Fimmvörðuháls trail: Þórsmörk to Skógar: Iceland tour Day 8

Today I climbed a thousand metres to two of the newest volcanoes on Iceland, then descended to Skógar passing ever more spectacular waterfalls.

Rose early to a fine day and was soon climbing up the snow capped massif that separates Þórsmörk from the sea. Some steep climbs among the massive rock formations. Initially the sides of the mountain were clothed in green, I admired the pink orchids, higher up the greenery was replaced by black lava and ash and later by white snow. Some steep drops beside the path and a narrow ridge helped keep my attention. 

Near the highest point the trail passed two summits surrounded by snow, the result of eruptions in 2010 that filled the skies with volcanic dust, grounding aeroplanes. I climbed the loose ash and clinker which formed their peaks, no signs of activity now. A few kilometres after the trail went by one of the mountain huts. I stopped to buy a coke and Mars bar. On leaving I tried to open the door outwards. The warden laughed and said all the doors in Iceland opened inwards, in case snow was piled up outside.

Going down, the sea in front of me, the trail was at first inauspicious, following a vehicle track used to bring supplies. It must be a pretty tough vehicle given the size of the jagged rocks in the track. I disturbed a ptarmigan which wandered away. After a bridge the trail followed a smaller path by the first of a series of cascades. As I walked down the waterfalls became progressively bigger, swollen by water entering from streams each side. Each waterfall seemed to be bigger and more dramatic than the previous one as water roared over lips of lava into deep ravines. The final waterfall was Skogarfoss, attracting the attention of many visitors. In the cliffs beside the falls birds were nesting or circling, fulmars according to my guide. I am now in the Hotel Skogarfoss, having showered and washed some clothes I am feeling a little cleaner after several nights camping, and a little fuller after a "viking burger".

If you hike the Langavegur trail, then continuing on the Fimmvörðuháls, also called the Skógar trail is recommended for its combination of mountainous terrain, proximity to ice caps, volcanic interest and waterfalls. Walking down towards the sea marked an appropriate end of a long distance walk.

Lower down the steep sides of the mountain were green.

There were one or two exciting sections such as the path along this narrow ridge.

High up the landscape was monochromatic, the ice cap partly hidden by cloud.

Just one of the many waterfalls on the path down.