Hornstrandir Hike

Hornstrandir is the most remote nature reserve in Iceland. It is located in the northern most part of the Westfjords. As an nature reserve it has an abundance of Icelandic flora and fauna. It's possible to do day trips in Hesteyri or to do a multi-day hike; this involves a bit of planning like any multi-day hike. The most famous location in Hornstrandir is Hornbjarg.

Getting to Hornstrandir

The most common and convenient way to get to Hornstrandir is by boat. There are currently two companies who sail to the western part of Hornstrandir from Isafjordur: Borea Adventure and Sjóferðir. Their schedules can be found on the West Tours' website, where you can also book your tickets. We parked near the harbor wherever there was an empty parking spot.

Hikes

With several friends, I did Hornstrandir as a 4 day hike from Veidileysufjordur to Hesteyri. This four day hike consisted of four separate hikes. Veidileysufjordur to Hornvík, Hornvík roundtrip of the Horn and Hornbjarg, Hornvík to Hlöðuvík, and finally Hlöðuvík to Hesteyri. We camped at Höfn (Hornvík), Hlöðuvík, and Hesteyri. There is a campsite closer to Hornbjarg called Hornsá but Hornvík had nicer facilities and it didn't add any additional kilometers to our hike since we were heading to Hlöðuvík the next day anyhow. For the most part the hikes were quite clear and they were marked with driftwood poles or cairns.

Veiðileysufjörður to Hornvík (11.2 km in about 7hrs)

The boat dropped us off on the shores of Veiðileysufjörður between the campsite and the stream which marks the start of the hike. The hike follows the stream and is a gentle gradual uphill among vegetation and some rocks. We had to cross one large stream. We crossed on rocks and thus the water was only as high as our ankles. We didn't need to remove our shoes but a couple of us still did just in case. Then the trail gets steeper until we reached the top of the mountain.

Near the top it gets rocky and the vegetation becomes just lichen. Sometimes it is hard to find the path. When that happened, we scouted ahead for cairns which marked our way. We went there in mid-July and there were still several snowdrifts that we needed to cross. One was extremely steep and we really needed to dig our feet in to maintain our footing. The initial descent was also very steep, did not have any snow, but only had small loose sandy rocks which is also very easy to slip on even with hiking poles. I advise stepping between the large rocks when possible. As we descended farther the vegetation increases and we gradually got to a plateau where we caught sight of the Horn and Hornvík valley. It was quite windy here. We also crossed several rivers but nothing that we need to take off our shoes for. We often had to jump from bank to bank though since it's usually slightly larger than a normal walking stride. The valley itself is quite flat and often times quite swampy and muddy so we had to be careful where we stepped. As we approached Hornvík, we saw a sign directing us to the campsite.

We crossed one or two more streams before we reached the campsite but there were driftwood bridges to ease the way.

Hornbjarg (19km in about 10hrs)

There are two trails to Hornbjarg from Hornvík. One along the beach and another about two kilometers south at the river. The river is usually about knee high for a tall Icelander, a little more for someone shorter. Some of us took off our pants and crossed just in our underwear thusly. The crossing at the river mouth at the beach goes up to waist high during high tide. This meant those of us who crossed there got wet underwear. (They didn't dry until the last day in Hornstrandir). I personally chose the river crossing as we started hiking during high tide. The river crossing was marked on both sides with a sign.

We walked for about three to four kilometers along the shore then up on the mountain ridge above the shore. The beach is full of large round rocks and the trail on the mountain side is sometimes great and sometimes so swampy that the trail seems to fall away when we stepped on it.

Then we saw the outhouse for Hornsá. We had to climb up there to continue on the trail to Hornbjarg. Next we passed by a summer house of some locals. There was a trail perpendicular to the one we were on. It leads to the lake near Kálfatindar. To get to Hornbjarg, we continued along the shore, past the house. There will be a Hornbjarg sign. The trail continues right in front of the sign.

The trail stays on the ridge then it climbs to the Horn which is the northern most part of this region. Afterward the trail ambles down the valley to Hornbjarg and up again. This valley is quite swampy and full of flies and various flora. The trail up Hornbjarg is relatively manageable compared to others on Hornstrandir.

On Hornbjarg there is a deadend trail with a vista point which overlooks Hornvík and another trail down to the valley between Hornbjarg and Kálfatindar. We reached a point in the descent from Hornbjarg where we could view many birds nesting.

Right after this is a steep trail nearly straight down. Luckily there is a rope to help hikers. It's best if only one person uses it at a time. Then the trail crosses swamp land toward the lake and then cuts across the valley towards the summer house we passed earlier.

This is where we rejoined the trail to Hornvík where we went back to the beach and river crossing. However, we did try to cross from the beach, and made the mistake of walking below a cliff of sand where the sand got thrown in our faces. Try to walk on the upper portion, not the lower portion. This hike took us many more hours than the other hikes because we stopped several times to picnic and just enjoy the sun and nature.

There is a longer hike which goes to the lighthouse but my group decided against that route. That is somewhere between 26km to 35km long in total.

Hornvík to Hlöðuvík (11.5km in about 6 hrs)

There are several ascents and descents in this hike. I would consider it the most challenging of the four hikes despite the short distance. The trail starts by heading to the beach. Then we walked along the beach for about half a kilometer. There will be a rope to climb up then another to climb down. This requires balance and trusting our arms to hold on. Some found it easier to climb up because they could see their feet. Others, like myself, preferred the climb down.

Then we continue on the trail on the beach and then on land until we get to several more rivers. These often have strategically placed rocks, driftwood or rope to help hikers pass without getting their feet wet.

A few kilometers inland there's a large wooden platform where we rested. It easily fits twenty people. This trail involves many gradual inclines and several steep descents. The last descent was especially scary because it went up into the clouds while we could hear the sound of the waves below.

There are also several areas where we were just walking across extremely large rocks and one point where several of us had to lean our backpacks towards the edge (or alternatively some of us just got closer to the mountain and climbed up over and down several large boulders). The ground is alternating between sandy, loose gravel and large rocks until we get lower down and encounter decent sized rocks to step on.

The first glimpse of Hornvík valley provides a view of a group of buildings. These are not the campsite. These are the houses labelled Búðir on the map. The Hlöðuvík campsite is much further away. So, we crossed the swampy valley until we reached a river. The campsite is on the other side of the river. Many people cross the river on the beach and take off their shoes because it's slightly deeper than the height of hiking boots. However, there is a way to cross the river while wearing shoes and stay dry. It's possible by following these rocks to the island in the middle and finally follow the rocks a bit more to the bank on the same side as the campsite. The shoes will get slightly wet on the outside but nothing that waterproof shoes can't handle.

Hlöðuvík to Hesteyri (15.75 km in about 8 hrs)

There is only one ascent and thus one descent on this trail. For the most part the ascent and descent are both very gradual. The trail starts in a swamp for a few minutes before going on the beach. From the beach, the trail to Hesteyri can be found by scanning the driftwood for a vertical wooden trail marker like so.

There are several more wooden trail markers after the initial one at the beach. We crossed stream after stream on fairly flat marshly land. About four to five kilometers in, the terrain changes from marshy to rocky. This continues for most of the rest of the hike but the rock size varies a lot. We also needed to cross at least one patch of snow. Then we climbed up to this cairn.

The rest of the trail is marked by numerous cairns henceforth. It is also extremely rocky so a few hours in we were really feeling the rocks through our boots quite a bit. The trail is a mix of swampy and then rocky with some small river crossings along the way, nothing that we needed to remove our hiking boots to cross.

The final descent to Hesteyri is quite rocky and I recommend not following the path of the rock slides but continuing farther along the ridge toward the shore where there is a bit of a rocky divet. That's what we did at least. That leads to the final trail down the mountain.

The trail basically ended when we reached these signs.

We could see the buildings from the top of the mountain. The cafe with the pancakes is the first building. Meanwhile, the campsite is on the shore farther along than any of the buildings.

We jumped across one stream toward the village but the rest have wooden bridges.

There is the red buliding which is the flushable toilets and the ranger's buliding. To the left is a path along the shore. This leads to an information board and a sign that says continue along to get to the campsite. The campsite is about 600m away.

Campsites

We could not and you cannot start a fire in any campsite within Hornstrandir. It is not allowed.

Hornvík

It is wide and flat with an outhouse right near the entrance of the campsite. At the other end of the campsite near the mountainside is a small building with two flushable toilets and an outdoor sink with running cold water. Next to it is a large green building with a red roof. This is the ranger's cabin. The ranger will indicate that they are in by flying the Icelandic flag and oftentimes the door will be open. He could tell us the weather forecast for the day, help with any emergencies, advise on hikes and boat schedules, give information about the tide tables, among other things. The campsite is rather close to the mountain so we got morning sun but in July the campsite was in shadow by 8:00pm. There are several picnic tables so we did not have to cook or eat on the ground. It is a bit inland but also really close to the beach. I didn't notice any flies.

Hornsá

It's near Hornbjarg. It has one outhouse. It didn't smell too bad, likely because few people camp there. The campsite is quite hilly, not many flat surfaces for pitching a tent comfortably from our casual inspection. I didn't see any picnic tables or other facilities, but also no flies.

Hlöðuvík

This campsite only has running fresh water from the nearby river. It has two outhouses, both of which smell quite a bit. We had to remember to keep the doors closed when the toilets aren't in use so the smell didn't drift down to our tents or anyone else's. Some fellow campers who were not shy, kept the door open while using it so that they didn't die from the stench. The outhouses were fairly clean albeit stinky.

Behind the outhouses is an emergency shelter. There are no picnic tables but there is a circle of driftwood logs.

The campsite has some flies. The ground is quite flat. It's far enough away from the nearby mountains that we got sun all day long. However, it is so close to the beach that we could hear the waves from within our tents. There is no emergency phone here but we could access an emergency phone in one of the buildings in the Búðir we passed on the way to the campsite.

Hesteyri

The campsite is near the shore and has a latrine.

There are three indoor toilets about 600m away in the old village. The indoor toilets have soap and toilet paper.

There is also a map of hiking trails in the hallway. There are lots of flies in Hesteyri. There are a couple picnic tables and one sink for water. The campsite can also be reached from the beach or trails more inland for those of us who wanted to avoid the swampy trail full of flies.

Preparation

I packed for five whole days of hiking and camping averaging about 3,000kcal a day (15,000kcal and my food was at least 3kcal per gram so about 5kgs of food). When doing a multi-day hike it's important to pack an extra day's worth of food in case the hike takes longer than expected. In the end, I ate about 9,500kcal. This averages to about 2,500kcal a day.

We technically only did four days of hiking and three nights eating at the camps. The fourth night we ate at the doctor's house in Hesteyri. They served us a nice dinner of beer, fish, and ice cream. The prices were very reasonable and compareable to an average restaurant in Reykjavík. All in all dinner was only 6,500kr for me. It's a good idea to make a reservation under your name for dinner to make sure they have the food ready during dinner time as they usually only serve pancakes and cake to day trippers.

We brought a compass and a paper map as there is no cell reception in most of Hornstrandir. Maps can be bought at the bookstore or rental camping equipment places. GPS devices can also be rented at BSÍ, as we did. We registered our plan with safetravel.is and also notified them when we had gotten back safely from Hornstrandir. Enjoy the beauty of Hornstrandir!