After a 38-minute drive inland from Vik (around 21km) on the 214 off-road path, you will encounter an Icelandic beauty: a ravine called Þakgil.

This place is located west below Mýrdalsjökull (glacier) and has views over the glacier outlet of Kötlujökull and Mýrdalssandur (sanded “beach”). Enjoy the landscapes on the way to the ravine. There are a few spots you can stop to take very good pictures.

So during the summertime, Þakgil turns into a camping site. There are showers, a kitchen, and a fantastic cave where you can barbecue. You can take your tent, and pay a fee for around 500 isk or rent a cabin for 25.000 isk per night.

Þagkil is also an excellent place for hiking. On the camping site, you will find a map with three different hiking routes from around 6km to 15km. Colors mark the paths, so it will be easy to find them.

Here is a map provided by Þagkil’s website for the people interested in the hiking routes (see red paths).

Þakgil

Kerlingardalsvegur, Iceland