Gerduberg (Gerðuberg) is a row of perfectly shaped hexagonal basalt columns that look like a fortified wall. They run along a cliff on the south side of the Snæfellsnes peninsula, in western Iceland. The columns start at seven meters (23 feet) in height and reach up to a meter and a half (5 feet) in width, and the cliff itself is more than a kilometer (0.6 miles) long.
The most remarkable thing about Gerðuberg is that the columns are so geometrically symmetrical that they look carved by hand. There is a scientific explanation for that symmetry, though. During eruptions thousands of years ago, lava spread across this spot in very even layers, and the slower and more evenly it cooled, the more regular the columns came out. You can read more about how this and other volcanic wonders were formed in the Stunning Effects of Iceland’s Volcanism guide.
How do you get to Gerduberg?
- Gerðuberg is on the Snaefellsnes peninsula, north of the southern strand of Road 54, about 5 km (3 miles) northwest of its southern junction with Road 55.
- You can see Gerduberg from the road, but it is only up close that you get the scale of it. The track to the parking area at the foot of the cliffs is bumpy, but it does not need a 4×4.
- Several paths lead to the top of the cliffs. The walk is not demanding, but it does call for caution – and the wall looks most impressive from below anyway.
