Trip Notes

• We stayed at Sunna guest house in Reykjavik because it is an easy walk to/from the BSI terminal where the Flybus drops you off and the Reykjavik Expeditions bus to Landmannalaugar picks you up. Also, Sunna guesthouse allows you to leave luggage in a storage room while you are on your trek.

• Bags stored in bottom of Reykjavik Expeditions bus do not get wet on the drive out to Landmannalaugar, even though bus drives through several shallow rivers.

• The Reykjavik Expeditions bus from the BSI terminal to Landmannalaugar stops for half an hour at Hella, where there are free restrooms and bakery w/ coffee and a small market.

• When selecting dates to hike the Laugavegur, check when the annual 55KM marathon run to Ţórsmörk occurs. You don't want to be on the trail and have 900+ runners passing you. For example, if you are hiking the stage to Álftavatn, you don't want to deal with 900 runners passing you on the trail.

• The showers at Emstur require five 100 Kr coins to operate, and the Emstur office runs out of coins! Get your coins early, or bring five 100 Kr coins.

• The showers at Hvangill cost 500 Kr, you get a paper slip with a QR code that will start the shower for 5 minutes.

• The showers at Hvangill and Emstur are nice and big, with a changing room, there is plenty of room for two people to share one shower, assuming they can both finish in the alloted five minutes (we finished in less than the five minutes)

• Hiking poles are essential on the steep up and down trails.

• There are biting insects in Iceland. Not mosquitos. Not sure what they are - biting midges? - but Melanie got a welter of bites one night in the hut at Landmannalaugar. Because there are so many people sleeping in each room, the body heat raises the temperature, so the window is left open at night (even in Iceland!) and apparently the insects can get in.

• It was quite windy at Álftavatn, and the wind carried a lot of dust. It literally seemed like a sandstorm when we stopped at that hut for lunch. Staying at Hvanngil is a much nicer choice.

• The hike from Hvanngill to Emstur requires a seemingly endless trek across a flat volcanic plain. Fortunately for us, there was no wind. But on a windy day, be prepared to get sandblasted on this stretch; definitely have a face covering and eye-protection ready, especially if you are hiking south to north.

• All of the side hikes we did were interesting and memorable, it is well-worth going out to check out these side sights.

• Landmannalauger hut: the kitchen has three sinks, 12 burners. Beware of guided tours monopolizing every seat in the dining area.

• Hrafntinnusker hut: the kitchen has two sinks, 6 burners.

• Hvangill hut: the kitchen has one sink, 2 burners.

• Emstur hut: the kitchen has one sink, 2 burners in each of the three identical huts.

• To light a burner in the hut, turn on control and hold the button down while using the lighter to ignite the gas. Keep holding the control button down for a couple of seconds even after the gas has caught, that will keep the flame burning.

• Hrafntinnusker, Hvangill, Emstur huts sell beer, soft drinks, candy, Pringles, but no sign of food that could make a meal.

• Hrafntinnusker, Emstur and Baldvinsskáli huts require you to carry away all of your trash. Sadly, many trekkers ignored this rule and left the "tampons only" wastebaskets in the restrooms stuffed with their trash.

• It is possible to hire a service to transport luggage for you from hut to hut, though this service cannot reach the Höskuldsskáli hut at Hrafntinnusker, nor the Baldvinsskáli hut on the Fimmvörđuháls trail.

• There are plenty of trails at Ţórsmörk, consider spending an extra day or two there after hiking the Laugavegur and explore the area.

• We made reservations for a hotel room in Skógar, but we also had reservations in the Baldvinsskáli hut, at the halfway point on the Fimmvörđuháls trail. We wanted to hike the entire trail in one day, but bad weather or simple exhaustion might have forced us to stay overnight in the primitive Baldvinsskáli hut. In case of difficulties, we had a bail out point. It turned out that we had great weather and made it all the way to Skógar in one long haul, but we didn't know that would happen when we made plans.

• Lining up for the Strateo bus is pointless. When the bus pulls into Skoga, everyone rushes to load their pack into the storage bins beneath the bus. Tip: the bus driver first opens the storage bin on the front left side of the bus. There were 26 people waiting at Skoga for the Strateo bus (which arrived 50 minutes late), and all got a seat on board, with at least four more empty seats visible to me. The bus easily holds 60+ passengers.

• The Strateo bus does indeed take credit cards and cash, you don't need to pay with their non-functioning app.

• Because the Strateo bus was late, we did not have to transfer in Selfoss to another bus, our bus took us all the way from Skoga to Reykjavik.

• The receipt for the Strateo bus ride from Skoga to Reykjavik also entitles you to one ride on a Reykjavik city bus when you arrive at Mjodd terminal, so save your receipt for a free ride on the #3 bus from Mjodd to the BSI terminal (from there it is an easy walk to Sunna Guesthouse)!

• There is no need to bring a headlight - although the sun does set in July, it doesn't get dark in Iceland

• The warden at Baldvinsskáli told us she had seen three clear days the entire summer in 2022. When we were there in 2023, she said it was the tenth straight day of clear weather.

• The packed lunches purchased from Volcano huts at Álftavatn and Ţórsmörk consist of a sandwich, candy bar, juice box, 1/4 of two tortillas with a slice of ham and cheese in btwn, and a piece of fruit (apple, banana or orange)

• The Volcano Huts hot lunch at Álftavatn consists of a big bowl of hot mushroom soup, salad (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, no salad dressing), and slices of bread.

• The Volcano Huts dinner at Ţórsmörk is a buffet. Our dinner consisted of roasted lamb, roasted potatoes & yams, pasta Bolognese, salad, cauliflower soup, and nice soft buns. I filled my plate twice.

• The Volcano Huts breakfast doesn't start until 8 AM. We skipped it to start our Fimmvörđuháls hike at 5:30 AM.

• With a heavy pack (I was carrying 6 bottles of water), it took us from 5:30 AM to 6:00 PM to hike the entire Fimmvörđuhál in one day, starting at the Volcano Huts in Ţórsmörk and ending at Skogafoss, a total of 30 KM. Includes 1 hour for lunch at Baldvinsskáli and half-an-hour lounging on the grass admiring a waterfall on the Waterfall Way.

• I declined all extra insurance on the rental car. Avis / Budget wanted $43 per day for complete comprehensive damage waiver, and $23 per day for a partial coverage.

• Avis / Budget allows you to pick up a rental car in Reykjavik and return it at the Keflavik airport (though the Reykjavik rental office is a 5 Km walk from Sunna Guesthouse).

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Food Chart

Below is my chart showing my strategy for minimizing the amount of food I had to carry. I only had one dinner in my pack when we left Landmannalauger. I carried a 6-pack of bagels and a container of peanut butter. I intended to bring cheese sticks along, but the BONUS supermarket in Reykjavik does not sell cheese sticks. I purchased packed take-away lunches from Volcano Huts at Álftavatn and Ţórsmörk and eating them for dinners meant I had to carry a lot less food on the trip, and I didn't have to do much cooking. My heaviest food items were actually all the granola bars I had for lunches.

The Volcano Huts dinner at Ţórsmörk was excellent. Since it was a buffet, I loaded up my plate with food, and then made a second trip for even more. We should not have prepurchased the breakfast at the Ţórsmörk Volcano Hut - we started hiking at 5:30 AM, long before breakfast was served (though I understand the breakfast is also excellent). However, the Volcano Huts worker allowed us to convert our prepaid breakfasts into credit, which we then used to buy muffins and bars from their shop, which we ate for breakfast very early before starting our Fimmvörđuháls trek. Volcano Huts assembled our take-away packed lunches while we ate dinner, this meant that we already the lunches we started at 5:30 AM the next morning. That was quite nice of them. Hurrah for Volcano Huts!

Day 0: Monday July 10	Day 1: Tuesday July 11	Day 2: Wednesday July 12 Purchase food items in Reykjavik for trek Stay at Sunna Guesthouse in Reykjavik	Day 3: Thursday July 13 Breakfast: Catch 7:00 AM bus to Landmannalauger, no time for hot breakfast Lunch: Bagel w/ peanut butter Dinner: "heavy" food items that won't be carried on trek cooked in Landmannalauger hut Stay at Landmannalauger Mountain Hut	Day 4: Friday July 14 Breakfast: Bagel w/ peanut butter, raisins Lunch: Energy bars, trail mix. Dinner: "heavy" food items that won't be carried on trek cooked in Landmannalauger hut Stay at Landmannalauger Mountain Hut	Day 5: Saturday July 15 Breakfast: Bagel w/ peanut butter, raisins. Lunch: Energy bars, trail mix. Dinner: "light" food items carried in packs cooked in Höskuldsskáli hut Stay at Höskuldsskáli hut in Hrafntinnusker	Day 6: Sunday July 16 Breakfast: Bagel w/ peanut butter, raisins Lunch at Volcano Huts Álftavatn Restaurant Dinner: Volcano Huts Álftavatn take away lunch pack - sandwich, chocolate bar, fresh fruit, juice pack Stay at Hvanngil Mountain Hut
Day 7: Monday July 17 Breakfast: Bagel w/ peanut butter, raisins Lunch: Energy bars, trail mix. Dinner: "light" food items carried in packs cooked in Botar hut Stay at Botar Hut in Emstur	Day 8: Tuesday July 18 Breakfast: Bagel w/ peanut butter, raisins Lunch: Energy bars, trail mix. Dinner buffet: prepaid Volcano Trails Stay at Volcano huts in Ţórsmörk	Day 9: Wednesday July 19 Breakfast: pre-paid Volcano Trails Picnic Lunch: pre-paid Volcano Trails Stay at Baldvinsskáli hut in Fimmvörđuháls Dinner: Buy a second take away Picnic Lunch from Volcano Trails Or stay at Hotel Skógar, 9.2 miles further	Day 10: Thursday July 20 Stay at Sunna Guesthouse in Reykjavik	Day 11: Friday July 21	Day 12: Saturday July 22	Day 13: Sunday July 23

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Useful Links

Click for Iceland Weather

Nat.is description of hike from Landmannalaugar to Ţórsmörk

Here is the link to the All Trails map of the Laugavegur and Fimmvorduhals Trails

A guide to maximizing your stay at Landmannalaugar.

A guide to the accomodations along the Laugavegur Trail

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