Frequently asked questions

The hours of walking, daily distances, and ascent/descent are given in the itinerary for each journey. The longer hikes alternate between more demanding days and shorter walking days, as we prioritise having time to recalibrate and take in the landscapes.

Look to our difficulty levels and choose a hike that matches your capacity:

• Easy — Suitable for anyone in reasonable health. You should be comfortable walking on uneven terrain while carrying little or no weight.
• Moderate — Suitable for those in good health who exercise regularly and are used to walking on varied terrain.
• Challenging — Suitable for physically active participants with some experience hiking in mountainous terrain while carrying a backpack. Expect 6–7 hours of walking per day.
• Demanding — Requires a good level of fitness, stamina, and previous hiking experience. Expect 6–8 hours of walking per day, often carrying your own gear.

While our journeys can challenge us physically, Soulhike is not about athletic performance or pushing the body beyond its limits. We distance ourselves from a goal-oriented culture that teaches us to constantly strive to "get there." The adrenaline-driven outdoor industry is not our approach. The practice is to not worry about distance or time. We are practising our ability to stay connected in the present moment, however it is presenting itself. We walk to reconnect our minds and souls with our bodies.

Start taking walks on uneven terrain with some ascents and descents. Add a daypack once you feel comfortable. Plan at least a couple of days where you set off for a full day of hiking. In the last months before your journey, extend your walking gradually until you can manage a 20 km day hike. Make it fun, and use the chance to explore terrain you've longed to connect with.

Your feet and ankles will be challenged on the longer hikes, so don't overdo it. Over time, you may wish to move away from highly supportive footwear and towards shoes that let your feet work more naturally and build strength, such as Vivo Barefoot. Many of us spend our lives in environments that give our feet and joints too little variation and challenge. Gradually introducing more natural movement and less restrictive footwear can help build strength and awareness of the ground beneath your feet.

Please listen to your body and ask it how far it can take you. You do that by gently challenging it with hikes a little beyond what you usually do. If you experience too much pain, or struggle with distances far shorter than those we'll cover, please reconsider whether now is the right time for a longer hike. Your health is your responsibility — and a great one.

On the longer hikes we have two guides, so there is always a front group and a back group. We never want to lose sight of anyone, so there's always an awareness of how far apart we are. If you are simply not able to continue, we will connect you to the nearest transport services so you can leave the wilderness safely — at your own expense. So, kindly, don't be overambitious.

Roughly one third of our day is silent time. During the hiking itself, about two thirds of the time is silent, and on days with more room in the schedule there is individual silent time for nature-meditation and writing. It's always made clear when it's time for silence. All mealtimes are open for talking — as are parts of the hikes.

We ask you to respect the periods of silence, as they are essential to connecting and building awareness within the group. That said, of course there are things that must be spoken regardless of the silence — particularly anything relating to safety or health. As guides, we can break the silence at any time if we feel it's safer to be communicative.

Stay with it — and know that there will be time to share your experience of the silence afterwards. It's normal to feel uncomfortable or bored. Simply be with those feelings; they will change if you don't fight them.

Hiking in nature is genuinely therapeutic, and many aspects of nature-therapy practice are woven into the hikes. We do not, however, promise therapeutic effects, and this is not a substitute for one-on-one therapy — the format is also short, whereas therapeutic work usually unfolds over a longer period. We do hope, though, that the hikes will inspire healing practices in your own life.

A funny question — but an understandable one! New age has certainly lifted many seekers off the ground. Soulhike is the descent back down to it. Our name reflects this: embodied soulfulness. Using silence as a connector, and holding a value-set of love and respect for the planet and all its species, does attract people who resonate with this — and it's often reflected in the energy of the group. The average soulhiker has a spiritual orientation to life and is seeking like-minded souls who share a deep love of nature — however we may choose to name our deities.

Of course. Here's how an average day on a Soulhike tends to look:

• 7:00–9:00 — A typical day begins with a couple of hours of grounding, practical work. We prepare food and lunch packs, pack up, and get ready for the day's hike. The guides share the weather outlook.
• 10:00 — We either set off on the day's hike, or spend an hour on nature-meditation (sit-spot practice) followed by time for journaling. Afterwards we gather for a group sharing session. In larger groups we form sharing pods to keep the sharing intimate.
• 11:00 / 12:00 — On a shorter hiking day, we set off around now for our next camp or cabin. Silent hiking begins, with frequent breaks. Lunch is taken no later than 2 pm at a beautiful, suitable spot. Depending on the schedule, there may be time for sit-spot practice and journaling. The hike usually ends around 6 pm, and we settle into our next spot.
• 19:00 — Communal dinner around 7 pm, followed by optional sharing pods or free time. We also share information about the following day.

Our guides hold the NOLS Wilderness First Responder certification — among the most respected wilderness-aid qualifications in the world, used by leaders internationally. We place safety skills above all else, but we do not require a specific guiding certificate: there are many paths to becoming a hiking guide, and we value experience and life perspective more highly than formal credentials. Our guides know the routes and the places deeply — guiding a Soulhike is no superficial thing. Note, too, that we don't focus on informational guiding. We're always happy to share knowledge, but we recognise that information feeds the mind without connecting the heart, so our guiding differs from the traditional "old-school" information model.

In groups of fewer than 9 people there is one guide. On the longer Highland hikes there are always two guides — one at the front and one at the back.

We navigate using downloaded, GPS-connected routes, and carry a compass and maps. On the Highland routes we also carry satellite-connected walkie-talkies.

We cross rivers two at a time, which is safer and more stable. Backpacks are unclipped at the waist, and everyone is given a hiking pole. Before crossing, we change our shoes — so be sure to bring wading shoes for the Highland hikes.

Yes, absolutely! Soulhike is an excellent choice for solo travellers of all genders, because of the emphasis on connection.

Safety is our highest priority. But hiking in the wild always carries risk, so you should be prepared that safety is partly your responsibility too. If you follow your Soulhike guides, you will be far safer than hiking solo in Iceland.

We sleep in simple mountain cabins in dormitories, so single-room privacy isn't possible there. On the all-inclusive camping tours, you're given your own single tent, which offers some privacy.

You are welcome to book with a friend — just support each other in staying open to the experience and to the group. And yes, you're very welcome to have a pre-trip call with Elsebeth; simply get in touch.

Yes, we will. We'll position ourselves as close as we can to the central line, which runs offshore, south-west of Snæfellsnes — from there, totality lasts longest. The path of totality covers both the Snæfellsnes and Reykjanes peninsulas. We may choose a different spot to follow the weather if the skies are clearer elsewhere.

Totality will last between roughly 1 minute 45 seconds and 2 minutes from our location.

Yes, we can and will.

Eclipse glasses are not provided — you'll need to buy your own.

Nowhere is as magical or scenic for watching an eclipse as the Snæfellsnes peninsula. The ocean views and open landscapes also make the eclipse darkness stand out all the more.

Wild Hike & Write (Sweden)

• Included: guiding; transport to and from Copenhagen Airport; meals & snacks; tents; gear.
• Excluded: sleeping bags.

Time of Legends

• Included: guiding; transport from BSÍ in Reykjavík to the Highlands and back; all meals except lunch on day 1 and dinner on day 6; hut-to-hut luggage transport; accommodation in mountain-hut dorms.
• Excluded: hiking gear and sleeping bags; transport to/from the airport or hotel; accommodation before or after the hike.

Solar Eclipse

• Included: guiding; transport; campsite accommodation; entry to Hvammsvík thermal baths; optional rental of tents and inflatable mattresses; optional hotel pick-up.
• Excluded: all meals; transport to/from the airport; accommodation before or after the hike.

Soulhike reserves the right to alter tours and itineraries because of weather or road conditions. Any programme may be changed or cancelled at any point during the trip to ensure the safety of guests and staff. We accept no responsibility for losses or expenses caused by delays, changes to flights or other services, or by strikes, accidents, sickness, damage, negligence, extreme weather, war, schedule changes, or similar causes.

If Soulhike cancels because too few guests have booked, you'll be notified at least 14 days in advance and receive a full refund.

For the longer hikes, our refund policy is:

• 15% of the tour price is non-refundable.
• 50% of the tour price is charged if you cancel 30–59 days before departure.
• 75% of the tour price is charged if you cancel 16–29 days before departure.
• 100% of the tour price is charged if you cancel with less than 16 days' notice.

For Wild Hike & Write there is no cancellation policy: all sales are final, but you can reschedule your booking for a different weekend.

All cancellations must be made by email.

We advise, but do not require, travel insurance that includes rescue and cancellation. Insurance is not included in the tour price, and it's your own responsibility to understand how your policy covers any medical costs on the journey.

All international flights arrive at Keflavík Airport. From there, shuttle buses to Reykjavík leave from just outside the terminal every 20 minutes — no need to book in advance. The shuttle buses stop at Reykjavík's BSÍ terminal, which is also where our hikes depart from, so it's easy to find your way back. Hotel transfers coordinate with the shuttle buses.

• Wild Hike & Write: starts at 3 pm on Friday at Copenhagen Airport; ends at 6 pm on Sunday at Copenhagen Airport.
• Time of Legends: starts at 7 am at BSÍ (we depart around 7:30, so please arrive in good time); ends at BSÍ on day six, around 8 pm.
• Solar Eclipse: pick-up at your hotel, or meet at the BSÍ bus terminal at 8 am on day one; ends on day five at BSÍ or at your hotel.

The huts are simple, but cosy and well-kept. Some have bunks, some have beds set side by side. We're confident it will feel comfortable — after a day's hiking, all you'll want to do is crawl into your sleeping bag and sleep.

They're generally mixed-gender, but we can certainly arrange a women's corner — or a men's corner. And do bring earplugs!

I am on a mission to support people towards greater nature-connectedness — and my prescription for that is Soulhike. I believe that disconnection from nature is one of the greatest lacks in today's modern society. If we are out of touch with nature, we are out of touch with ourselves — our bodies, our deeper needs, and also those of others. We then make choices we would otherwise not make, to satisfy needs we would not have if we felt more connected.

I think one of our deepest needs is to contribute positively to the world — and it is out of this need that I made the decision to leave an academic teaching job to teach in a way that lies closer to my heart. I realise that more information is not the answer. Through interaction we can learn much more — and we need to go beyond interacting only with our own species and open ourselves to deeper interaction with the more-than-human world. Yes, I mean inter-action, since I experience that the more-than-human world answers us back. Communication is always dialogic.

And what about my real-life bio?

I was lucky to develop a deep connection to nature in my childhood, growing up in Nuuk in Greenland. My parents were biologists, dedicating their lives to wildlife protection across the Arctic and to climate-change research. They took me into the mountains and told me about the living world. When I was nine years old, in 1990, we moved to Denmark.

Then followed thirty years of schooling, marriage, two children, and a teaching career — and then the unravelling of that life, followed by moving to Iceland in 2020. Here I was brought back to my child self, who played outside all day in the fjöllin. I started taking on jobs in the Icelandic Highlands, and chose to go fully into guiding and hiking in 2025, when I founded Soulhike.

• Guide education at Háskóli Íslands, Ferðamálafræði (still unfinished; started 2024).
• NOLS Wilderness First Responder.
• 3 years as summer warden on Fimmvörðuháls; hiking guide with Útivist (1 year).
• Credentials as an educational expert and 13 years of teaching groups, 4 of them at university level.
• A background from living in Greenland, Iceland, and Alaska, with many trips into the wild.
• Pilgrimage on the Camino, 2025.

Soulhike is something new. It combines the depth of pilgrimage — an ancient tradition of walking with intention and meaning — with modern outdoor hiking and practices inspired by nature therapy.

For thousands of years, philosophers, pilgrims, and thinkers have understood the value of walking. Walking has long been a way of thinking, reflecting, grieving, celebrating, praying, and finding direction. Soulhike stands in this tradition while bringing it into a modern context.

Unlike a standard hiking tour, Soulhike is not centred around performance, achievement, or the destination. We are not interested in collecting summits, kilometres, or elevation gain. We walk to experience the landscape rather than to conquer it. The practice is to slow down, to notice, and to stay connected to the present moment as it unfolds.

Soulhike is also not a wellness retreat. There is no retreat centre, no spa treatments, no promise of transformation. What Soulhike shares with the retreat movement is the intention to step away from everyday life for a period of time, and to create space for reflection, simplicity, and renewal. The difference is that our retreat takes place while walking — with changing horizons, weather, and landscapes becoming part of the practice itself.

If you're near Copenhagen, Wild Hike & Write is the place to start — it's designed for outdoor beginners preparing for longer journeys into the wild. If you're in Iceland, Soulhike will soon offer day hikes around the Reykjavík area, which will make a lovely first taste of Soulhike.

Yes, definitely.

Yes — mindful day hikes from Reykjavík are on the plan. Time in Reykjavík can easily become overwhelming, especially on a short stay, and taking a day hike with Soulhike that ends in a thermal pool is the best way to ground yourself in Iceland.

We're hoping for spring 2027.