Inclement weather prevented our excursion to Gjàin, so instead we went hunting for huldufólk – or “Hidden Folk,” when translated – the elves, fairies, and supernatural beings said to inhabit rock formations and water in Iceland. According to folktales, the huldufólk were born from Adam and Eve, but were concealed from God because Eve was ashamed for their dirtiness. Angry with her deception, God declared that “what man hides from God, God will hide from man” and from then on, Eve’s children became invisible to the human eye.
Approximately 54% of Iceland’s population believes in the existence of huldufólk, some claiming to have the “sight” to see these invisible spirits, and others swearing to have experienced elvish mischief themselves. And while this number is on the decline, a significant amount of people still believe enough that sometimes development projects are put on hold to avoid disturbing huldufólk territory. Since this phenomenon is uncommon in the States, and because we were genuinely curious in spite of our skepticism, we thought it would be fun to track down these elves.
We first hunted for these elusive creatures in Hellisgerdi, a small Icelandic town which is home to several geothermal hot springs. Although we didn’t see any water spirits swimming downriver, we were enchanted by the waterfall we stumbled across on our short hike. We were also awestruck by the beautiful landscape we were in. It seems that no matter what direction you look, Iceland takes your breath away.
We stumbled across this waterfall in Hveragerdi while exploring Iceland.
Imitating Titanic’s “King of the World” moment in Hveragerdi.
Experiencing some serious fantasy vibes from the other side of the waterfall.
Lone playground equipment in a sea of green.
We also explored the geothermal park in Hveragerdi. Even though we visited during the dry season, we still caught some refreshing steam from the hot springs. And after our brief trek through the park, we tried some world-famous Icelandic rye bread, which had been made over the hot springs. (Traveler’s Tip: Icelandic rye bread is actually really delicious and you should definitely try it, especially if it was baked using geothermal pools.)
The warmest part of our hike through Hveragerdi’s Geothermal Park.
We decided to pick up our fairy hunt again in Hellisgerdi Park, a beautiful lava park in Hafnarfjördur which is believed to host the largest elf colony in Iceland. Again, we failed to find any hidden folk but we found several caves we suspected the elves probably occupied. And the park certainly had a supernatural, if not eerie, atmosphere as we wandered through it.
Hellisgerdi Park in Hafnafjödur is apparently one of the most inhabited sites for Iceland’s spiritual beings, the “Hidden Folk.”
None of us had the “sight” to see the Hidden Folk, but the park definitely had a sacred, quiet atmosphere.
In the end our hunt turned out in vain, but we still managed to see some lovely hole-in-the-wall locations in Iceland. Even so, maybe some Icelanders would claim we had a supernatural experience anyway. After all, we did happen to catch a brush of bad luck after our excursion when we got locked outside of our apartment for ten minutes – and Icelandic superstition says that misfortune befalls those who disturb the huldufólk. So who knows?
Hopefully we’re not cursed forever,
Geai Bleu
Jays in Paris 