On my 2017 trip to Iceland I saw the mysterious Hjörleifshöfði inselberg rising majestically out of the beach near Vik. I vowed to return to explore this area further, and this year (2018) I did return, and what I found was amazing. There are so many fascinating things I found at Hjörleifshöfði, but the “Yoda Cave” had to be the tops. In fact, after I posted pics of the cave on Instagram and Facebook, this was the most asked about topic after I returned from Iceland.
After hiking Hjörleifshöfði I headed to the beach side of the inselberg. There is a dirt road that skirts the inselberg leading to the beach, and once on the beach the road continues on the hard black sand. (This area is easily accessible by most cars, at least on a sunny day in August.) First, I saw a small cave but driving a little farther I saw a larger cave. I got out of the Landcruiser and shut the door. When I shut the door I could hear the echo from the cave. I new this could be something big. I didn’t really notice the Yoda outline from the outside, but as I walked into the cave room and turned around I was like awesome blossom, that looks just like Yoda. This HAS to be called the Yoda Cave, though officially it’s known as Hjörleifshöfði Cave. The cave itself doesn’t go back very far. Overall, the cave is about 20 feet by 20 feet and about 40-50 feet high. It’s large enough to have a wedding in, which can be arranged by Iceland Wedding Planner (click through to see the photos). The photos at the link actually make the cave look bigger.
The formation of the Yoda outline appears natural to me, however another website suggests there are possibly some man-made aspects.
Though the cave is known locally, the locals have been tight-lipped about the cave. I spent over an hour at the cave and on the beach and I was the only one there. That is amazing since everything about Iceland is so popular right now. I did a search on the cave at Google and Instagram and so far there isn’t very much, but that is sure to change.
Coincidentally Yoda Cave has another Star Wars connection. Hjörleifshöfði is featured prominently in the opening scene of the Star Wars movie Rogue One, where an Imperial shuttle flies over the black sand beach near Vik and lands near the inselberg.
Location at Google Maps
Yoda Cave Iceland Photos
The following four photos were taken with my DJI Spark drone.
Are those crop sand circles?
Kind of a cool shot from the drone after it landed.
