Faxi waterfall is situated on the Tungufljót river, not far to the south from Geysir, only some 10 km. The waterfall is not very high, only about 7 meters but is quite wide, so although it is not one of the biggest waterfalls in Iceland it is very beautiful. The name Faxi comes from the Icelandic word Fax which means a horse mane. If you view the waterfall with this in mind it becomes clear why it has this name. The waterfall is also known as Vatnsleysufoss, which means Empty Falls, This is probably due to the fact that it is close to a farm named Vatnsleysa so it probably derives its name from the farm, rather than being empty. The pool below the falls is very popular for salmon fishing and a lot of salmon can sometimes be seen there from the top of the falls. Salmon can sometimes be seen jumping and navigating their way up the adjacent fish ladder that has been built in order to help and enable the salmon to leap further upstream in the river. Before it was built, the falls were an obstacle for the salmon. The river Tungufljót is a tributary to the larger Hvítá River in which the larger Gullfoss waterfall flows.