Brennisteinsfjoll

Volcanoes, lava fields and lava tubes-nature at its best

Brennisteinsfjoll is the synonym for extraordinary natural splendor just south of Reykjavik. This area is covered with hardened lava from 3 distinctive volcanoes nearby. Due to the geography of the area not many have researched it or travelled.

This is a unique and marvelous place and you may likely not see anything like this anywhere in the world, except in this part of Iceland.
Extreme Iceland offers guided tours around the Brennisteinsfjoll area where we see everything from inactive volcanoes to lava tubes in those great lava fields.
The tour takes anywhere from 12-16 hours of hiking and is mainly considered for people in good shape and health. This tour is at it’s best on a beautiful summer day in Iceland.

The tour starts in Reykjavik and from there we head to Herdisarvik in southern part of Reykjanes peninsula, just east of the town Grindavik. On the way to Herdisarvik, we make pit stops and check out some geothermal spouts.
From Herdisarvik we hike to Mosaskard. Through the rift there, the lava flow from Eldborg in Brennisteinsfjöll Mountains flowed. It’s now called Hvammahraun lava field. From there we walk to the lava tube named Ferlir. Ferlir is well over 500 meters long and is a labyrinth of a cave with magnificent lava formations, glassed walls and vivid colors due to sulfide minerals and oxidation.

From there we head to Eldborg, an inactive volcano (570 m above sea level), from there we have an amazing view to the Vestmann islands and to Eyjafjallajokull glacier due east.
The lava from Eldborg covers around 36 sq. kilometers and lot of it has flowed to the lower territories of the area.
Northeast of Eldborg lies the lava field of Kistuhraun that came from a fissure in the volcano Kista around the year 1000 A.C. In this tour we’ll take a glance at the volcano Kista and some of the many lava tubes hidden in its hardened lava field.

Kistufellshraun lava field is the northernmost of the three lava fields in this area and it came from the crater Kistufell around 4000 years ago. The crater is about 400 meters in diameter and in ancient times 3 lava streams flowed from it in different directions. One of the passages is remarkably magnificent due to extreme scale of the nature there. The passage has several huge lava tubes, but in many places have the ceilings collapsed.
We’ll take a quick glance at 3 of the major tubes (Loftgeim, Jokulgeim and Iskjallarann) and if there’s time, we may take a look at other caves in the vicinity.

We’ll then walk due north over the lava expanse of Kistufell. When we approach Longuhlidar at the northern edge of the plateau, we’ll have a magnificent panoramic view to Reykjavik. From there it’s all down hill, although trekking the cleft may be a difficult task for weary travelers.
Travelers are then greeted with refreshments and driven to Reykjavik.

Due notice, this tour has to be ordered in time, due to planning. This tour takes anywhere from 12-16 hours for hikers in decent shape.

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