Laugavegur · Fimmvörðuháls

THE JOURNEY IN DETAIL

Rhyolite colours and black sand.

The Laugavegur runs 55 kilometres from Landmannalaugar to Thorsmork, where rhyolite hills change colour every half hour and fording glacial rivers is part of the daily routine. We add the Fimmvorduhals: another 25 kilometres over the saddle between the Eyjafjallajokull and Myrdalsjokull ice caps, past the craters of the 2010 eruption, finishing at the Skogafoss waterfall. The whole Icelandic repertoire in six days.

• Rhyolite hills and the hot springs of Landmannalaugar
• Obsidian fields and the black desert of Maelifellssandur
• The birch oasis of Thorsmork between glaciers
• The Magni and Modi craters from the 2010 eruption

1. 01
   DAY 1 · Briefing and gear check

   Reykjavik, gear check and briefing

   We gather in Reykjavik, sort the food plan and check waterproofs. In the evening we read the forecast: it decides whether the Fimmvorduhals goes on day six or moves.

   Overnight: Hotel in Reykjavik
2. 02
   DAY 2 · 12 km, 470 m of ascent

   Landmannalaugar to Hrafntinnusker

   A four-hour highland bus on F-roads, then a climb past the Laugahraun obsidian field and steaming fumaroles. The hut at 1,050 m is the coldest point on the route; snow patches last all summer.

   Overnight: Hrafntinnusker hut, 1,050 m
3. 03
   DAY 3 · 12 km, 100 m of ascent

   Down to Lake Alftavatn

   First a traverse of snowfields with Myrdalsjokull on the horizon, then a sharp 500-metre drop into a green valley. The first serious ford is the Grittagilskvisl — knee-deep and around five degrees.

   Overnight: Alftavatn hut, 540 m
4. 04
   DAY 4 · 15 km, 200 m of ascent

   Black sands to Emstrur

   The longest stage: 15 kilometres across the Maelifellssandur volcanic desert with two fords. The Botnar hut sits on the lip of the Markarfljotsgljufur canyon.

   Overnight: Botnar-Emstrur hut, 500 m
5. 05
   DAY 5 · 15 km, 300 m of ascent

   Thorsmork and the Throngar ford

   The end of the Laugavegur: a canyon descent, the bridge over the Fremri-Emstrua and the deepest ford of the route, the Throngar. We sleep among birches in Thorsmork, where there is a shower and a sauna.

   Overnight: Hut in Thorsmork, 200 m
6. 06
   DAY 6 · 25 km, 1,000 m of ascent

   Fimmvorduhals between the ice caps

   The queen stage: 25 kilometres and 1,000 metres of ascent to the saddle between Eyjafjallajokull and Myrdalsjokull. We cross the lava of the Magni and Modi craters, still warm in places, and descend past more than twenty waterfalls on the Skoga river.

   Overnight: Guesthouse in Skogar
7. 07
   DAY 7 · Short walk and a 150 km transfer

   The south coast and the road back

   In the morning we look at Skogafoss from the upper platform and drive back along the south coast to Reykjavik, stopping at Seljalandsfoss and the black beach of Reynisfjara. Farewell dinner in town.

   Overnight: —