝGJAGJÁ, IS LOCATED ON THE SOUTHERN SIDE OF THIS MASSIF, JUST ABOVE THE BLACK BEACH.
THE FORMATION WAS CREATED BY A VOLCANIC ERUPTION UNDER THE GLACIER DURING THE LAST GLACIATION. AT THAT TIME, HJÖRLEIFSHÖFÐI WAS AN ISLAND SURROUNDED BY WATER, BUT GLACIAL FLOODS (JÖKULHLAUP) FROM THE KATLA VOLCANO DEPOSITED SAND AND GRAVEL, CONNECTING IT TO THE MAINLAND
THE INTERIOR OF THE GÝGJAGJÁ CAVE IS SPACIOUS, WITH AN ENTRANCE HEIGHT OF 20–30 M.
VISITORS OFTEN COMMENT ON THE STRONG ECHO AND DRAMATIC APPEARANCE OF THE INTERIOR. A DISTINCTIVE FEATURE IS THE ENTRANCE, WHICH FROM A CERTAIN ANGLE RESEMBLES THE PROFILE OF YODA FROM STAR WARS, GIVING THE CAVE ITS POPULAR NAME, “YODA CAVE.”
CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
THE NAME HJÖRLEIFSHÖFÐI COMES FROM HJÖRLEIF HRÓÐMARSSON, A VIKING WHO SETTLED HERE AT THE END OF THE 9TH CENTURY, PROBABLY AT THE SITE WHERE HIS GRAVE (HJÖRLEIFSHAUGUR) IS LOCATED TODAY AT THE TOP OF THE ROCK
UNTIL 1936, A FARM WAS RUN HERE, WHOSE OWNERS MADE THEIR LIVING FROM BIRD HUNTING AND EGG COLLECTING, AMONG OTHER THINGS.
ACCESSIBILITY AND ACCESS
THE CAVE IS EASILY ACCESSIBLE – IT IS LOCATED ON A LOCAL ROAD OFF THE RING ROAD, ABOUT 125 MILES EAST OF REYKJAVÍK AND 9 MILES FROM VIK
A DIRT ROAD LEADS TO THE PARKING LOT BELOW THE HILL, OFTEN REQUIRING A 4×4 VEHICLE, ESPECIALLY IN RAINY OR SPRING PERIODS. THE WALK TO THE CAVE ITSELF TAKES A FEW MINUTES – THEN YOU CAN CONTINUE ALONG THE TRAIL TO THE SUMMIT AND THE VIEWPOINT.
THE ENTIRE LOOP TO THE CAVE AND AROUND HJÖRLEIFSHÖFÐI IS A 2-3 HOUR HIKE (APPROX. 7 KM), OFTEN REFERRED TO AS “MODERATELY DIFFICULT” DUE TO THE STEEP CLIMBS
THERE ARE NUMEROUS ROCK PILLARS AROUND THE MASSIF (ARNARDRANGUR, LÁSADRANGUR, KÖTLUKLETTUR), AND FROM THE TOP THERE ARE PANORAMIC VIEWS OF BLACK BEACHES, THE MÝRDALSJÖKULL GLACIER, AND THE KATLA VOLCANO
THE CAVE ALSO ATTRACTS STAR WARS FANS – IN 2016, IT WAS USED AS THE LOCATION FOR THE “LAH'MU” SET IN THE MOVIE ROGUE ONE, WHICH SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED ITS POPULARITY
in world of walker
IT WAS IN THIS CAVE THAT THE WALKER GROUP FOUND SHELTER AND OPENED THE TIME CAPSULE THEY HAD FOUND EARLIER, ENVELOPED IN THE GLOW OF CRYSTAL ICE FORMATIONS.
