SELFOSS

A suspension bridge over Ölfusá River was first built in 1891 and became the largest bridge in Iceland at the time. In September 1944, when the bridge had been in use for 53 years, the eastern bearing cables broke due to the weight of two trucks. A new suspension bridge was built in 1945 which only took five and a half months but while it was being constructed the old bridge had been fixed for temporary use. The bridge is 84 meters long and is in the town Selfoss.

The river is the most voluminous river in Iceland with the average flow of 423 m³/sec. Three large floods occurred in the 20^th century and beside the restaurant Tryggvaskáli are lines that show the height of each flood. All the floods occurred during wintertime due to heavy rains and high temperatures which caused the snow to melt unusually fast. Ölfusá River is rather short, about 25 km (14 miles) long. About 6 km (4 mi) north of Selfoss are two rivers, Sogið and Hvítá, and combined they form Ölfusá.

Built in 1938-1939, the lighthouse was the first one in Iceland to be built out of reinforced concrete. The lighthouse is the tallest building in South Iceland, 26,2 metres (86 feet) high. It was designed by the engineer Axel Sveinsson as a blend of functionalism and art nouveau (jugendstil).

Northwest to the town of Eyrarbakki, is a wetland area rich in birdlife. The reserve has walking paths and a bird hide, and idel spot for bird watching. The Flói Bird Reserve is listed in the Bird Life international Association.

Selfoss Church was built from 1952 to 1956 and consecrated on Palm Sunday, 25 March 1956. It was designed by the headmaster of the Technical College in Selfoss, Bjarni Pálsson (1912-1987). The building was expanded between 1978 and 1984; a tower, porch and congregation hall with a kitchen and facilities, which now serve the purpose of a convention center, was added to the structure.

Þjórsárhraun is the result from the greatest lava flow on earth since the end of the last Ice Age. The lava came from an enormous eruption around 6700 B.C. possibly in Heljargjá canyon in the Veiðivötn region, in Iceland´s highlands. The lava's extreme temperature and fluidity contributed to its flow being at least 140 kilometres (87 mi) until it was stopped by the waves of the North Atlantic Ocean. The lava is well visible by Stokkseyri and Eyrarbakki's coastline. The great Þjórsárhraun lava is approx. 975 square km (376 sq. miles) and its volume is 25 cubic km (6 cubic miles).

Hellisskógur is a small forest just outside of the town Selfoss. In Hellisskógur are roads and walking paths around the area and benches so visitors can relax and enjoy the area.

The cave in Hellisskógur forest was formed at a latter glacial period by sea erosion. Sea levels have been higher than now several times and signs of sea erosion can be seen on more cliffs in the area which are made of around 0, 7 - 3, 1 million year old basalt. The cave was previously used to store hay in the back and as a sheepcote in the front. It was once believed that the cave was haunted by a ghost wearing a blue scarf. The story tells of a young man who was broken hearted and hung himself in the cave using a long blue scarf.

Here is a map of Hellisskógur