Brúnavík Loop

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Allowed

Features Views

This loop features the incredible colours of the rhyolite mountains so well known in the Víknaslóðir Wilderness. You'll get a glimpse into the deserted wilderness while still being close to the modern comforts.

You'll ride through rough and rugged mountain doubletrack, descend into grassy meadows and hike up by waterfalls. This loop can also be topped off with a visit to the Puffin Marina and the Kolbeinsfjara beach.

This is one of the most popular hiking routes in the area, so caution is advised and other trail users must be respected. The area is currently used for sheep grazing during the summer so frequent encounters are to be expected and the sheep must be left alone.

The start of the loop is about 3km from the Borgarfjörður eystri Village, so biking to the start is recommended. Otherwise, there is free parking at the trailhead.

The Puffin Marina is a stone's throw away from the terminus of Northern Crossing (Trail #19), just take a right when you come down to the paved road. There is a new cafe in the harbour house, they offer coffee, beer and light snacks. You can also get to a restroom there.

Starting from the trailhead, you're immediately going up a rough doubletrack with loose rocks. The name of this trail is Stone Circles, which leads to the top of the Hofstrandarskarð mountain pass. It leads up the flank of Mt. Svartfell, offering great views of the Borgarfjörður eystri Valley.

Close to the start is a fork in the road where you go left. You keep to the doubletrack the whole way up, veering right and then taking a wide left turn where the track will even out a bit. From there, you follow the hillside up into the mountain pass.

When you reach the top, there is a great opportunity for taking pictures if the weather is clear, and you keep following the doubletrack down into the valley, on the Brúnavík Descent. There are some alternate B-lines on the way down so keep an eye out, but the safe bet is to keep to the doubletrack. Slowly you'll start to see more and more vegetation and rough rock will give way to grassy meadow and small ponds. Swans are a common sight in the ponds.

About 5km into the loop, about 2km from the top, you'll come to a crossroads, with a small trail sign and another that says impassable. There, you'll go left, down the hairpin turn and cross the creek. From there, you just follow the yellow trail markers down the valley floor and to the beach.

Once you reach the orange emergency hut, you take a left up the hill and start the Northern Crossing (Trail #19). There is a little sign by the orange hut which says Borgarfjörður eystri and points to the left. From there is a steep but short climb to the top of the Brúnavík mountain pass where you'll pass some nice waterfalls and mountain flowers. When you reach the pass, there is a clear trail down, a really fun descent where you have views of Borgarfjörður and the iconic Mt. Dyrfjöll front and center.

When you reach the paved road, you can take a left to head back and complete the loop. Alternatively, you can take a right and head to the Puffin Marina.

This area and the surrounding Víknaslóðir wilderness was once a thriving agricultural community, consisting of sustenance farmers and fishermen. Before the industrial revolution in agriculture and with the arrival of the U.S. Military in WWII the community started declining and by the end of WWII the area was almost completely deserted.

Due to the low impact of pre-industrialized agriculture, there are little to no remains from that time and the land has barely been altered from its original state. Therefore the area is home to pristine landscapes almost untouched by man.