Information about Fimmvörðuháls route

Question

Today I've read an article about the Fimmvörðuháls trekking route in a magazine. As I'm planning a trip to iceland, without dates yet, I need some information I haven't found in Internet and maybe you could give if you have been there.

My doubts are how to arrive to the start point, how to move from the arrival point to the start point (for instance if we come by our own vehicle) and how many days we need to complete the 20 km trekking (in normal conditions, in Spain for instance, it will be only one day walking, but I suppose that if you add wind, snow, ice, a lot of panoramic views that make you stop to take a photo, etc. it will delay the trekking). If I have to spend a night there, is there any place to sleep or should I take sleeping bag, tent, etc?

Answer 1

A possible schedule and route is mentioned on Wikitravel's South Iceland page when talking about the Skógafoss waterfall:

Skógafoss is 60 m tall and 25 m wide and comes from the river of Skógá. The falls have been protected since 1987. Access to the falls is open all year round and there is no admission. A trail leads to the top of the falls (via metal stairs to the right of the waterfall) and up the Skógá river valley. This trail eventually ascends all the way to the Fimmvörðuháls pass between the Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull glaciers before descending to Þórsmörk; the complete hike from Skógar to Þórsmörk generally takes two days. Day hikers can follow this trail as far as they like along the Skógá river, they will be rewarded with views of more than a dozen waterfalls.

So it looks like you can start in Skógá, do a two day hike, and end up in Þórsmörk.