Hiking and knitting between Fire and Ice, August 23-29, 2025
ISK295.000
Highlights: Fimmvörðuháls mountain pass, breathtaking scenery, Icelandic intarsia knitting
Departure: 2025, Agust 23-29
This adventurous and sporty tour is a combination of hiking and knitting. Combined with the visit of local crafters, dyers, spinners and the Skógar Folk Museum, the Fimmvörðuháls hike will be an unforgettable knitting experience, with spectacular nature and exciting geological features. We’ll get to knit at the site of a short eruption, which happened just before the now famous one of Eyjafjallajökull. The trail goes from the great Skógafoss waterfall, up between the two glaciers, onto and then over the recently formed lava, passing right by the two new craters, Magni and Móði, before descending to the magical nature reserve of Þórsmörk. All the way, Hélène will give us an insight into the Icelandic knitting tradition with focus on the colorful traditional shoe-inserts and the unique Icelandic intarsia. We may also try knitting while walking like men and women did back in the day, when time should not be wasted! Accommodation in guesthouses and mountain huts.
See pictures from previous tours here.
Upon booking, you will receive a link to fill up the registration form.
Please read the detailed information below >
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IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Upon booking, and in order to make the trip enjoyable, please make sure you are familiar with the day-to-day itinerary, the fitness condition required, as well as the list of equipment. For any questions, please check our FAQ first (answers to frequently asked questions).
Departure: 2025, August 23-29, 6 nights
Group size: 12
Price: 295000 ISK
Single room supplement (only in Reykjavik): 15000 ISK
Not included in price: flights to and from Keflavík International
Included in price:
- 1 guide/cook/knitting instructor
- 2 nights at a guesthouse in Reykjavík, double rooms, dressed beds, shared facilities (bathrooms and small kitchen) and breakfast included. Possibility of single room.
- 1 night at a comfortable country hotel, double rooms, dressed beds, shared facilities.
- 3 nights in a mountain hut in the highlands, sleeping bag accommodations.
- Full board from day 2 til day 5, breakfast and lunch day 6, breakfast day 7
- A support vehicle transporting luggage between huts. You only carry your day pack.
- Yarn for knitting samples during the workshops (but not full project).
- A yarn kit with Gilitrutt to complete a Narrow scarf with Roses
Participants ́ help with washing dishes is highly
Because participants come from all over the world, the tours are operated mainly in English but Hélène is bilingual in French. A lexical of knitting terms in German/English/French/Icelandic is available during the tour.
Fitness et hiking level: challenging.
Accessible to all those in good health, who are doing some sport regularly and are used to hike on all-terrain. 6-8 hours hike per day, without carrying too much weight. The hike is taking us over a mountain pass in the course of 2 days, staying in a mountain hut at the top. The trail has some edges that may challenge people afraid of heights. Trails on very uneven terrain, snow, lots of ascents and descents.
This is the most challenging tour physically and there is no access for vehicles on any part of the hike that lasts 2 days. If you have doubts about your fitness either discuss with Hélène or pick another tour. We reserve the right to dismiss any participant who we feel is unable to complete the hike or the tour. No refund will be made.
ITINERARY
Day 1 (2025, August 23): Knitters arrive to Iceland from all over the world at various time during the day. They will be spending their first night at a guesthouse in Reykjavík close to the Icelandic Handknitting Association of Iceland, full of lopi sweaters and wool.
Day 2 (2025, August 24): Departure for Skógar area on the South Coast, stopping at interesting places for knitters such as Hespa dying studio, the Þingborg Wool centre where local women produce the softest lopi yarn in Iceland, and at the first minimill in Iceland. We’ll also visit the Skógar Folk Museum and get to know how the Icelanders – the elders, children, women and men – became a nation of knitters. We arrive at a comfortable country hotel at the foot of Eyjafjallajökull glacier in the late afternoon. Evening spent getting to know the Icelandic wool and prepping for our hike. Dinner at the hotel, picnic lunch enroute.
Day 3 (2025, August 25): We will start our hike from the Skógar waterfall, all the way up to the hut at the pass of Fimmvörðuháls. The hike follows the Skógá river and its many waterfalls – quite impressive. After a hearty meal, we’ll spend the evening resting and knitting in this mountain hut with an incredible view. Sleeping bag accommodations (bags from the huts, not our own).
Hike: Distance: ~14 km/9 miles. Walking time: 6 – 8 hrs Ascent: 1000 m/ 3300 ft.
Trail on uneven terrain. in terms of distance, this is the most challenging day of the whole hike but all worth it.
Note that we carry extra clothes and food for the day but also our lunch for Day 4, together with essentials for the night (toothbrush, toothpaste, pajamas, hairbrush, face cream, earplugs, sleeping bag liner, frontal lamp). Sleeping bags, dinner and breakfast are provided at the hut, so we don’t have to carry them.
Day 4 (2025, August 26): From the hut at the pass we hike down to the oasis of Þórsmörk valley passing the craters and the lava field formed in the eruption of March 2010. The hike is absolutely breathtaking with a couple of narrow and edgy trails. Arriving at the comfortable hut of Básar where we will stay the next 2 nights. Evening knitting and resting after a delicious dinner. Sleeping bag accommodations (our own sleeping bags).
Hike: Distance: 14 km/9 miles. Walking time: 6-8 hrs. Descent: 900m/2970 ft.
The trail has a couple of edges that may challenge people afraid of heights. Trail on uneven terrain.
Day 5 (2025, August 27): Today is all about knitting punctuated by a short hike to explore these magical surroundings where elves and trolls have been said to frequent. Sleeping bag accommodations.
Hike: Walking time: 2-3 hrs depending on the trail chosen. Many possibilities to choose from with or without ascent/descent.
Day 6 (2025, August 28): We take the bus in the morning for Reykjavík and gather at Hélène’s picturesque and inspiring studio in the city center, where we can get our hands on all her yarns and knitting samples. The rest of the afternoon and the evening are free to explore Reykjavík.
Day 7 (2025, August 29): Departure
KNITTING WORKSHOP
TRADITIONAL ICELANDIC INTARSIA
The tour is dedicated to the unique Icelandic intarsia as seen mostly in traditional shoe-inserts, a technique that was dying out and that Hélène brought back to life in her book Icelandic Intarsia Knitting: using Rose Patterns.
A bit of history: Hélène will tell us about the rich Icelandic tradition from the moment it came to Iceland in the 16th century to our modern times. She will tell us especially about the traditional Icelandic shoe-inserts knitted with the unique Icelandic intarsia. She will show us a few samples and will share with us stories from the past.
Icelandic wool workshop: Hélène will tell us about the Icelandic wool, from the very fine handspun lace yarns made of thel to the highly breakable unspun lopi. She will tell us especially about the extra soft lace yarns, Love Story and Gilitrutt, she has developed to recreate the lightness and finesse of the Old lace designs. We will experience the feeling of knitting with such different yarns.
Traditional Icelandic intarsia workshop: Once commonly seen in knitted inserts in sheep and fish skin shoes, Icelandic intarsia is a tradition unique to Iceland. We will cover all the basic intarsia techniques as well as the specifics of the Icelandic intarsia. Hélène will also tell us about yarn management and give us tips for knitting the modern designs in her book or website.
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