Hekla

Hekla rises to 1,491 metres at the edge of the highlands and has erupted more than twenty times since Iceland was settled, several of them severe enough to spread ash across Europe. Its medieval reputation was extraordinary: from the twelfth century onward European writers described it as an entrance to hell, and the belief was widespread enough that the volcano appears in that role in maps and texts for centuries. The practical modern problem is warning time - Hekla's magma rises fast, and recent eruptions have given something on the order of half an hour to an hour of measurable warning, far less than most Icelandic volcanoes, which is why climbing it carries a risk that cannot be planned away.

History

In Icelandic hekla is a short hooded cloak, perhaps for the cloud that often covers the summit, and an early Latin source calls it Mons Casule. More than 20 eruptions have occurred in and around the volcano since 1210, covering much of Iceland with tephra layers used to date other eruptions, and in the Middle Ages the Norse Icelanders called it the "Gateway to Hell", an idea that spread over much of Europe (Wikipedia, Hekla).

Highlights

• A ridge, not a cone - Hekla is an elongated fissure volcano, not a classic peak.
• The gateway to hell - the medieval European reputation, in maps and texts.
• Ash layers in the ground - the record of twenty-plus eruptions since settlement.
• Very short warning - magma that rises in under an hour before eruption.

When to go

July to September for the climb. A day.

What to expect

The eruption warning time is short, and that risk cannot be eliminated - check the official volcano status before going up. The access is an F-road needing 4x4 and closed most of the year. Weather on the ridge is severe and the summit is often in cloud.

Nearby

Landmannalaugar is north-east in the highlands; the Thjorsa valley is south.

Key facts