Fimmvörðuháls

About the tour

The 25 km Fimmvörðuháls Trek is without a doubt one of the most popular amongst both locals and travellers alike and has been for centuries. Hike between glaciers, volcanoes and stunning nature in the Icelandic highlands. This hike will take you from the famous Skogafoss waterfall to Thorsmork, the valley of Thor. 

The name Fimmvörðuháls can be broken down into the two words: ‘Fimm’ meaning five and ‘vörður’ meaning cairns. Icelanders used to mark paths by piling rocks in these so-called cairns. This is how they could tell that they were going in the right direction! Therefore, the name Fimmvörðuháls tells you about the 5 cairns you need to keep an eye out for in order to ensure you’re also headed in the right direction.  Icelanders always put a new rock into the cairn every time we pass as a way to say thank you to the others that helped us as well as to help the ones that will hike after us, by making the cairn even more visible.

On this trek, you will not only follow in the footsteps of the Vikings, but you’ll also encounter some fresh new ground. Fimmvörðuháls is where the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption started creating two new volcanic craters named Magni and Móði.

We will begin our journey at Skógar with the famous Skógafoss waterfall on our left side and as we climb higher we’ll pass by numerous other waterfalls along the way. The scenery is quite simply out of this world. We’ll pass through glaciers, ashy fields, lava fields, historic sites and a fertile young earth. If we are not lucky with the weather, we can always take a break at the cabin of Travel association of Iceland, to rest, warm up and enjoy some nice packed lunch. We then continue the hike into the foothills of the Mýradalsjökull glacier, pass across Goðahraun (which formed in the eruption in 2010) and then visit the two new volcanic craters that formed from the same eruption. The previously mentioned Magni and Móði, after the sons of the legendary pagan thunder god Þór (Thor). After passing through these two volcanic craters we will finish our trek by hiking downhill a fairly steep pass called the Catspine,  then ending up in Þórsmörk, which is named after the famous of the thunder god himself. This fertile oasis is an untouched paradise, where we will spend the evening feasting on a gourmet Icelandic lamb barbecue and reflecting together on our challenging but amazing day. 

The memories made along the trek are sure to be with you for life.