Laugavegur | OUR STAGES
Here we provide information about our stages on the Laugavegur Trail. The route is 55 km long, spanning between Landmannalaugar and Þórsmörk, for a total of 3 or 4 stages.
To prolong this trekking experience, we wanted to combine the Laugavegur with another great hike, the Fimmvörðuháls Trail, which is usually hiked in 1 or 2 days (from Þórsmörk to Skógar) after completing the Laugavegur.
Our Stages
STAGE 1: Landmannalaugar - Hrafntinnusker
Distance: 11 km
Elevation Gain: 530 m
Elevation Loss: 80 m
Walking Time: 3h
IMPORTANT REMARKS
This first stage of the Laugavegur is short and mostly uphill, alternating gentle gradients and steeper climbs.
It could be potentially combined with the second stage, by walking until Álftavatn. Because of the bus schedules, people usually arrive in Landmannalaugar and start hiking quite late (around 12:00). However, in summer there is plenty of light until late in the evening… so, if the weather is good, you feel fit and want to double, just go for it :)
MEMORIES
We started hiking at 12:00, surrounded by many many tourists. After a while, the trail diverged from the touristic paths, and became awesome! We couldn’t stop admiring the highlands… mountains of so many different colors… black, brown, red, pink, green and yellow, with a few white snow patches here and there. Additionally, the smoke of the geysers was adding a touch of magic to the views. The last stretch to the hut was also spectacular, as the trail was winding through shiny black lava stones.
As we arrived at the hut, we first focused on our shelter… we pitched our tent carefully, facing the wind direction, and proceeded with placing additional stones to our wall… we were so worried about a potential windy night and wanted maximal precaution :)
WORD OF THE DAY
“marasma”: chaos due to the quantity of tourists at the beginning of the stage.
HIKERS OF THE DAY
“portatori di cemento”: a group of German guys carrying very heavy backpacks.
”filmatore seriale di culi”: UL (ultralight) hiker with filming gear, who was running forth and back for recording himself (we just discovered he is actually famous on youtube only after coming home).
”tze americans”: a group of nice and chatty American girls.
STAGE 2: Hrafntinnusker - Álftavatn
Distance: 12 km
Elevation Gain: 130 m
Elevation Loss: 600 m
Paddling Time: 3h 30min
IMPORTANT REMARKS
The second day on the Laugavegur offers an amazing change of scenery towards the end, as a huge and green valley opens up in front of hikers descending to Álftavatn. A river has to be forded during this stage.
As already mentioned in “stage 1”, this stage could potentially be combined with the first. Moreover, if you arrive at Álftavatn with plenty of energy, another option could also be to keep hiking for 1 hour until the next hut (Hvanngil).
MEMORIES
After a very long sleep, we left the hut at around 09:30. The first part of the stage was winding between gullies in a constant “up and down”. It was nice to see the hut we left become smaller and smaller.
The trail led us to the top of a ridge, and our eyes couldn’t believe the splendor of the landscape in front of us… the huge valley at our feet was filled with green mountains and blue lakes. It reminded us of an idyllic valley of dinosaurs. Because of this view, we had to stop for lunch there!
We then started our descent to the next hut. We also had to cross a river… Yannick managed to keep his shoes on successfully. I opted for a river crossing adventure while wearing my Crocs… my god the water was so cold it took my breath away!
We arrived early at the next hut, a very nice place close to the lake. We took our time for relaxing and reading, and enjoyed our favorite dinner… it was time for trail burritos!
WORD OF THE DAY
“bubble”: the classic hiker’s bubble forming along the trail.
HIKERS OF THE DAY
“the bubble striker”: a guy who was always reaching and zigzagging across the bubble of hikers.
“the chinese”: a big group of hikers from China, accompanied by a guide.
STAGE 3: Álftavatn - Emstrur
Distance: 16 km
Elevation Gain: 200 m
Elevation Loss: 270 m
Walking Time: 4h 30min
IMPORTANT REMARKS
During the first half of this stage, three rivers need to be forded. You’ll leave the idyllic green valley of Álftavatn and walk across beautiful volcanic deserts covered in ash.
We advise to visit the canyon of Markarfljótsgljúfur, which can be reached with a small detour shortly before reaching the hut of Emstrur.
MEMORIES
We woke up to a perfect weather… the sky was blue and there was no wind at all, making the reflections at the Lake Álftavatn look spectacular!
Today’s stage was flat but longer, and it included two deep river crossings. I think I will never get used to the cold of the rivers… the pain I feel in cold water is going straight to my brain and all I can do is to gasp in agony!
Once again, the landscapes surprised us, as we walked through huge volcanic valleys of black sand. As Yannick and I were both reading the book “Dune”, we couldn’t help but thinking of the desert of Arrakis… the sand worm that was chasing us was of course a big group of people hiking the trail with a guide!
Shortly before arriving at the hut, we took a detour for visiting the canyon nearby… it was definitely worth it! The canyon was huge and epic, with many white birds flying through it.
At the hut, we set up our tent in an epic spot overlooking the glacier, we took a warm shower and relaxed once again… we couldn’t wait to continue our adventure in the book of Dune!
WORD OF THE DAY
“sandwarm”: the legendary creature inhabiting the deserts of Arrakis in the book of Dune, here impersonated by a large group of hikers.
HIKERS OF THE DAY
“i giganti”: three guys hiking with 80’s backpacks, like the one from Cheryl Straight on her journey along the PCT.
STAGE 4: Emstrur - Þórsmörk (Básar)
Distance: 15 km
Elevation Gain: 350 m
Elevation Loss: 600 m
Walking Time: 4h 30min
IMPORTANT REMARKS
This is the last official stage of the Laugavegur. It includes one river crossing and many ups and downs.
In Þórsmörk, there are two options for finishing your hike: Húsadalur and Langidalur (recommended for people who choose to further hike the Fimmvörðuháls Trail to Skógar).
The camping of Básar is 2 km further down on the trail leading to Skógar, and therefore also recommended if you’ll keep hiking the next day!
MEMORIES
We woke up without alarm at 08:30 and felt slower than usual while packing our stuff together. The sky was cloudy but the absence of wind gave us the chance to stop more frequently for breaks. We admired the strangely shaped mountain called “unicorn”… we couldn’t help but thinking it was shaped like a hand giving us the middle finger :)
We cooked delicious tortellini for lunch, and slowly continued walking through dark landscapes.
Another river crossing appeared in front of us towards the end of the stage… we were not mentally prepared for it.
As we arrived at Langidalur in Þórsmörk, we decided to push for 2 more km to Básar. We then set up camp and asked for the weather forecast for the next day, because the next stage was tough and the trail was going between two glaciers at higher altitudes. It didn’t look promising at all… rain rain rain and strong wind! We had a crisis and didn’t know what to do… push it through a storm or give up and catch a bus to Reykjavík?
To be continued in the next episode…
WORD OF THE DAY
“ansietta”: feeling of anxiety for taking a decision about the next day… stop hiking or push through heavy rain for 30km?
HIKERS OF THE DAY
“the je-ne-parle-pas-englais”: French hikers who don’t speak English.
STAGE 5: Þórsmörk (Básar) - Skógar
Distance: 29 km
Elevation Gain: 950 m
Elevation Loss: 1120 m
Walking Time: 10h
IMPORTANT REMARKS
This stage combines the first and second stages of the Fimmvörðuháls Trail, from Þórsmörk to Skógar. In the official guidebooks, it is indeed split into two, with a overnight stay at the Fimmvörðuháls hut. This hut is very basic and lays at high elevations between two glaciers.
We were advised not to camp there with our tents, as the temperatures could drastically drop and the wind strength could rise at night. That’s why we planned to just stop at the hut for a break and then keep hiking until Skógar in one day.
In the end, we decided not to hike this trail because of very heavy rain and poor visibility. We indeed advise to go for this hike only in case of decent weather. However, the landscapes are supposed to be epic and we can imagine the awesome and rewarding feeling of ending the trekking at Skógafoss!
MEMORIES
We set up our alarm at 04:30… as we woke up, rain was pouring down and we immediately checked the latest weather forecast. It changed overnight and became even worse… with heavy hearts, we decided to give up and not to hike this last stage to Skógafoss… it looked too risky for us, as the stage was long and included a few exposed sections on ridges, equipped with chains. We closed our eyes and went back to sleep.
We then spent our time trying to plan the next days of our road trip around Iceland, waiting for the bus driving us back to Reykjavík.
As soon as we hopped on the bus, we were glad to recognize all the friendly faces met on trail… we were not the only ones who gave up!
WORD OF THE DAY
“disperazione”: desperation, because we decided not to hike and to head back to Reykjavík.
HIKERS OF THE DAY
Andrea and Devin: two friendly Canadian hikers who also decided not to hike to Skógar and ended up on the same bus to Reykjavík.
Walking Direction
The Laugavegur Trail, as any other thru hike, can be walked in both directions, starting either from Landmannalaugar or from Þórsmörk.
However, if you are planning to also hike the Fimmvörðuháls Trail (between Þórsmörk and Skógar), we highly recommend to start your trekking in Landmannalaugar and to complete it in Skógar. Even though we did not hike this last stretch, we were told that the landscapes are out of this world, as the trail climbs at higher altitudes and goes between two glaciers. Additionally, Skógafoss is an epic location to finish your adventure!
Alternative Start & Exit Points
The Laugavegur is a remote trail. Apart from Landmannalaugar, Þórsmörk and Skógar, there are no other possible start or exit points on trail which can be reached by bus.
Trail Map and GPX File
Here you can find a map that I customized using AllTrails, showing an overview of our stages along the Laugavegur. In case the view of the map is not optimal, you can try to re-select the display mode of the map. You can click on the first map title to head to the AllTrails website, where all the waypoints are described.
This is the GPX file we used on the trail for our navigation device.