Laugavegur & Fimmvörðuháls Trail, Iceland

Overview

The Laugavegur is Iceland's most celebrated trail and one of the world's great short treks — 55 kilometres of volcanic terrain linking the Landmannalaugar geothermal area to Þórsmörk in five days of walking through a landscape that looks rendered by a compositor who got confused between planetary biomes. Rhyolite mountains in mint green and terracotta. Black obsidian sand plains. Active sulphur fields venting pale gas. Glacial rivers you ford in boots on. Hot spring pools you soak in at camp. The route runs north to south, finishing with a descent into Þórsmörk — a birch-covered river canyon that acts as the warmest, most sheltered microclimate in Iceland, and a dramatic contrast to the barren plateau above. The extension via Fimmvörðuháls adds two more days, crossing the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption lava fields where the rock is still warm in places and sea smoke rises from vents in the basalt. Huts along the route are the logistical anchor: Hrafntinnusker, Álftavatn, Emstrur, and Þórsmörk each have sleeping spaces, a hot meal, and a community of walkers from across the world who are all equally soaked and equally thrilled. Book huts the day they open in January for July and August dates — demand vastly exceeds supply. Iceland's weather can deliver all four seasons in a single day. The Laugavegur has turned ankle-deep river crossings into chest-deep ones overnight after rain. Build a buffer day at Þórsmörk and use it.

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