This was my big trip in 2008, and also my first major overseas backpacking trip. The trip was inspired by a few photos I saw in glossy outdoor magazines — the terrain just looked other-worldly — and by rave remarks by a respected adviser. Plus, Iceland is one of the most advanced countries of the world and most of its citizens speak English, so traveling was easy and worry-free.
In planning for this trip I struggled to find good information on backpacking in Iceland. Information I gleaned from tour operators, message boards, personal websites, and a few emails and phone calls to Iceland-based contacts helped to ground me, but I began my trip knowing that I would need to figure out most things on my own and react accordingly. To increase the amount of quality, non-superficial information available on backpacking in Iceland I have spent a lot of time developing content based on my experience. I hope you find it helpful.
I spent 25 days in Iceland and backpacked for 22 of them. I started with the 49-mile Laugavegur, a popular and beautiful trail in the south-central part of the country. Then I hitchhiked to Hofn in order to start my east-to-west traverse, which I figure was about 500 miles long with almost ~150 miles of cross-country travel. I finished several days earlier than I expected, so I spent one day doing the “Golden Circle” before returning to Laugavegur in order to do some last-minute training for the Leadville 100 foot race that was just 1.5 weeks away.
Hello Andrew,
first of all: What you do is truly inspiring stuff and I will follow your articles closer.
Anyway, I have a question regarding tarps on Iceland. I prefer to sleep under a tarp whenever I’m hiking, although I never knew there were lightweight ones like you use (Mine was heavy military surplus sheet of fabric). I am slowly preparing for my first longer hike on Iceland for next summer and from what I have read, it’s extremely hard to pitch a tent / tarp in the highlands rocky soil, therefore people recommend using tents that can support their own weight without relying on pitching too much.
I am hiking with a friend and I’d be delighted if we could each have our separate tarp + bivvy instead of just one tent, but because of the constant wind and problematic pitching I am a little nervous recommending him to ditch the tent. So – how did you deal with that? Are there special pegs that are better for this sort of soil? It wouldn’t exactly make my day if my tarp went flying away at 30 mph in the middle of the night while in the middle of Iceland
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Hope your travels are going well,
John
If I was planning to be in the barren Highlands for a while, I would bring a fully enclosed shelter, probably a single-wall tent with waterproof-breathable walls like those used on mountaineering or alpine expeditions. This type of shelter would withstand the wind and would keep the grit out, and be worth the weight.
Along the coasts it is easier to find more protected campsites so I would feel comfortable with a tarp.
Damn, not what I wanted to hear, but thanks for the advice. Those things are expensive everywhere, but with makers going 1 euro = $1 and Czech Customs office it’s gonna be just one small 2 person tent for two fairly big guys…And I was sort of stoked at the prospect of sewing together my own modular pyramid tarp
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Just to be on the same page, do you mean something along the lines of Marmot Alpinist 2P, Mountain Hardwear expedition tents etc., or are there some options in this segment as well nowadays (Trekking pole support etc)? I have never attacked an 8k mountain top, so I never needed one of these. Research on Google so far has revealed nothing too interesting.
Anyway, thanks again. Just reading through this website has kept me occupied for the entire day, even though the plan was to work on my bachelor’s thesis.
Yes, single-wall tents like the Marmot 2P are expensive. I don’t think there’s a better solution for protecting you from the wind or windblown sand, however — the environment is not that different from an alpine one, except that snow is replaced with sand.
Of course, you don’t NEED one if you don’t spend much time in the Highlands, if you’re willing to endure blowing sand, and/or if you are vigilant about finding campsites that are either well protected or not subject to blowing sand.
I guess you’re right, I’ll figure something out…This is probably not the thing to save on. I am sort of thinking I should have picked more Hawai like destination, but where’s the fun in that eh? We’ll probably be there for a month. I sure don’t want to spend it all in highlands as there is plenty more to see in the Hornstrandir reserve area and other places, but the main idea is more or less the traverse in south to north direction as of now…Plenty of research before us though.
Not to mention a good tent will probably come in handy in the future. Who knows, it’s just a few more metres across the arctic circle and I’ve never been to Norway.
In any case, thanks for the tip!
John
Andrew,
I’m beginning planning for my east-west (or vice versa) trek of Iceland. I’ve already completed the Laugavegur trek and a week solo in Hornstrandir. I’ve also completed the Appalachian, John Muir, Long and Wonderland Trails. I arrived here after visiting Jonathan Ley’s site.
I’m in the initial stages of planning. Map CD 2 still doesn’t seem available. Between yourself and Jonathan, its seems like a good strategy to purchase the 1:250,000 maps (Sections 2-5) to begin initial route planning. I’ll bounce between both of your notes going forward, but at least these maps will orient me and give visuals.
Once I have a more locked in idea of where I’ll be going, I can pick off the 1:100,000 section maps as needed.
I had imagined that I’d have to cache food containers in the interior, but perhaps not depending on the route. Seeing that you both completed this trek in less than 30 days is inspiring.
Thoughts on my notes or other items between when you posted info about your trip and now?
Thank you,
Jared
In areas with BIG terrain, e.g. most of the interior highlands, the 250,000 maps are sufficient. I would only get 100,000 maps for the more complex, more intricate areas. The difference will becoming obvious to you as you start looking through the maps.
You may also want to look at Google Maps (from which you can grab screenshots), and Google Earth layers too (there may be an Iceland topo map layer somewhere).
Hello Andrew,
Love reading your story about the Iceland adventure. Thanks for all the information about the logistics and routes.
I am planning for a solo hike myself starting in the North of Iceland this summer. I have asked around and everywhere I hear that water is sufficiently available in all areas, but I keep wondering about this ‘desert’ area that you also talk about. The area around Askja seems so dry and empty to me and running out of water there seems to be one of the worst things to do.
So how was your experience on this?
Thanks,
Kelvin
There’s plenty of water. You might have to carry some, but never much. Plus, you don’t burn through much water in those cool, windy conditions, hiking on flat terrain.
Andrew,
Great information regarding an epic journey. One question for you, did you store any items in Reykjavik while you were hiking and if so, was the storage at the hotel/hostel or elsewhere? I’m currently planning two shorter hikes and was hoping to find somewhere to store items, such as city clothes,laptop and battery charger for camera equipment.
Thank you,
Clint
I did “store” a few items, but nothing valuable — a fresh pair of pants and a shirt for flying there and back. I thought about leaving them at a hostel, which I’m sure is a service that they would provide, but instead I found a “secure” location in some woods and deposited everything in a waterproof plastic bag.