Iceland - Landmannalaugar to Skogar

4 days, 80 km (~50 miles)

In late June 2016 a group of friends and I did a 4 day backpacking trip that combined the Laugavegur trail with the Fimmvörðuháls trail, traveling from Landmannalaugar to Skogar.

Background:

In most hiking resources Laugavegur and Fimmvörðuháls are described as 2 separate treks, but they can be easily combined, as they both have an endpoint in Skogar.

The Laugavegur is a 55km trail that runs from Landmannalaugar to Þórsmörk (pronounced Thorsmork) in southern Iceland. The trek is one of the most popular in Iceland and has huts every 10 miles or so. We chose to camp at the huts. The most remarkable feature of the trek is the scenery, which ranges from snow fields to glacial lakes to stunning green valleys to river gorges. The trail is mostly very smooth, the elevation is moderate (the biggest gain in one day was ~450m on day 1), and the most challenging technical feature was 3 river crossings which require special care.

See a great chart of elevation and mileage here: http://marathon.is/laugavegshlaupid/haedakort_enska.jpg

The Fimmvörðuháls trek is 25 Km trail from Þórsmörk to Skogar running right near the glacier Eyjafjallajökull, which is over an active volcano. This trek is a classic mountain pass-type hike, climbing steeply up one side of the mountain pass (1000m gain) and then down the other. It has much more elevation than any single day on the Laugavegur trail. You are rewarded with awesome scenery on both sides in completely different environments, as well as a memorable trek across the glacier and recently formed lava fields near the top.

In my opinion, the Fimmvörðuháls was the highlight of our 4 day backpack.

Logistics:

• Buses: Since the hike starts and ends at different spots, taking a bus is the easiest way to go. There are 2 main options - TREX and Reykjavik Excursions. We used TREX and got the “hiking bus pass” which allows you to take the bus to one spot (Landmannalaugar, in our case) and return from 1 of several different endpoints (Thorsmork or Skogar).
• Maps: Get the Landmannalaugar/Þórsmörk map (sérkort 4), available at Penninn Eymundsson (bookstore) in Reykjavik.
• Hiking supplies: available at Ellingsen or Fjallakofinn . Gas is available at these stores or most gas stations.
• Camping at Huts: Camping is allowed at huts, for a fee of about ~1500kr (they take cash or credit card). You have access to water and toilets, but not the indoor facilities if you are camping. The hut in Thorsmork, Skagfjordsskali, has a small shop with beer and snacks
• River Crossings
  • There are 3 significant water crossings and these were the most challenging “technical” piece of the trail. All 3 required taking off your shoes, and for the deepest we took off our pants to keep them dry. The first water crossing is between Alftavatn and Hvanngil. This was relatively easy. The water stayed below my knees. The next (and most difficult) water crossing was about a kilometer after Hvanngil. This didn’t look like much as we approached, but the water was deeper and the current was stronger. I took off my pants and made sure everything in my pack was sealed from water (or on top, to stay dry). We went across in groups of 2 or 3, holding each other, although you could have done it alone with poles. The final water crossing was just before Thorsmork. It was the easiest of the 3.
  • Bring poles and sandals or water shoes - something to walk in the water with. They will help very much!
• Trail Conditions
  • Snow and ice - we went the last week in June. There was a lot of snow, especially near hrafntinnusker (the first day) and Eyjafjallajökull (the last day). I brought microspikes, but never used them. Nobody in our group ever did. I would probably bring them again, however, just in case conditions changed.
  • Temperatures - temperatures were just above freezing at night, and probably (I estimate) around 50F during the day. Of course it changed a lot from high elevation to the valleys, and if the sun was out.
  • Rain - it rains a lot in iceland. prepare!

Itinerary:

• Day 1 - Landmannalaugar to Hrafntinnusker Hut: There are hot springs here if you want to take a swim before your hike. The hike begins uphill, climbing up over 400m through barren volcanic landscapes and vents. Then you cross a high altitude plateau, which was cold, rainy, and snow-covered for us. Hrafntinnusker Hut is right next to a steam vent with a great view, but for us in late June the ground was completely covered with snow and it was hardest, coldest camping night. Note that the caretakers of the hut were quite strict and wouldn’t let us in to dry off or get out of the rain, since we were camping.

• Day 2: Hrafntinnusker to Emstrur: We decided to do a long second day, having lunch at the second hut Alftavatn and then continuing on to Emstrur. The first part of the day is beautifully scenic with some climbing, followed by a rather steep, dramatic and beautiful descent to the lake Alftavatn. The next section of the hike to hut Hvanngil is mostly flat but also beautiful with a rolling green landscape. The first river crossing is here. The route from Hvanngil to to Emstrur has the hardest river crossing of the trip following by many flat miles through a volcanic desert. The 5 miles or so before Emstrur were the most boring of the trip.

• Day 3: Emstrur to Skagfjordsskali in Thorsmork: A very nice hiking day through gorges and valleys. Not too difficult. Not much elevation. One easy river crossing about 30-60 minutes before Thorsmork. Note that as you get to Thorsmork there are a few huts to choose from. We stayed at Skagfjordsskali which was the best hut of the whole trip! I would highly recommend that. They have beautiful campsites on green grass, a small building for campers to eat in, and a small store to buy beer and snacks.

• Day 4: Thorsmork to Skogar. The final day was the best day of hiking! It was also the most difficult. The trail starts with a steep 1000m climb with excellent views in all directions. Once you get to the top, you quickly find yourself on a glacier which you traverse until you reach a small but cozy hut on top of the pass. Then you descend on the other side of the pass to Skogar, with a view of the ocean and many, many waterfalls along the way. If I would do one day of this hike again, this would be it. There is a campsite, hostel, inn, restaurants, and stores in Skogar to welcome you.

GPS Tracks of Fimmvörðuháls, the last day: http://www.gpsies.com/map.do?fileId=ptfjvoticxzovetv

Resources:

• Elevation and mileage chart: http://marathon.is/laugavegshlaupid/haedakort_enska.jpg
• Hut descriptions: http://www.nat.is/fjallaskalareng/skalar_fi_eng.htm