Landmannalaugar to Hrafntinnusker
The 12km stretch between Landmannalaugar and the first hut at Hrafntinnusker is mostly uphill. You leave Landmannalaugar via Brennisteinsalda onto the muddy moorland atop the plateau, surrounded by stark, wild hills. About two-thirds of the way along is Stórihver thermal area, a steaming gully and rare patch of grass, beyond which there’s a scramble onto a higher snowfield which peaks at Söðull, the ridge above the huge volcanic crater of Hrafntinnusker. “Hrafntin” means obsidian, and just about all rocks in the area are made of this black volcanic glass. The Hrafntinnusker hut has no shower, and the campsite is on bleak scree and very exposed; many people skip staying here altogether and push on to Álftavatn or Hvanngil.
The tightly folded ridges due west conceal Iceland’s densest concentration of hot springs, with a pegged walking track (about 40min each way) out to where one set rises under the stratified edge of a glacier, hollowing out ice caves. Do not enter the caves; people have been killed doing so.
Hrafntinnusker to Álftvatn
It’s a further 12km from Hraftinnusker to the second hut at Álftavatn. The first stage continues across the snowy plateau to a rocky outcrop just west of Háskerðingur, whose sharp, snow-clad peak makes a good two-hour detour – though views northwest from the base, over worn rhyolite hills, patches of steam from scattered vents, and Laufafell’s distinctive black mass, are just as good. The plateau’s edge at Jökultungur is not much further on, revealing a blast of colour below which is a bit of a shock after the highland’s muted tones: Álftavatn sits in a vivid green glacial valley, lined with sharp ridges and abrupt pyramidal hills, with Mýrdalsjökull’s outlying glaciers visible to the south.
The subsequent descent into the valley is steep but not difficult, and ends with you having to wade a small stream before the trail flattens out near the two huts (one owned by Útivist; t562 1000) and campsite on the lakeshore at Álftavatn. After getting settled in, hike around Álftavatn’s west side and follow the valley for 5km down to Torfahlaup, a narrow canyon near where the Markarfljót river flows roughly between the green flanks of Stóra-Grænfjall and Illasúla, two steep-sided peaks.
Álftvatn to Botnar-Emstrur
The next stage to Botnar-Emstrur is 16km. Around 5km east from Álftavatn via a couple more streams, Hvanngil is a sheltered valley with a Ferðafélag Íslands’ hut and campsite; after here you cross a bridge over Kaldaklofskvísl, and have to wade the substantial but fairly shallow Bláfjallakvísl. The scenery beyond opens up into a grey-brown gravel desert, fringed by the surreally green hills and Mýrdalsjökull’s ice cap, as you follow a four-wheel-drive track southwest. Part-way across the desert, there’s another bridge over the Innri-Emstruá, where this chocolate-brown glacial river hammers over a short waterfall with such force that it sends geyser-like spurts skywards. Then it’s back across the gravel, up and over various hillocks, until you find yourself descending bleak slopes to the hut at Botnar-Emstrur, whose campsite is in a small, surprisingly lush gully. Otherwise, the immediate scenery appears barren, though there’s a short walk west to Markarfljótsgljúfur, a narrow, 180m-deep gorge on the Markarfljót, and superlative views of Entujökull, the nearest of Mýrdalsjökull’s glaciers, from clifftops around 3km southeast of the hut.
