Ferðafélag Íslands | Thórsmörk Trail Volunteers

Dec 7

Back to work… Summer 2017 placement dates available next week

We are now back to work and busy preparing the programme for 2017.

Next week, our search for volunteers begins and once again we will be looking for volunteers to join us for 2-week or 6-week placements. We have conservation work projects planned throughout Thórsmörk and Goðaland as well as trail maintenance tasks on sections of the Laugavegurinn trail close to Emstrur, Hvanngil and Álftavatn. We will also be looking for volunteer team leaders to join our Operations team for 7 and 9-week placements.

The work we have planned for 2017 includes a variety of practical nature conservation tasks, but as always we will focus on repairing and marking the area’s hiking trails. We accept volunteers from all over the world though participants must be 20+ years old. Experience of nature conservation work is not necessary but we are looking for people who are prepared for the challenge of camping and working in these areas with their basic living conditions, remote locations and changeable weather. Volunteers organise and pay for their travel to Iceland but our programme has no participation fee.

Full placement information including project dates and application forms will be available here on December 15th. Although applications will remain open throughout January, we will begin to allocate places as soon as we find suitable applicants. If you would like to join us next summer, please don’t delay sending us your application. Allocations will start on January 2nd and the closing date for applications is January 31st. Shortlisted applicants will then be invited to a Skype interview.

Volunteer opportunities

Nov 1

Thank you to our volunteers and friends…

We would like to thank everyone who worked with us and supported us through another great season in Thórsmörk. We hope that you have good memories of your days on the trails, and that you enjoyed your time with us.

It was a summer filled with drain building, digging through rock, long hikes with equipment and the endless carrying of timber to distant work sites… as well as those highland adventures, the great meals we shared and the many evenings we spent around the campfire.

A huge amount was achieved this season and the results speak for themselves. We really feel very lucky to have worked with such great teams – Thank you all!

Our season officially ends today and we will take a short break before recruitment for 2017 begins. Project information, placement details and application forms will be published here on December 15th and we will start the search for our new team…

Nov 29

With a lot of help from our friends…

One of the best things about working on the Thórsmörk and Goðaland trail programme, is the close cooperation and support that we receive from organisations and companies active in the area.

Reykjavik Excursions (Kynnisferðir) operate a summer bus service and have supported our work since we began in 2012. Last summer, as well as helping with the delivery of food, tools and equipment to our camps, they provided transport for volunteers who were traveling from Reykjavik. Volunteers make their own way to our meeting point at Langidalur in Thórsmörk, so this support was greatly appreciated.

Through their support, Reykjavik Excursions have played a very active role in the improvement of the hiking trails and protection of the area. On behalf of everyone in the team, we would like to thank the managers and staff at Reykjavik Excursions with special thanks to the drivers on Route 9.

Full details of our 2016 programme will be published here on December 19th.

Nov 22

2016 programme dates… coming soon

After a restful autumn break, we are now back to work and busy preparing our 2016 volunteer programme. The placement dates, project details and application forms will be published here on December 19^th.

Once again, the programme will include two and six-week projects as well as longer placements for volunteers joining our operations team (helping with organisation and team leadership). The first Skype interviews will take place on January 2^nd and placements will be allocated as soon as suitable applicants are found.

Applications open in less than four weeks…

Sep 30

Our last team heads home…

Our last volunteer team has now left Thórsmörk and we begin to close down the base camp for the winter. During the last week we have been working with a team of 18 students from the International School of Zug and Luzern from Switzerland.

Despite heavy rain on 4 of their 5 work days, the team did not stop working and they completed a huge amount of tasks around the area. These included trail drainage and surfacing, tree planting, erosion repair work and bridge building.

Thank you all for your hard work! It was really good to work with your team and an excellent way to end our season. We hope that you have dried out by now and that you enjoyed your time with us and those rainy days (and rainbows) in Thórsmörk.

(Pictured: With work completed, there was just enough time for a campfire and a lesson in toasting the perfect marshmallow.)