{"id":20802,"date":"2019-08-17T13:34:04","date_gmt":"2019-08-17T11:34:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/peregrinusmundi.com\/?p=20802"},"modified":"2021-01-21T19:24:37","modified_gmt":"2021-01-21T18:24:37","slug":"going-inland-on-the-laugavegur-trail","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/peregrinusmundi.com\/en\/going-inland-on-the-laugavegur-trail\/","title":{"rendered":"Going inland on the Laugavegur Trail"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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The bus rolls through the lava fields painfully crossed on my bicycle a few days earlier. It seems so easy from the comfort of the coach. I arrive in Skogar, where the Skogafoss waterfall is still full of people. A real street lamp in the night attracting butterflies. I walk a long staircase to climb above. One kilometer away, most flip-flop-tourists have disappeared. Two kilometers further, only the irreducible remain. I am finally gone on the Laugavegur trail! Eighty kilometers to go inland and discover the center of Iceland. Or at least the beginning.<\/p>

The Laugavegur trail is one of Iceland’s best-known hiking trails. It starts from Landmannalaugar, in the highlands, with its colorful mountains, to reach in about fifty kilometers \u00de\u00f3rsm\u00f6rk or “the forest of Thor”, oasis of greenery in the vastness mineral. To this is possible to add the crossing of the Fimmv\u00f6r\u00f0uh\u00e1ls pass between the glaciers Eyjafjallaj\u00f6kull and M\u00fdrdalsj\u00f6kull, to reach in thirty kilometers, Skogar on the South coast. For me it will be the entirety, the eighty kilometers. And in the “opposite” direction, please, in order to avoid tourists and finish by the best part.<\/p>

The path follows the Skoga River and its many waterfalls and then turns into a track rising through a lunar landscape. The sky is charged with black clouds but the wind blows hard moving them away from me. At the top of a small ridge, a small triangular refuge, Baldvinskali hut, awaits under a beautiful sun. On my right is the ice cap of the Eyjafjallaj\u00f6kull that glows in the sun. On my left is a M\u00fdrdalsj\u00f6kull tongue that appears intermittently in the mist. I camp beside the refuge, surrounding my tent with a rampart of stones. The wind does not blow very hard now, but at almost 1000 meters, I prefer to take my precautions. A motor noise comes out of nowhere and a dozen motorized paragliders appears in the sky. Was I not on the moon? They fly over the refuge in the light of a beautiful sunset and calm returns.<\/p>

Small holes appeared on the roof of my tent. The wind was rough last night and the stones rubbed against the fabric. There were too many. I pester a little against my excess of caution but the damage is done. The path continues through volcanic screes, snowfields and desert plateaus. I reach the pass then large plateaus. Magni and Modi (whose names refer to two of Thor’s sons) stand in the middle of the path. Two outbreaks of red rocks a hundred meters high result of the Eyjafjallajokul eruption, nine years ago. The descent to \u00de\u00f3rsm\u00f6rk is long but grandiose. A large flat plateau, Morinsheidi, looks like a table put there by the hand of a facetious creator. Below, the valley covered with dwarf birches contrasts with the mineral desert of the heights. A line of small silhouettes are assaulting the mountain. They seem to be suffering, all those Sunday hikers. I am happy to go downhill. Birches, mosses, heathers and flowers. It is like being in the Alps. The abundance of vegetation due to a rainy and temperate microclimate has nothing to do with the desert landscape left a few hours ago. I spend the night at the Basar campsite\u00a0along the Krossa River and then start on the Laugavegur trail towards the center.<\/p>

The Kapa River is facing me. Small torrent barring the road. My first ford. I gauge the depth of the water, estimating it to about thirty centimeters. The river is divided into three small arms with beige and opaque waters. The bed is covered with pebbles. I take off my shoes, pull up my pants and start the crossing. My heart a little worried, I plunge my feet in the cold water of the first arm. The strong current and the unstable ground made of pebbles and sand make me wobble but I hold on. It is out of the question to fall into the water. I continue gently and cross the three arms without trouble. I had water up to my knees! Arrived on the other side, I laugh with relief, satisfied to have crossed my first ford. There will be others.<\/p>

The landscape changes with the rhythm of the kilometers passing. Black volcanic blocks follow a moor of heather with pink flowers. Desert valleys give way to big canyons. A line of walkers in the opposite direction of mine disturbs the silence for a few hours before fading into the distance. I walk in a more austere landscape, my legs a little tired by the long descent yesterday from the Fimmv\u00f6r\u00f0uh\u00e1ls pass. I camp at the Botnar\u00a0refuge and campsite, on a small plateau, surrounded by hundred tents. The circus, even in the heart of nature.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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