Iceland: Skógar-Landmannalaugar

Hi Tamara,

I went for the Landmannalaugar-Skogar trek in 2001 and our reasons for doing it that way were:

- the bus timetables: the scheduled-bus from Reykjavík to Landmannalaugar leaves, in the summertime, daily from the Bus Central Station, BSÍ at 8:30, so you can start the trek that same day and sleep at Hrafntinnusker hut (12 km away from Landm...)

- the more confortable accomodation at the end of the trip: there is an Edda Hotel in Skogar with a marvellous buffet and that after some days of walking is really something :) The next morning you can take a bus to Reykyavik in the Hotel yard early in the morning

- a more subjective reason: we prefered to do the hardest work the last day of the trek, and almost all the way from Hrafntinnusker to Þórsmörk is going down. We did the second and third "days" in only one journey because of that. Then, the last day you have to climb like 1000 meters to a pass (I don´t remember the name just now) and then all way down to Skogar (20 km. journey)

If you do the trek the other way round you can use another track from Landmannalaugar to continue the trek (we didn´t went for that, so I don´t know if it is worth the strenght).

There is plenty of water in the track (more than you will actually want :) remember to bring some shoes for the river crossing and even a walking stick if you haven´t done it before (can be a bit dangerous if you are a light person). We took our water supplies directly from the streams or in the huts, and didn´t use purification tablets, although it had that tasty :) flavour/odour you will get accustom to quickly. Be careful with the springs, some of them are very hot and the water is actually boiling!!

Speaking about huts, remember to book all of them in advance or take your own tent, because can be crowded in summer and you don´t want to sleep without a roof in that weather ;)

If you need any further information, please feel free to contact. Have a happy, active holiday in that awesome country. The trek is a great experience and the landscape is really beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeautilful.

Thanks for your notes.
Another question: I am a light person - do you really think I should carry walking sticks with me? I wanted to avoid them, because I'll be hiking alone (with a tent and all that) and obviously don't want to carry too much stuff with me.

Hi,

if you don´t want to use the sticks (neither did I) and you are travelling alone, please wait at the rivers until some other group cross them. I don´t know if this year is there as much water as in 2001, but I had a bad time crossing one of them then without shoes and poles (I weight 50 kilos). I don´t mean I were in any real danger but I have to cross with the furious water almost reaching my belt all the weight of my backpack on and it was no fun.