1

It is absolutely not a good idea to hike Laugavegur in the winter. There are easier ways to die.
,,Everything is allowed, if it isn´t forbidden" this is the rule in Iceland, and it is not forbidden, but no one in their right mind would help you with these plans, or encourage you. Forget this !

2

Not an encouragement but it's not that terrible. People hiking at -30 C. Some goes to North or South poles. But then not clear why October? January - February would be real winter hiking :-)

3

I've read that early October is a great time for fall colours, hence, hiking a mere 2 weeks after huts closed didn't seem like a life or death decision. If it really does get that snowy and cold, perhaps we'll re-think our trip. Thanks for the input.

4

I understand your point ruslendingur. Having lived in the Canadian Rockies and now in the western coastal range, I fully understand and agree that weather in the mountains can be extremely temperamental and would not wish to put myself in a predicament I could not get out of.

Having said that, the original question still stands. Could one still camp at the huts in off season without breaking any rules, as I understand they require that you sign in/out at arrival and departure when they are open.

5

I don't know whether one can get into a hut that closed for winter. They are not emergency huts (that you can find on a map all over country). But I'm very much doubt about it.

6

A major difficulty you may have is logistics. You can't guarantee that the road to L is still open in early October. How are you getting in and out of L and T? If you are driving in, how are you retrieving the vehicle that you drove there? Will you still be able to retrieve it if you leave it there for some days? Are you aware of the costs of mountain taxis, and what conditions they might impose on their service?

I don't think anyone is going to officially tell you whether the huts are unlocked when unattended, as it is not in their interest to do so.

Certainly some mountain huts (and I'm not talking about emergency huts) are unlocked when they are unattended out of season, I know because I have stayed in one. While I was there a road-worker, who was working on opening the roads in that area, stayed there too, so he expected it to be open.

It did not occur to me to question whether it was against the rules or not to stay in the hut, nor did anyone else who managed to get there in the couple of days before it opened, and there were 2 other groups in addition to me and the roadworker. The door was unlocked. When the warden arrived, the morning I left, she was all smiles and advice, and didn't even want any money off me.
That's to check that those who depart later arrive. But with no one there you check your departure or arrival, this becomes irrelevant.

Landmannalaugar can already be snowed in for the winter before the end of September. Yes, sometimes it remains open well into October, occasionally even November. But it only takes one heavy snowfall to dump quantities such as a metre of snow, and that can occur as early as September. L is at about 600m, and the trail goes up to about 1100m in places. But even if conditions only give fairly light snow at L, or snow that blows/melts away leaving the roads passable, there can still be winter conditions on higher ground in between. The issue is not just snow, it is also wind, and Sept/Oct is a windy time. The BBC or C4 did a documentary on walking L-Skogar, and it was filmed at the end of August, and the supposedly trekking-experienced TV presenter decided weather conditions were getting dangerously unpleasant and accepted an evacuation by landrover. Very useful lesson for people thinking of doing late season treks, it can be really nasty as early as late August. Couple of days later went back in a helicopter and it was all lovely again. Just puts things in perspective. I've spent a whole day in a tent waiting out the weather in late August, and that was by the seaside in the Eastfjords, blowing a gale and snow above 300m, campsites in Myvatn had to be abandoned.

But not on the trek, except in the vicinity of Thorsmork. Most of it is too high.

7

But if all you mean is "can I put my tent up", then yes, certainly. And that far out of season, no one is looking if you put your tent up somewhere you shouldn't. Even in season if you said to them "due to weather conditions I felt I had to stop and camp here", and what you said was plausibly true, they wouldn't criticise you for that either.

But it is worth remembering that foolhardy out-of-season trekkers are significant contribution to the total of tourists who don't come back. The reason is that if you get into trouble in the season, someone is usually along soon. Out of season, you can die of hypothermia before you are missed. And it is usually hypothermia: some silly little slip disables you so you can't move.

8

Thank you iviehoff for the detailed reply. This is the information I was hoping for coming on the forum.

It is not my intention to hike and camp in the conditions presented. Having never been to Iceland, I do not know what to expect when we get there, figuring that October was still possible to head out, but that's why I ask, now I know!

Although we are renting a 4x4, we do not intend on heading out on dangerous, snowed in road either. I know plenty of roads close down due to snow, but again, I didn't know that this might be a possibility so early in the year. We will focus most of our time in the lowlands.

On that note, any good day hike recommendations just off the ring road one would recommend (for early October)?