Iceland Part One: The Laugavegur Trek / Fimmvorduhals Trek

 Iceland Part One: The Laugavegur Trek / Fimmvorduhals Trek

 

We left some luggage in Reykjavik and our family group split up. My 17 yr old niece Ella and I went on once bus North to Landmannalaugar – the start of a 54km trek south toward Thorsmork. Jason, Rachel and Ava went on another bus South to Skogar -  placing them at the start of the Fimmvorduhals trek, 30km south of Thorsmork.

 

Meggan and Ella’s Hike:

Ella and I hiked 3 days, 2 nights to get to Thorsmork. I had booked huts to stay in for our two nights on the trail, so we didn’t have to carry a tent / stove / fuel / sleeping mats – just our clothes, food, sleeping bags. Booking these huts needs to be done way in advance as they fill up. Camping with a tent at the huts is also possible, but you are forbidden from camping elsewhere along the trail. Many people do this trek in 4 days/3 nights, but the way our hut booking worked out, we skipped the first hut and had a longer first day.

 

Day One: Meggan and Ella - 24km

Our bus left Reykjavik at 8am and dropped us off at about 11:30am. I was curious how this would all play out given our jet lag. We arrived on a red eye flight only the day before, but thankfully we adjusted well and slept well during the nights. The bus ride getting there was entertaining, with many river crossings. It’s pretty amazing to see how many rivers these “Greyhound” buses will just drive right through!

Our hike was beautiful, with geyser/geothermal steam vents here and there as we went. We climbed up into the snow and hiked along, past rolling hills and beautiful landscape. We snacked as we went. It took us about 6 hours to arrive at the Alfavatn hut. The hut was next to a lovely large alpine lake. We stayed in a hut with about 22 other people, all packed in, two people sharing a double mat bunk bed. A tour group of 16 people plus their guide stayed in this hut, so we stayed out of their way while they had a three course dinner and stayed up later. Apparently they just carried day packs while someone drove a vehicle of their stuff and food to the next hut, and then their guide fixed them breakfasts and dinners at the huts. There were also a LOT of tents camping in the area – my guess is that about 200 people were at this site between the huts and tents.

   

Day One: Jason, Rachel and Ava – Skogar

The other three caught the bus to Skogar and hung out for the day. They had a tent, sleeping mats, sleeping bags and fuel to camp at the waterfall at the start of the trail. Unfortunately Jason forgot the stove in our luggage storage, but was able to borrow a stove from a fellow camper to make dinner! They enjoyed the main waterfall (Skogafoss), the nearby museum, and a nearby waterfall you can walk behind (Kvernufoss). 

 

Day Two: Meggan and Ella – 16km

From the Alfavatn hut to Emstrur hut, it’s about 16km along a fairly flat volcanic valley. There are three rivers to ford along the way. Many other hikers brought water shoes or similar to change into with each crossing. We just walked through in our wool socks and hiking shoes. The second crossing on this day was extremely cold, with the water coming right out of a huge glacier. I might have cried a little with the cold. It took us about 4 hours to hike this section, which meant we had plenty of time when we arrived at the Emstrur Hut to hang out. We stayed in a hut with about 12 others this night, and we had fun chatting with travelers from all over the place. We especially enjoyed meeting two physicians from the USA and hung out with them for some of the next day’s hike as well.

The weather forecast was a topic of conversation for the afternoon. There was a huge amount of rain forecasted for the evening and next day. On our last part of the hike, we had a more significant river to ford. There was some discussion that the heavy rain would raise the level of the river, and the crossing may be more challenging and/or unpassable. So we went to bed early with the intention of getting going early and trying to make it to the river crossing as early as possible for a safe crossing.

 

 

Day Two: Jason, Rachel and Ava hike to Baldvinsskali Hut

These three walked past 31 waterfalls on their way to the hut, with decent weather the whole time. Many tourists were at the first several waterfalls, but thinned out the further they went. The hike itself was a 15km hike with a decent gradual climb the whole way. The temperature dropped as they approached the hut because of higher altitude and more wind. Shortly after they got settled in the hut, the weather changed and the rain arrived. Their hut was fairly basic, but did the trick.

 

  

 

Day Three: Meggan and Ella 15km Emstrur Hut to Thorsmork Volcano Huts

We woke up at 5am because others in the hut were already leaving, trying to get to the river crossing as soon as possible. It wasn’t raining yet, and didn’t seem like it had rained too much during the night, so we were feeling ok about the crossing. We got going and marched along, feeling like a LOT of people were in a line hiking the same hike that day. We managed to hike 8km before the rain started, and we managed the crossing without too much trouble. It was fun to watch other people cross and see the different strategies – holding hands in a larger group, some barefoot folks, and different places at the river. We arrived at the Volcano Huts and by then it was REALLY POURING RAIN, so we were happy to get inside and wait for our room to be ready. We had almost four hours to wait, but we were able to access hot water and shelter and play games with our new friends while we waited.

I knew Rachel, Ava and Jason were out there somewhere in the horrible weather, and I waited and sent them vibes for a good journey to make it to our shelter safely.

Day Three: Jason, Rachel and Ava hike from Baldvinsskali Hut to the Volcano Huts (17km)

These three woke up to some GNARLY weather. Wind and sleet blowing sideways!! They packed up and set off wearing all their layers, and had to climb up a bit further to start. It was cold up there, and unfortunately Jason had to leave the girls briefly to sprint back and get his forgotten poles from the Hut. (For those of you who follow strava, Jason got a KOM for this retreat because he was rushing!) After the crew reached their summit, they had a long way on the volcanic ledge / glacier edge up high before descending. This volcano was the one that erupted in 2010, and often people will learn some more about volcanoes as they hike along. But this trek, on this day, was a push to get down and out of the weather as soon as possible. The girls did great, and everyone worked hard to make progress. Jason took Ava's pack for a while to help her go a little faster. Finally the descent came, and each few hundred feet down came with a small increase in temperature, although the wind and rain continued relentlessly. Our little hikers continued down and down and down, into the Thorsmork valley, through the awful weather. Unfortunately when they arrived at the Basar Hut, they had succeeded in gaining safety, but still had some hiking to get through before actually arriving at our shelter - the Volcano Huts. These soaking wet three hikers were pretty glad to be reunited with their mom and get to dry / warm shelter in the afternoon. Most every single thing in both Ava and Jason's pack were soaked, but everyone was safe and that was what was important.

We then spent two nights at the Volcano Huts, drying out our items and relaxing before catching the bus to back to the capital city. We enjoyed the small sauna, the main lodge with food and games, and some local little hikes in the area.