Arnarfell hið mikla

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Author

Leifur Hákonarson

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Trail stats

Distance: 15.15 mi
Elevation gain: 2,182 ft
Technical difficulty: Difficult
Elevation loss: 2,182 ft
Max elevation: 3,742 ft
TrailRank: 39
Min elevation: 2,000 ft
Trail type: Loop

Time: 10 hours one minute
Coordinates: 1774
Uploaded: April 14, 2012
Recorded: September 2011

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near Ábær, Norðurland Vestra (Lýðveldið Ísland)

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Trail photos

Itinerary description

I had heard that in autumn you could ford the Þjórsá river and get to Arnarfell from the East. This turned out to be the case, though a crotch-deep, 50+ metre wide glacial torrent isn't exactly inviting in temperatures below freezing, wearing nothing below the waist other than your undies and sandals! Still - that's the price you pay for using the autumn, when the water level has subsided. Apart from the river crossing this is an easy hike.

Waypoints

Car

You could perhaps drive further - but only if you are the sort not much bothered by laying waste to the countryside ...

Ford 1 (small)

This was a small stream - but it was the first time we had to taske off our boots (we didn't bother to put on our sandals) for wading so it seemed worth marking it!

Guest Book

Yes, there is a guest book where you can sign your name - an another one at the top (in a bottle)

Summit

A fantastic view in all directions! Getting up there is a bit tricky - the gravel is extremely loose. There is a path but it is very difficult to find, you might want to follow our decent track - that should help.

Þjórsá ford

OK, this is where we forded the river on our way TO the mountain, we didn't really spend a lot of time looking for the best spot because we didn't know if this was the only branch to be crossed (it was - apart from a smaller one later). The crossing was a bit scary, entering the river we had to break through a layer of ice with our sandals - at considerable risk of falling. Approaching the far bank we hit a deep channel which we only just managed to cross - I had already suggested we turn back but my travel companion felt she wouldn't make it so we pressed on ... Coming back in the afternoon the river had swollen a bit (as glacial rivers do during the day) but at least that got rid of the ice problem! We gave ourselves more time to scout for a good ford and did'nt have any big problems. the knowledge that the car wasn't all that far away helped because it was bloody cold (air temperature around freezing and windy).

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