This guide to hiking the Fimmvörðuhals Trail will help you plan your 16-mile route through an incredibly scenic part of Iceland!
The Fimmvörðuhals Trail is a 16-mile trail through Iceland’s South Highlands, and is often traveled as an addition to the Laugavegur Trail. It passes in between two glaciers, crosses recent volcanic activity and two new mountains, and finishes by passing 26 glacially-fed waterfalls.
Those were more than enough reasons to convince us to add it to our backpacking route in July 2024! If you're considering hiking the Fimmvörðuhals Trail, this guide will help you get familiar with its challenges.
To prep for this trail and get gear ideas, see my posts on self-guided camping and food for the Laugavegur Trail (because I also cover what you need to know for Fimmvörðuhals).
How Difficult Is Hiking the Fimmvörðuhals Trail?
I’d say this trail is extremely difficult. The terrain is considerably more challenging than the Laugavegur Trail, and requires more route-finding skills, traversing narrow ledges, and walking over glacial ice.
It also has considerable elevation gain (3,782 feet), most of which is in the first 8.5 miles.
Also note that if you’re coming from Volcano Huts in Thórsmörk instead of Basar, you’ll add about two miles onto your hike.
Should I Hike This Trail South Bound or North Bound?
If you’re hiking this as a continuation of the Laugavegur Trail, you’ll hike it South Bound from Thórsmörk to Skógar.
If you’re not hiking the Laugavegur, the trail can be done in either direction.
Transportation To and From the Trailhead
If you hiked in from the Laugavegur Trail, you only need to worry about transportation from the end of Fimmvörðuhals (at Skógar).
Otherwise, you’ll need transportation to or from Thórsmörk and Skógar.
For Thórsmörk, you’ll need to arrange for transportation that can handle driving on Iceland’s F roads.
You’ll need a 4-wheel drive vehicle capable of deep water crossings, such as a super Jeep with a snorkel, and a driver capable of handling those conditions. Most people pay for a bus ticket on a company that regularly drives this route, such as Reykjavik Excursions.
To return from Skógar, you could hire a tour bus (such as Reykjavik Excursions), but the bus leaves early, stops for about six hours and gets back to Reykjavik late in the evening.
A better option is the city bus (Stræetó bus 51). It gets from Skógar to Reykjavik in about two hours, and we easily paid with a credit card at the time of boarding. (Pre-booking seats on the city bus was not an option.)
Should I Hike Fimmvörðuhals Trail If I’m Afraid of Heights?
No.
I want to say that if you once even had a dream that you were maybe afraid of heights, this trail may not be for you.
I’m mildly afraid of heights, but successfully navigated the entire Laugavegur Trail without many scares. Fimmvörðuhals Trail, however, had me on edge… literally.
I’ve also hiked along canyon rims and on Acadia’s rung and ladder trails, and this trail left me a bit more shaken than anything I’ve hiked before.
Here’s what to know if you’re afraid of heights.
The trail crosses a narrow ridge called the Cat’s Spine. This section requires rock scrambling along the narrow drops, and was fairly nerve-wracking (but not the worst). (If you’ve hiked Angel’s Landing on Zion’s West Rim Trail, this is shorter but likely similar.)
There’s also a narrow edge along a cliff with a chain. This section probably wouldn’t have bothered me if I hadn’t been so tired, and I saw other hikers skipping along without even holding the chain. I thought it was kind of scary, but not enough to make me turn around and do the Cat’s Spine in reverse.
What really got me were some of the extraordinarily steep sections. AllTrails estimates some sections have as much as a 250% or 278% trail grade, which translates to about a 68.2° and 70.2° angle. Steep is an understatement.
In the photo below, I've marked how the yellow trail markers go straight up that dirt mountain. We traveled that downhill, and I ended up scooting down on my butt for large sections because I couldn’t figure out a foot placement that felt stable on the loose dirt trail.
Is the Fimmvörðuhals Trail Dangerous?
If the weather is good and it’s not windy or raining hard, I think the answer is likely no.
I do think that this trail is more nerve-wracking than anything we did on the Laugavegur Trail, but most of the path was stable, non-slippery rock or dirt, and it was almost always wide enough for two feet next to one another on the path. If you have grippy shoes and your brain isn't working against you to make you more scared than necessary, you’re probably fine.
I passed many other hikers who seemed thrilled, not nervous at all. In the chain section, most of the other hikers we saw didn’t even use the chains.
Also, I wasn’t feeling 100% that day, so that may have contributed to my nerves.
However. If you are afraid of heights, please don’t take this trail lightly, and be aware that it’s nerve-wracking heights-wise from the Cat’s Spine all the way to the Baldvinsskali hut. Once I reached that hut, the warden assured me that the rest wasn’t scary, and she was correct.
Everything I just said changes in bad weather. This trail has lots of exposed spots with steep drops, and should not be attempted in high winds or during a storm.
Make sure to check in with the hut warden (if you’re starting at Basar), or with the Volcano Huts employee at the registration desk. We checked in at Volcano Huts, and they were extremely helpful. They even pulled up the wind forecast and explained that in strong winds, this trail was an absolute no; in moderate winds they didn’t recommend it; and on calm days it was great. Happily for us, the wind forecast was calm and we went ahead with the hike.
I also learned (after hiking) that the moveable bridges at the beginning of the trail are sometimes removed during high wind and heavy rain, making the river near Basar impassable. There is a nearby F road bridge — but if the moveable bridges are gone, there's probably a reason, and I wouldn't recommend proceeding.
Is There Water Available Along the Trail?
We carried enough water for the whole trail because we heard there was no tap water available. However, as of a couple days before our hike, the Baldvinsskali hut now has tap water!
Is This a Day Hike or a Multi-Day Hike?
Many hikers do this as a day hike, but be aware that it’s a LONG challenging day. Since we were beginning at Volcano Huts, it would’ve been about 18 miles total.
We considered doing it in one day, but opted to camp at the Baldvinsskali Hut.
This hut is not an ideal camping spot, as it’s very exposed and does not have stone rings. However, on the night we stopped the forecast did not call for strong winds, and we were able to put our tent against the hut for some wind protection.
If you opt to camp here, make sure your tent is sturdy enough to withstand strong winds.
There is another hut a little off trail, the Fimmvörðuskáli hut, but it is even more exposed to wind and not recommended for camping. You’ll likely spot this hut on your way to the Baldvinsskali hut. It’s another option if you want to book a spot inside the hut, or if the campground at Baldvinsskali has filled up (unlikely).
Now, let's break down the trail one section at a time.
Hiking the Fimmvörðuhals Trail from Thórsmörk to Baldvinsskali
We left our Volcano Hut glamping tent and headed towards the Basar campground. There’s more than one way to get from Volcano Huts to Basar; we chose the shortest option with the least elevation.
When we reached Basar, we headed towards the river and across the mobile bridges. (Yes, that’s an extension ladder tied to the bridge as steps.)
Don’t attempt to cross the river if the bridges aren’t there. If you don’t see the bridges, go back to Basar and talk to the warden.
After the river crossing, the trail followed the river and then quickly began to climb. This section of the trail was stunning and looked like something straight out of Jurassic Park.
The lush green growth all around was so different than what we’d been seeing on Laugavegur.
The trail hugs the edge of the mountain and continues climbing higher.
It crosses the Cat’s Spine, gives a break over an easier section, and then crosses the chained section (pictured above in the Fear of Heights section).
Eventually it goes up an incredibly steep section and opens up to more views. (The views for us were admittedly foggy, but still pretty.)
Ahead through the fog, we could see something wild looking ahead. Magni and Móði were waiting.
Magni and Móði, two of the newest mountains on earth, were formed during the 2010 Fimmörðuháls eruption. (You may remember this as the one portrayed in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty; it’s also the eruption that interrupted air traffic across Europe).
The eruption obviously closed off the area for a time, but ultimately created what was my favorite part of the trail. Despite all the challenges, despite the nerve-wracking heights, I’m happy about hiking on the Fimmvörðuhals Trail because of this outstanding section.
Walking this terrain was an otherworldly experience. The volcanic rock looked so new, and strongly contrasted with the icy white snow.
This section of trail was also the hardest to navigate. We referred to my Garmin inReach and a downloaded digital map to stay on trail.
To reach the hut, we still had one more tricky section of trail to navigate.
There was a steep downhill loose dirt path (pictured below, the section I found most nerve-wracking), and then we needed to cross a section of glacial ice.
This portion of trail crosses an icy section between two glaciers. We strapped on our micro-spikes and headed across. I was extremely glad we had the micro-spikes, as this section was slick and hilly.
There was also a steep uphill icy climb after this where we used our spikes. I saw other hikers navigating (somewhat precariously) without spikes, but I think we moved through more quickly and less nervously with them on.
We had one more big uphill push and then we reached the hut.
Hiking the Fimmvörðuhals Trail from Baldvinsskali to Skógar
We spent a rainy evening and night in our tent, but thankfully not a windy one.
The next morning, we set off early for a downhill journey off the mountain, with lots and lots of waterfalls.
The waterfalls started quickly, although the first couple were easy to miss walking downhill, but they became increasingly more and more obvious — close to the trail, and overwhelmingly impressive.
We eventually crossed another bridge. This river is another water source, although it would require some scrambling down to get to the water.
Keep going for more of a water show. In all, you’ll pass at least 26 impressive glacial-fed waterfalls.
The trail in this area is moderate and much easier than the first uphill portion of the trail, although some sections are a bit rutted out.
As you near the bottom, you’ll begin to see more and more hikers coming up from easy-to-access southern end of the trail.
Keep going until you reach Skógafoss, the largest and most impressive waterfall.
This marks the end of your hiking journey on the Fimmvörðuhals Trail. If you started in Landmannalauger on the Laugavegur Trail, congratulations, you’ve just hiked 50 miles!
If you’ve got time, stop at the cafe at Hotel Skógafoss for a coffee (and maybe some food!), before continuing onto your next stop.
Leave a Comment: