Volcanic ash and lava
Black ash deserts, shifting dunes and lava fields old enough to weather and new enough to cut through a shoe.
A week on and I am still buzzing from the experience. The course was not just spectacular but also very well marked, and the support team were all fun yet professional in ensuring our safety (if not comfort!) in the Highlands.
We showed up as strangers, but left as friends, united through the bond of suffering.
I’ll recommend the Fire and Ice to everyone. Especially those who hate their feet and feel the need to be punished. Legends, the lot of you.
I wanted to thank you all from the bottom of my heart — the technical and medical staff, and all the amazing runners with whom I had the honour of sharing this wonderful adventure.
It was my privilege to meet so many amazing, warm and special people. I cried leaving the restaurant. It felt like leaving family.
Massive thanks to the crew for an amazing job of looking after us.
Central Iceland · 30 August – 4 September 2027
Six stages. Six days. Everything you need for the week on your back. A start line more than 100 kilometres from the nearest tarmac road, in a landscape that is closed to everyone else for nine months of the year.
On this page The race Course What you carry 2027 schedule Entry Questions
01 — The race
You carry your own food, sleeping kit and clothing for the whole week. We supply water at the checkpoints, hot water morning and evening, a tent to share, and medics on the course.
Black ash deserts, shifting dunes and lava fields old enough to weather and new enough to cut through a shoe.
Meltwater channels up to thigh deep. The two largest are roped, with crew in the water alongside you.
Bubbling mud pools and steaming vents. The volcanic underworld surfacing beside the route.
The opening days stay high in the mountains, where the weather turns faster and colder.
Eight to a tent under an Arctic sky. Most competitors say the tent is what they remember.
A professional medical team at checkpoints and in camp for the duration of the race.
The interior is unreachable for seven to nine months a year. Some sections are run by this race and nobody else.
Run with Vatnajökull National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In places the crew sweep away the footprints.
“I could wax lyrical about the sights and sounds, but I wouldn’t really want to ruin it for anyone. All I will say is, if there is one race you do in your life, make it this one.”
Louise — competitor, 2017
02 — The course
| Navigation required | NoneMarked throughout with red flags and tape |
|---|---|
| Checkpoints per stage | 2More on the long stage, at 15–20 km intervals |
| Water | Resupplied at every CPHot water at the last CP on the long day |
| Cut-offs | GenerousSet so a fast walker can complete each stage |
| Start times | StaggeredMass start on day one, then by previous day’s finish |
| Maps or GPX | Not releasedProtects the flora and the route’s future |
03 — What you carry
Kit is checked before the start and you cannot begin without passing. These are the minimum specifications — most people carry a little more than the list demands.
| Loaded pack weight | 6.5 – 12 kgExcluding water and drop-bag contents |
|---|---|
| Food you must carry | 2,200 kcal / dayMon–Fri minimum; 1,600 kcal on the final day |
| Water capacity | 2 litres minimumLeave every checkpoint with at least 1.5 litres |
| Sleeping bag rating | 2 °CIn a waterproof stuff sack — compulsory |
| Waterproof shell | 10 m HH / 2.5–3 layerOr 20 m hydrostatic head if single layer. Taped seams throughout |
| Drop bag | 20 litres maxDry bag, handed in, issued at the organisers’ discretion |
| Pack volume | 25 – 35 litresTypical. Larger is fine, smaller is examined closely |
Compulsory kit — tick as you pack
0 of 24 packed
04 — 2027 schedule
Race HQ is in Akureyri, northern Iceland. You travel from there to Base Camp in the interior the day before the start.
By 5pm. Medical and kit checks between 7pm and 9pm.
Leave Akureyri for central Iceland. Last night before the start.
The only start of the week where everyone goes together.
Staggered starts by the previous day’s finishing time. One long stage.
Finishing early afternoon. Celebration dinner in Akureyri that evening.
Leave Race HQ accommodation by 11am.
05 — Entry
Entry fee — 2027
What the entry covers
Step one: download the race pack — full kit list, cut-offs, travel and what a day looks like. Step two: read it. Step three: pay your £700 deposit.
Start with the race packAll Iceland have been the official travel partner since 2012. ABTA and ATOL bonded, flights and transfers matched to the race schedule.
Travel optionsNo. The entire course is marked with red flags and tape. Navigation is not part of the challenge here — the terrain is.
Below freezing at night, frequently. There is a saying in Iceland that you can have all four seasons in a day, and competitors have had snow, sunburn and sandstorms in the same race. The first stages stay high, which makes the weather cooler and less predictable.
You can start the next day if you are fit to. Many people who retire choose to help the crew at a checkpoint and stay part of the race. What we cannot do is return you to Race HQ mid-week — every vehicle and every member of crew is committed to the people still running.
We measure with professional GPS instruments and average two devices. We aim as close to 250 km as we can, but the route is shaped to show you the best of the interior, so you may finish a few kilometres over. Most watches connect to fewer satellites than our instruments and will disagree with us.
Yes, from the day you enter. It needs to cover medical treatment, evacuation, travel disruption and withdrawal for any reason. Medical treatment in Iceland is paid for at the point of care by non-residents.
Entries open for 2027
30 August – 4 September 2027. Central Iceland.
