Fagradalsfjall Volcano

We saw the volcano in late July 2023. To this day it still stands as one of the coolest natural things I’ve seen in my life. The trail killed me, and I was already dying before we started heading back - however, it was the first day of our round-Europe trip, and I don’t hike a lot 😅 There are no public restrooms on the trail itself, so be prepared to look for private locations if it deems necessary ;) For experienced hikers this shouldn‘t be too bad.

Due to the recent eruption, the road was closed because it was covered with lava. The lava fields (old and new) were cool to look at. I have added 3 pics of the new lava fields from the plane window as we left Iceland.

At 12 o’clock at night we all decided to go to the volcano. 40 minutes by taxi, 2 hours through strong wind, moss, stones and crevices, and we are at the blazing fire... We didn’t manage to get to the lava itself, but the lava fountains with fire were very clearly visible ☄️🔥

It was really interesting and exciting hike even though there were no lava flowing at the moment. We parked at Parking lot 1 (it is paid) and took trail „A“. It was a relatively easy 12 km hike both ways. Only there was a short steep climb at the beginning and then the trail is almost flat. There are several places where you get right up close to the 2021 and 2022 lava flows and you can touch fresh lava. You can also see the volcano craters. The view of the craters and the lava flows is amazing and you can still see smoke coming out in places and smell it. You should wear sturdy shoes especially if it is raining - then the path can be very slippery. I highly recommend this hike. It is close to Reykjavik and took us 4 hours – 1 to the parking lot and 3 hours hike.

Be ready for the walk. Recommend parking at P2. Be early and spend some time at the site. Pack water, lunch, snacks. No restrooms on the trail but many people run off trail and do their business, both minor and major transactions. That can be unnerving so be mindful. The trail is rocky but traversable for anyone that can otherwise hike 12 miles. We saw several mountain bikes as well. The final approach to the crater is off-trail with uneven footing. Ash from the burnt grass kicks up with every step. Somewhat difficult hiking conditions but where else are you going to see this? Update: of course by now this is no longer erupting. Hope you had the chance to see it!

I was fortunate enough to watch this erupt from the start when it was on its cyclical eruption. I have been here several times and it is worth the visit, even without an eruption. The volcanic landscape, smell of sulphur, fumaroles, and lava fields are just incredible. For the full walk, chose any car park and give yourself around 4 or 5 hours.

If you're active it's a pretty easy to moderate hike. Otherwise it might feel very challenging. Be prepared to spend 5 hours here.

No clear information about the trails, so let me help… We took all three routes in one hike - it took us approximately 7-8 hours! If you want to follow only one hiking trail, I highly recommend you to skip the trail hike with the car gate (it’s longer, took us 2-3h, 10.4km back and forth, and brings you quite far from the crater). Take one of the two trails on left/western edge of the parking instead. Out of these two, one takes you to the hills (which is more tiring and challenging but gives you a great view on the solidified lava), the other one goes behind the hills so you only see the solidified lava at the end of the trail (but it’s easier and the path is mostly smooth). These two trails form a loop, so you can choose one for the way to the crater and the other one for the way back to the parking. At the end of both trails, you arrive at what looks like a solidified lava beach. You can either go up a hill to have view of the crater, or take the path around that hill to get closer to the crater. I recommend you to directly start walking on the solidified lava instead of taking the path on the side of the hill (it’s easier and more fun). But be careful because the closer you get to the crater, the more brittle the solidified lava. So it might break as you step on it. You can either tap a bit with your leg to test if it’s solid, or run!