Nielsen Brown Outdoors

The tale of 2 Tarptents.

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Thu, 31 May 2012 14:40:00 +0000

I have been an admirer of Henry Shires Tarptents for a while, in particular his recent additions to the Tarptent range, including the Tarptent Moment, and when one became available in in Denmark, I had no hesitation in buying it. However, as the Moment arrived I began to read a very long thread on BPL.com about the Tarptent Notch, a lot what I read about the Notch was appealing in particular its similarity to the Moment but without the need to carry extra poles, I was now torn between two options for summer in Lapland. So the obvious was to have both and test them in the demanding conditions that Denmark and Southern Sweden have to offer, each of which in no way will simulate conditions in Lapland. Thus this is a report of my comparisons of the two shelters.

Firstly the technical stuff:

                    Weights

    Tarptent Moment         877 gms.    (with optional liner 1014gms)
        Stakes(pegs)         48 gms.
        Total               925 gms.

    Tarptent Notch          750 gms.
        Stakes(pegs)         66 gms.
        Total               816 gms.

    MLD DuoMid              526 gms.
        Stakes(pegs)        100 gms.
        BPL UK connector     46 gms.
        MLD SoloMid Inner   260 gms.
        Total               932 gms.

Notice how the weights for the DuoMid soon add up, as well note the extra pieces carried to achieve a bug free environment in the summer in the DuoMid. So form a simplicity point of view either the Notch or Moment appeared to be better than the DuoMid, and the Notch provides a saving of approximately 100 gms.

Weight is important but so is sleeping space and protection from the weather, looking at floor areas next;

                    Floor Areas 

Moment
    Sleeping                18 sq.ft.; 1.62 sqm.
    Vestibule               11 sq.ft.; 1.02 sqm.

Notch  
    Sleeping                15.2 sq.ft.; 1.412 sqm.
    Vestibule               12 sq. ft.; 1.12 sqm.

MLD DuoMid
    Sleeping(solomid inner) 17.5 sq.ft.; 1.63 sqm.
    Remaining floor space   27 sq.ft.; 2.5 sqm.

Area wise the DuoMid has the largest footprint, however I do find that towards the sides the space is less useable, whereas the Notch and Moment have more useable floor space because of the struts at the end and the steeper sides. Therefore, living space is about useable space not just floor area. I normally use an Exped Syn 7UL which I have used as a base to measure the heights from the centre of the mattress to the centre of the roof of the shelter as well as at the ends of the mat, these are given in the diagrams below, along with the measurements for the floor length.

                    Heights above sleeping Mat 

Moment
    Centre height                           84 cm.
    End height                              43 cm.

Notch  
    Centre height                           90 cm.
    End height                              38 cm.

MLD DuoMid
    Centre height(inside solo mid inner)    114 cm.
    End height                              20 cm.

Henry lists the Notch as 3 to 4 season and the Moment as 3 season shelters respectively, I am not sure how he determines the rating apart from his extensive experience I assume.

My observations to date. I have used both shelters for 4 nights, though each in different conditions, however, with Niels using his Moment while I used the Notch on our last trip along the Hallandlseden it enabled me to compare the 2 shelters in the field.

Condensation: both shelters had condensation on two nights, however, the difference between the shelters was; in the moment the condensation is in the sleeping area, whereas the Notch the condensation was outside the inner netting at least limiting the likelihood of the user touching the damp sides.

Sleeping space: the netting inner in the Notch is smaller than the space in the Moment, thus there is less space to move around, the width of the notch inner fits the Exped 7 UL with a little space on the sides at the centre as well as some space at the ends.

If you were confined to a shelter in bad weather then the Moment would have more internal space, however, the twin vestibule options of the Notch ensure that you can have a wet and dry area.

An inside view of the Moment.

Looking through the end vent of the Notch

Exped mattress and Aarn Featherlite Freedom in the vestibule of the Notch, and there is still another vestibule on the other side.

Poles, if you use trekking poles then it would appear that the Notch weight wise is a better option, however, if you do not use poles then the Moment would possibly be a better option. On our last trip we had little chance to test the wind worthiness of either shelter, though the Moment is capable of withstanding strong winds, according to several users on BPL.com. Likewise it would appear that the notch with its low profile is wind worthy and with the addition of guy lines through the vents to the top of the poles I would suggest that the stability of the shelter in cross winds would be improved.

Perhaps one of the best aspects of the Notch is its two doors, both can be opened for views, for breezes, or alternatively one can be opened the other closed. I spent a very pleasant evening at Mästocka watching the sunset from inside the Notch.

However, while camped at Mästocka I also noted that the "floating floor" on the Notch may be be problematic on sloping ground where a lot of tension can be placed on the elastic connecting the inner to the outer, if the floor moves.

One more thing, the inner can be completely removed on the notch and thus the notch could be used with a bivy or not, thus lightening the load even further, (the weight of the outer only is 430 gms.) One of these two shelters will accompany me to Lapland this summer, I am still deciding on which one.

Addendum

Basti raised some interesting questions about packability of the two shelters. So I have added this addendum, with a photograph comparing the two along with a Nalgene bottle. The packed lengths are given in the table below.

Packed lengths

Moment
Length 54 cm.
Diameter 15 cm.

Notch
Length 44 cm.
Diameter 12 cm.

Both shelters have struts at each end which can be removed if preferred, though I find in both cases for ease of setup at the end of the day the struts are left in the shelter. In the case of the Notch it is these poles which determine the length of the packed tent, whereas in the case of the Moment it is the length of the hoop pole which determines the length of the packed tent, though this could be removed and carried separately reducing the size of the packed shelters to similar dimensions. Note that in the photo both sacks also contain the pegs for the shelter. I have stored both shelters attached to the outside, or stuffed down the inside, both options work well.

To respond to Basti's other comment re snapped tent poles, in the field the moment hoop (Easton aluminum 7075-T9) could be taped together as an emergency repair (or you could carry a sleeve). The Notch can be erected with one trekking pole, there would be some flapping which could be reduced with the use of cord and maybe the good section of the trekking pole. Below tree line the Notch could easily be erected using a stick or supported by a tree.

Hallandsleden: Ätran to Knäred

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Fri, 25 May 2012 18:20:00 +0000

Niels from Backpackinglight Dk, and myself set of on a trip along the Hallandsleden. The trail links the Coast to Coast Trail in Skåne, with the Bohusleden and forms part of the North Sea Trail. After 3 buses, 2 trains, 1 ferry and a taxi (because the train was late) we arrived the beginning the walk in Ätran, it was late in the evening as we set off under threatening skies in humid conditions, it was calm.

We followed the trail around the banks of Eseredssjön, past the shelter, and soon we had wet feet as we crossed the mossy ground then climbing past new roadworks we headed south determined to cover a few kilometres before sunset. We finally found a place to camp next to Holmsjön and after setting up camp we were rewarded with a wonderful sunset.

I also discovered that there were a few midges around and it seemed they preferred my blood to Niels.

During the night it rained so it was a damp start to the morning under threatening skies. We wandered through the forests, admiring the range of sceneries, both man made and natural.

After passing Brännvinsgölen, also known as the The Schnapps Pool, it was drizzling by now and I did not stop to taste the schnapps, maybe next time. Soon after we passed one of the these restored markers indicating a quarter swedish mile (one swedish mile is 10 km)

As we wandered the weather varied from no rain to drizzle to hail, I wore the ULA rain kilt the whole day and did wonder about the looks I was getting from passersby but in the relatively calm conditions it worked well. As we walked Niels and I chatted a lot about gear, recent trips as well as admiring the scenery in its various forms.

Late in the afternoon after crossing the motorway we followed the Nissan as it passed through the gorge into Rydöbruk. By now the skies were darkening as we crossed the bridge over the Nissan and past the church. Our aim for the day was Sandsjön, which was a little further than we expected and to the accompaniment of a hail storm we arrived at the shelter only to discover the shelter was about half a kilometre from the lakes edge and campsites were not optimal and few and far between, I was happy that the Notch had a small footprint. Over night the rain had cleared and our shelters were partly dry in the morning, the weather was expected to clear and with a hint of sunshine we started off.

Continuing through the forest and settled areas, we passed by dilapidated buildings, man made channels for water powered saw mills.

Then we returned once again to the forest and the idyllic surrounds St. Allgunnen.

We spent considerable time walking through the forests on a range of road types including some foot trails and as we entered a small hamlet we came across two types of transport,

and

I know which I would prefer to travel on, and will most likely last longer, as long as I can find a horse to tow it. By now the weather was warm and sunny which made for pleasant albeit warm walking. We continued southward finally crossing Fylleån after which we began to look for a suitable site. We ultimately found a campsite and settled in for the night.

An early start the next morning took us to Gyltige, where we ate breakfast and enjoyed the view from the shelter.

Joining the Halmstad–Bolmens railway line, which is now part of Banvallsleden a 250 km cycle path between Halmstad and Karlshamn we walked past the beautiful lake Simlången before entering Simlångsdalen.

Ahead of us lay the climb back up to the top of Danske Falls, these 35 metre falls provided a wonderful back drop as we climbed and then continued southward.

With darkening clouds we headed along the minor roads with the occasional drops of rain the weather never got any worse and as we headed across the Mästocka heath plains we were looking forward to camp after covering 37 kilometres for the day.

We chose to camp near the shelter though tents were not as close as they had been the past nights, coincidence I am sure.

I settled down to enjoy the late evening sunshine, thankful that the rain had held off, it was beautiful evening, as the sunset over Björsjö.

It was to be ashorter day today, with the promise of sunshine and an ice cream or two at the end of the trip. As we wandered it appeared that some of the road maintenance people had some spare time and paint and had decorated the tree stump.

Descending to the historical village of Bållalt, the trail took us along boardwalks through the heath on what was named an artTrail. Ultimately we crossed Krokån with its calm waters.

Before heading into the forest, to meet our first snake for the trip, the Huggorm, was about 25 cm in length, and kept us entertained for a few minutes at it tried to decide which way to escape. After that we crossed Krokån again,

and then wandered down past the falls admiring the old mill house.

Finally we entered the outskirts of Knäred, which was the end of what had been an enjoyable walk through varied countryside.

Western Mountaineering Flash Vest

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Mon, 21 May 2012 12:50:00 +0000

I am a great believer in down for warmth and also appreciate the quality of Western Mountaineering sleeping bags and clothing. Last year on my trip in Lapland along the Nordkalottleden I used a Western Mountaineering Megalite sleeping bag which in a regular size weighed 750 gms, and it provided me with sufficient "wiggle room" and length to keep me warm, and too warm some nights. I also use the Western Mountaineering Flash Jacket, this is a lovely jacket ideal for cold evenings and during winter I layer it under a BPL Cocoon Hoody.

As I started my planning for the coming trip to Lapland, I begun to look for a vest to layer under my BPL Cocoon Hoody when the temperatures dip into the single figures. I was pleased to discover that an online retailer Outnorth had the Western Mountaineering Flash Vest in stock and I did not hesitate to purchase one.

The vest is of simple construction, large pockets, no collar as well as a zip down the front, it layers well underneath a puffy hoody and the XL weighs 184 gms. I used it on my last trip along the Hallandsleden; the first evening of use was after arriving at camp in hail storm, I was chilled and it was only when I put the vest on under my Haglöfs Lim Barrier Pullover (no longer available), that I started to warm up. On the last night of the trip with a cool breeze coming off Björsjö at Mästocka I was surprised at how comfortable and warm I was wearing the vest over a shirt and woollen short sleeve shirt.

If you are looking for a down vest then I can recommend the Western Mountaineering Flash Vest.

Never look a gift horse in the mouth

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 18:07:00 +0000

A while ago I commenced a walk along the Sjællandsleden starting at Korsør, planning to finish in Næstved, sadly the cold got the better of me so I headed home from Skælskør. Recently my employer decided to conduct a two day training session at Kobæk Strand near Skæslkør overlooking the Sjællandlseden. Okay so I was really keen on this training session, but once it was finished I recognised that I could go for hike. You can guess where my thoughts were as I was told about the wonders of web 2.0, the benefits of group work etc. However, the dinner in the evening with endless supplies of refreshments had the potential to impact on the quality of the hiking experience the next day so enjoyment in moderation was the key. Before breakfast the next morning I was packed and out the door, well before most were awake. After about half an hours walking I stopped on top of a small hill overlooking Yderfjord, I boiled water for breakfast and sat enjoying the misty view as a light snow shower passed by, I was content. Passing through the apple orchards I entered Skælskør, as the intensity of the rain increased, yes it was late April but it seemed like February. Leaving Skælskør I headed to Borreby Castle with its theatre.

Having partaken of morning tea I moved on. The small country roads that I followed were quiet and with the cold wind in my face I did not spend a lot of time stopping before I reached Basnæs Skov, here I found a chair out of the wind in the sun ensuring that I relaxed before setting off to the next important historical landmark Holsteinborg, an amazing place which even from the road side indicated a large country manor dating back to the 1300's.

Leaving the manor precinct I headed into Rude Skov, which provided a wonderful forest section with many flowers in bloom.

Along with some fascinating trees.

Leaving Rude Skove I entered the small fishing hamlet of Bisserup, it was a sunny saturday afternoon so the ice cream shop was busy and were happy to fill up my water bottles. The next stop was Kristiansholm Plantage which was camp for the night. The forest was alive with young children accompanied by their parents as they played and explored the forest, ultimately they headed for home and the forest became quiet, I found a campsite with views out to sea.

After dinner I sat down to watch the sunset.

It was a beautiful evening, until the sound of thunder indicated that a storm was approaching and a retreat to the tent was a good idea.

Retreating to the tent I then settled down to listen to the storm, and an audio book on my iPod. The next morning after a leisurely breakfast I set off towards Karrebæksminde, it was to be a short day though I spent some time enjoying the hazy view from Strandbakke, near Klinteby.

As well I met another lightweight hiker and we discussed our gear, they indicated they preferred the no cook option and lightweight packing enabled them to appreciate the surrounds as they slow packed.

I had now walked the coastline form Stevns Klint in the east to Korsør in the west, there had been some enjoyable sections and some which were less so, but in every case the trail had enabled me to enjoy the nature of the area and appreciate the countryside.

There will be more trips along the coast in Denmark.

Blekingeleden: Ronneby to Kristianopel Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 09:30:00 +0000

I left you with the vision of an early morning view of Stora Alljungen, I had arisen before sunrise, and it was cold and clear, I was immediately torn between taking photos or cooking breakfast, ultimately I found a way to do both. As I ate breakfast and drank coffee I watched the mist on one side of Stora Alljungen and the rising sun on the other.

As the sun gradually engulfed the entire lake, fragments of mist hung to the banks on the eastern side of the lake.

With a long day ahead I finally packed up and moved on, soon stopping to look back over the lake to one of the two accommodation houses. I was feeling great having spent a wonderful evening in a wonderful location, one cannot ask for much more.

I continued along the path around the lake and followed the markers as they pointed up hill. Then the trail decided it was time to head south, problem. There was a massive blow down of trees in front of me, my estimate was there was a width of 100 metres of flattened pine trees to the clearing on the other side, this was compounded by the fact that the blow down continued almost down to the lake (about 400m away) and for an indeterminable distance up the hill. It must have been one massive wind storm that had passed through the recently cleared pine plantation flattening what had been left standing by the timber cutters.

I was left with 2 choices up the hill or down the hill, consulting the map it seemed that the trail was in the middle of the blown down trees, and would eventually come out on the other side, so I chose to go down the hill get around the flattened trees and then climb up the other side. This plan worked though a stumble and fall led to the destruction of one walking pole, no problem I did not need them for my shelter this trip, but it did make me think on my dependence on the poles and the "what if situation" on a long trip. After further climbing, tree clambering and other fun activities I finally found the light at the end of the tunnel, and was happily relieved to be back on the trail, with a minimal number of obstacles.

From there the trail returned to its normal pattern of pleasant forest sections, quiet country roads and the occasional bitumen highway, however, it was mostly quiet forests and country lanes that ultimately led me to the bridge across Lyckebyån.

I was taken by the light on the pine trees and the contrast between forest on one side of the river and farming land on the other. I wandered across the open farmland before crossing on the stile, in doing so I heard a number of strange sounds from the guy standing on the stile. Now I am not sure what language he spoke but I am guessing he was angry that I came from the wrong direction and I did not pay him. Be warned, he may get aggressive if you meet him face to face.

After surviving the encounter with the bridge elf I walked through the hamlet of Strömsberg where the local school children were out enjoying lunchtime in the sun. Leaving Strömsberg I rounded a corner on the trail and came to a delightful lake and with a sloping rock face, I needed no encouragement to sit down, have lunch and lay out in the cool sunshine. No I did not fall asleep, but it was tempting.

Leaving the sun drenched rock I headed to Mörtsjöåsen crossing the river that connects Olljungen with Stora Åsjön.

Passing through the holiday village at Mörtsjöåsen I was relieved to find that I was going in the right direction to Kristianopel.

By now it was getting late and I was looking forward to getting to camp and relaxing, so an upwards pointing arrow was a little disheartening, and whilst the climb was not steep, I was ready for relaxing not climbing.

I soon found myself back on the country lanes, wondering about the significance of a helmet sitting on top of a sand box. Do you need a helmet on to put sand down on the road?

Before long I was at Älmtasjön and after inspecting the shelter I found a camp site overlooking the lake and settled in for my final night on the trail.

It was a colder night than the previous night and the condensation inside the Moment was in the form of ice, whilst eating breakfast two geese arrived and commenced paddling in the water below me. As I was on the sunny side of the lake my assumption was they had come for some warmth. I also expected them to move on as soon as I started packing up but they seemed oblivious to me.

According to the track notes accompanying the map of the Blekingeden, there was nothing special to see for the remainder of the trip, so it was with some trepidation I set off. However, what is special for one person may not be for another, having completed a pleasant forest section then a long road walking section I came upon what is known as a Cellar House.

Here workers were provided with free accommodation and were required to work for a certain number of days a month. The conditions would have been harsh and once inside it would have been dark, especially during winter time.

However, what I noticed was how much warmer it felt inside than it was outside. This particular house was occupied by Per August Olausson who was born in 1882 and lived there tíll 1942, he died in 1975.

Once again for me it was thought provoking to be able to reflect upon the life style of these workers living in these small huts undertaking the tasks set down by the landlord whilst also surviving in what at times must have been very harsh conditions.

Having spent considerable time admiring the hut, I set off. One of the big problems for farmers in the area is the prevalence of rocks which make it difficult to cultivate the land and over many years the boulders have been moved to the perimeters of the fields to form stone fences. Now stone fences are not uncommon but what took my eye with this particular stone wall was its width, it must have been close to 2 metres wide, amazing.

Ultimately I reached Kristianopel which also has many stone fortifications as it was once part of Denmark and it was not until 1658 that it was returned to Sweden.

I had reached the end of the trail and all that was left to do was to look out to sea and contemplate what I had seen and the options for my next wanderings.

Blekingeleden: Ronneby to Kristianopel Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 16:30:00 +0000

The Blekingeleden is a marked trail that begins in Sölvesborg and finishes in Kristianopel (or Broms) I was first attracted to this trail when walking from Sölvesborg to Östafors in 2009, ever since then I have planned to walk the route. Over time I have covered the sections from Åkeholm to Östafors and Ronneby to Åkeholm. I set off on a sunny sunday morning from Ronneby railway station, after having travelled on the first train out of Copenhagen, accompanied by many young passengers wending their way home from a night of partying, some drinking Tuborg and others sleeping.

It was a cool sunny morning as I walked along the banks of the Ronnebyån.

Eventually I left the roads and headed into the forest and it felt fantastic, the birds were singing, the forest in its winter colours, helped me to feel at home. The trail wandered through the forest before returning to the roads and byways to the east of Ronneby. I wandered along the narrow country lanes as I headed North East away from the sea and the freeway. As I wandered I appreciated the feeling of being outdoors and experiencing the many different landscapes from farming, to forest, to small industry. I crossed the railway line a number of times as I wandered and contemplated the importance that the line had to the development of the communities in the area. I passed by one the biggest early bronze age grave mounds (about 25m in diameter and 5m high) of which according to Wikipedia there are 14 in the area. The historical aspect of the areas I hike through fascinates me, as it is always evident that "man" over the years has constructed different buildings, some of which have withstood the test of time whilst others have not. In the country of my birth there is little evidence of construction prior to the arrival of europeans, whereas in Sweden, as it is in Denmark, the existence of buildings goes back many centuries. It makes me wonder what will be visible in a 1000 years or more from now. Further north I passed by a Högloftsstuga, it has a high loft as well as lower rooms, the design was fascinating once again demonstrating the ingenuity of the pioneers, or maybe it was design by necessity.

Further forest trails and roads led me to Skärsviken and Listersjön for the night. I was well aware of an approaching storm and it was evident from the wind and sky that I would need to find a sheltered place, after some consideration I found a place to pitch the tarptent.

The location of my campsite provided some interesting objects such as a Blue Boat, which had not been in the lake for a while and I was not sure that it would float for long at all.

I set up the moment and soon it was raining so I quickly dived inside and cooked dinner immediately recognising that bringing a half empty canister of gas to use with a jetboil in temperatures around zero meant that it would not be a jet boil, but a slow boil. Ultimately I had dinner and the rain cleared so I headed out side for a wander along the beach.

Then I just sat on a rock admiring the lake and watching the approaching storm.

Returning to the shelter I recognised that the next time I go for a wander I must clean up my shelter before leaving, as you nerve know who may visit.

It did rain, then hail and snow later, the waves in the lake washed away the footprints on the beach and the hail stones were still in evidence in the morning and I suspect it was a long time before they melted totally. However, at least the morning bought sunshine and the blue sky indicating a cold but clear day was to follow. I set off admiring the calm waters of Listersjön.

The trail continued with its mix of roads, unused forest rails and footpaths ultimately taking me to the boundary of Ronneby and Karlskrona Kommune (Municipalities) now this has to be the first time that I have come across a welcome sign on a foot trail, there was no road nearby, I was impressed.

I continued on ultimately descending to another lake, Hörnen, a popular fishing place which for the time being was deserted and provided an ideal lunch stop.

After lunch there was the inevitable road walk through the forest, some of which had recently been harvested leaving a scar, and the forestry road was showing signs of heavy use. I descended towards Rödebyån along the road when much to my surprise the markers (of which there are plenty) suddenly indicated that the trail crossed the river. Now I am happy to get my feet wet in Lapland, but down here, nah, there must be a better option. There was.

Having crossed the river on a bridge I then turned north and followed the trail along a disused railway line. The Krösnabanan which followed the banks of Nättrabyån and made for easy walking with many oppurtunties to stop and reflect on the forests, the river and what it must have been like in years gone by.

Having left the tranquility of Nättrabyån I followed the bitumen and gravel roads through a number of small farming areas before returning to the forests around Kroppasjön, and it was here that my greatest surprise occurred. When walking in trail shoes, Inov-8 315´s, and using Pacerpoles you do not make a lot of sound and if the wind is blowing, as it was, then most animals will not here you coming. So as I rounded a corner on the trail there in front of me stood a moose (elk), I was as surprised, as it was, and it took one look at me and took off into the scrub. I was stunned by its size and realised why they can make a mess of a car, or hiker, if they run into you. No photo, so you will have to believe me that it happened and for the first time in all my wanderings in Scandinavia I have seen a moose in the wild.

However, I looked around and also noticed the green boat just sitting on the rock, a long way from any water so I took a photo of it instead. Are you wondering about the boat? I am, having taken the photos and put the camera away then I hear noises in the bush, what more moose I think, no, it was 2 young wild boar crossing the path and heading into the scrub. Yep I am now thinking this is a bit spooky. A moose, 2 wild boar and a boat … (for my aussie readers the song a Drovers Dream came to mind). I decided at this point I should leave as who knows what would come next.

Seeking the sanctuary of Stor Alljungen (the largest spring fed lake in Blekinge). I found a camp site late in the afternoon adjacent to Alljungen shelter, and settled in to cook dinner and enjoy the peaceful surrounds.

I admired the large accommodation facilities and speculated on how busy it would be during the summer period, but for now the entire area was mine. Taking photos as I wandered I finally returned to my tent and retired for the night.

It was a peaceful night, with no wind and no cloud it was also a cold night. I awoke before sunrise and looked out upon a still lake, once again appreciating the beauty of the area.

There is more to come, suffice to say the trip increased in variation and interest.

Along the Sjællandsleden: Præstø to Fakse Ladeplads

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 18:25:00 +0000

I alighted from the bus and headed to Hollændersskov entering the forest I could hear the rhythmic flap of the swans wings as they flew along Præstø Fjord. As I wandered I admired the old row boat resting peacefully in the reeds. Nearby it was also obvious that the reeds had been harvested for roof thatching. ON this cool weekday the forest was alive with activity there were timber fellers as well as the sounds of birds. Whilst, out in the fjord there were various water birds making their presence known.

Leaving the forest I passed around the inlet admiring the old thatched roof houses, wondering whether the rooves were built from the local reeds.

The trail then followed the road before once again entering a small forest within which was the Bredeshave shelters.

There was also a rotunda and slippery slide for the more energetic hiker. It was very quiet in the forest but I could imagine on a warm summers day many families visiting the area, playing and cooking and enjoying the forest.

Leaving the forest it was only a short walk past Marjatta (offering education to developmentally challenged children and young adults) to the main road which hugged the coastline. The road provided many wonderful views of the fjord and its surrounds.

The gem of this section of the Sjællandsleden must be Feddet Strand (beach) with its beautiful white sandy beaches.

The life guard tower and nearby caravan park indicated that this would be a popular destination in warmer weather. I was heading north on this trip, however, I intend to return and visit the nature area of Feddet which lies to the south and includes walking trails, bird observation platforms and beaches. I feel it would be easy to spend a day just wandering, maybe swimming, relaxing and of course grilling a pølse or 2.

I headed north along the sandy beach, it was warm and with calm seas it was a pleasurable experience.

Continuing along the beach I found a calm spot and decided to take a few photos of the water ebbing and flowing I could have easily spent the rest of the day just watching and listening to the sounds of the beach.

Watching the swans seemingly floating in the water, I finally reached the point where the trail left the beach and headed inland past the shelter place.

The shelter area was small with maybe a small place for a tent and no water, it appears that it may also be necessary to book it.

Climbing away from the strand looking south it was possible to see Præstø Fjord to the right and Fakse Bight to the left.

I followed the cliff tops past several burial mounds and by now evening was approaching and the temperature was dropping.

As I entered the outskirts of Fakse Ladeplads I once again joined the beach for one last view, the view to the south provided a picturesque beachscape of sand. water and cliffs.

Whereas the view to the north provided a beachscape of sand, water and industry. For many years Fakse Ladeplads has been a loading place for the shipping of stone and gravel from the quarries at Fakse, thus the resulting township name, Fakse Ladeplads (Fakse loading place)

I caught the train home reflecting upon a wonderful day along the coast of Sjælland, comfortable in knowing that I had now walked the coast line from Stevns Klint to Næstved.

Vordingborg to Vester Egesborg, further wanderings along Sjællandsleden

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 16:51:00 +0000

As I set off from Vordingborg (the birth place of the legendary football manager Morten Olsen), the temperature with windchill was below zero, but it was sunny and I was out hiking, the temperature did not really matter. Heading out of town I settled into my stride with the usual adjusting of the pack straps and organising the clothing such that I was comfortable but not overly warm. I wandered past the massive Rosenfeldt Manor (which had a significant role in the Danish Queen's courtship) Following the road for a while I finally reached Oreby Skov, the trail continued along the road to Ore Strand but I took a detour as I longed to sit on the beach and enjoy the sunshine. I finally found a spot and just sat looking towards Knudshoved Odde. While the swans happily paddled in the water below, life felt good.

Ultimately it was time to move on, and I departed Oreby forest and headed towards Ore Strand. The sun shone and with the cold wind at my back it was a pleasant walk. I was grateful for the summer house owner who had placed insulation around their water tap on the front lawn so I filled up my bottle and continued. There was many wonderful views out to sea, but the old row boat decaying amongst the reeds caught my attention, why was it orange? Who was the owner … etc. were questions that were raised as I kept walking along the embankment that separated the coast from the summer house area.

I finally decided it was lunch time and found a place, out of the wind, and sat down to enjoy lunch with views across Avnø Fjord towards my intended destination (in the distance Nokkeskoven).

I continued my wanderings along the coast, with occasional inland diversions around Avnø Fjord passing the pump station which helps to keep the land drained. Passing the Avnø Nature centre I headed into the wind towards my intended camping destination. With head bowed and looking like a bank robber with my TeMata buff pulled up over my face I headed eastwards into the wind ultimately reaching the shelters and forest.

There were many places that were ideal for a campsite so I set up the Moment, in a minute or so and settled down to enjoy the evening, while the cold wind from the east continued to ensure that I was always well rugged up.

Having cooked dinner on the Pocket stove using alcohol (too windy for wood) I decided to set off to the control tower (at the nature centre) to watch the sunset. As I crossed the plains, two deers were happily grazing and the sun was gradually sinking.

Climbing the control tower with some trepidation I took the camera out and took many photos of the setting sun, it was a very enjoyable experience. Ultimately I decided that it was time to return to camp. I entered the centrally heated nature centre (yes it is open and there is no one around to stop people camping inside) to collect some water and then headed back to camp with the cold wind in my face.

In the morning with some reluctance I got out of bed and noticed the ice on the shoreline, the wind had not abated and it was cold. Packing up with very cold hands is never fun, I then set off towards the nature centre. There are many facets to this centre, the obvious is the birds both migratory and local which live here, as well there are seals that live in the fjord. However, what caught my eye was the solar system. Okay I can hear you saying Solar system? Well here at the nature centre they have a scale model set up of the distances between planets and the sun. So as a lapsed astronomer and educator I took special interest in this model. The photo below is taken at the relative position of Pluto with respect to the sun, the sun (is not the building ) is about 100 metres in front of the building or about 800 metres from where the photos is taken.

From the sun's perspective below it is quite impressive to realise the close proximity of the planets Mercury, Venus Earth and Mars and then the big distances to those planets further away.

Turning away from the sun I took a look at the Avnø Naturcenter, like many other places originally this was a military base, in this case the initial flight training centre for the Danish Airforce which was originally established in 1931 and was closed in 1993. Avnø is also a part of Natura 2000 and thus is a nature protection area.

With the sun still shining I finally departed Avnø, recognising that I would like to bring others to this wonderful area, as it provides many opportunities for those interested in nature.

Leaving Avnø the trail took me through open farmland and minor roads before arriving in the township of Svinø, here the church with its Commonwealth War graves provided a sombre interlude to the walk. Passing through the township and heading towards the coastline of Dybsø Fjord I arrived at Månehøj jættestue. A jættestue according to Wikipædeia is passage grave or tomb from the Neolithic period built of large stones covered in soil these graves were built between 3500 and 3000 BC.

Månehøj jættestue, is unusual in that it is a double passage grave.

I left the jættestue, after taking a closer look at one of the entrances, and headed across the open plains, into the wind, ultimately arriving at the shelter at Køng Overdrev, Overdrev is a communal grazing area. The shelter is privately owned and the cost for a night is 20 Danish Kroner (about US$4) there is plenty of space for tents and even a small football field. It was an ideal place to have lunch and a warming cup of coffee, or two.

From here I wandered through the small township of Kostræde Banker, overlooking Dybsø Fjord.

Passing over the high point of Stejlebanke, I headed into Vester Egesborg to wait for the bus. It had been a nice walk, albeit a bit cold, and as I sat on the bus, plans for the next walk along Sjællandsleden were already being made.

Gear Reflections
I was impressed with the Tarptent Moment, it kept the wind out and has a surprising amount of space inside it for one person. I now have the dilemma of whether it will be the Duomid or moment in Lapland this year.

The Pocket stove worked well in conjunction with the Companion Burner, but given the cold windy conditions it was heavy on fuel use. Once I was home I experimented with the Starlyte burner and was able to get the water to boil with less of a flaming inferno so maybe in milder conditions the starlyte maybe a better option for cooking in a vestibule.

BPL UK Pocket Stove: Wood Burning

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 18:53:00 +0000

I had an opportunity today to explore the possibility of using the BPL UK Pocket Stove in wood burning mode and my view is that it will boil water in this mode and is better than some wood burning stoves, however, the Bush Buddy remains the best stove if your focus is on wood burning.

Using an Evernew 900 ml pot.

Water is boiling, now time for coffee.

Wood selection is critical, the water has been boiled and I have now found some more birch, the fire in the stove continues.

So where does this leave me, in my view the BPL UK pocket Stove used in conjunction with a Zelph Companion stove is an excellent alcohol stove, as a backup the Pocket stove can also be used as a wood burning stove.

On an upcoming trip I will be using the pocket stove, and my plan is to use both alcohol and wood modes.

Stay tuned.

BPL UK Pocket Stove

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 15:28:00 +0000

Like many others (such as Robin) I purchased the Titanium Pocket Stove from Bob and Rose over at BPL UK, I was intrigued by its size and its multi fuel options. The stove arrived a couple of days ago and I immediately had to try it out.
I was interested in seeing how it worked with a Trangia burner. My normal test is to boil 600 mls of water, as this is what I would normally use at camp in the evening. I was pleased to see that using the Trangia burner it did boil water, but used 37 gms of alcohol.

Next I tried Zelphs Starlyte stove a nice size wedding tin stove which is appealing for its weight and compactness, however it only holds about 25 mls of metho and with air temperatures of around 5 C and starting water temperature about the same the water did not boil, though it would have been hot enough for a cup of coffee.

Finally, under the same conditions, I tried Zelph's Companion burner which I normally use with my bushbuddy. Success, initially I used 40 mls of alcohol and it boiled the water and continue to burn for another 3 minutes. After allowing everything to cool I then accurately measured out 25 mls (20 gms) of alcohol and again achieved a boil in approximately 9 minutes. I am optimistic that this combination may be a useable option on a wide variety of trips, for the weight conscious, the stove weighed 55 gms, the burner 40 gms, Evernew trivet 13 gms, and Al wind shield 30 gms. Of interest was that I found it was better to place the open door of the stove away from the opening of the windshield, field tests will follow.

Icy Coastline

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:58:00 +0000

It was a grey and gloomy day as I set out from Korsør railway station through the streets of Korsør, home to the world's oldest operating movie theatre (Korsør Biograf Teater) before following the Lagunestien around the frozen banks of Korsør Nor to Korsør Lystskov.

By the time I had exited the forest it was snowing and I continued along the trail, then along the beach towards Skælskor. Walking along the frozen sandy beaches was easy, but the gloom and the cold made for less than ideal conditions. However, like every coastal walk there are always interesting sights to be seen, in this case it was the abundance of ice along the coastline, as well it was possible to hear the distant fog horns of the Storbælt bridge and the rhythmic hum of the ships sailing between the Baltic Sea and Kattegat prior to entering the North Sea.

Furthermore, I was amazed by the swans and other sea birds who either found unfrozen sections of sea to paddle in or stood on the ice, as the snow fell and the wind blew. Finally I passed the impressive shelter area of Kobæk forest, complete with heated toilet facilities, before walking into Skælskør, at which point I began my journey home. Whilst cold and grey, the area had convinced me to revisit it and continue my explorations along the Sjællandsleden.

A walk in the cold from Vester Egesborg to Næstved

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:04:00 +0000

Originally I had planned a 3 day walk along Avnø Fjord and then Dybsø (deep sea) Fjord in southern Sjælland, however, with predicted temperatures including windchill below -20 Celsius, I decided that a day walk may be better option. I alighted from the bus in the small medieval village of Vester Egesborg and the raw cold and windchill had me donning an extra layer. Wandering through open farmland towards the coast line of Dybsø Fjord it was bright and sunny and out of the breeze walking on frozen ground and ice almost seemed pleasant.

Earlier in the week it had been windy and the evidence of windswept snow, now ice, was to be seen on the banks of the drainage channels, it also made me appreciative of being there in winter as the thought of open wind swept plains with accompanying dust was not that appealing.

Ultimately I arrived at Basnæs a small fishing village, with evidence of fishing nets and poles providing a contrasts to the frozen fjord and forest in the distance.

Wind turbines are very much a part of the danish landscape and the trail took me past three rotating in the breeze (with their distinctive hum) and the length of their shadow was an indication of the angle of elevation of the sunshine at this time of the year.

As I entered Vejlø forest I looked back to the three sentries generating power for those who were indoors on such a cold day.

By now it was lunchtime and finding a log to sit on I sat down and enjoyed the view across the fjord to Gavnø, I was fascinated by the trails in the ice on the sea.

As I sat in complete silence I could here the ice moving and the flap of the swans wings in the distance, as they moved from one patch of water to the next.

Ultimately I reached Gavnø with its accompanying castle overlooking the river.

I was also taken by the detail of the chain connecters on the concrete posts of the bridge leading to the castle.

All that was left was a walk into Næstved, however, it was perhaps the most interesting aspect of the trip as the trail seem to do its best to avoid roads and instead wandered along the banks of the Suså river as it wound its way towards the the port of Næstved.

The sun was setting as I reached the port area and the temperature was also dropping and with large sections of ice in the port area it was apparent that winter had definitely arrived. It had been a very enjoyable walk and demonstrated yet again that no matter where you live you can always find somewhere interesting to walk.

Gendarmstien: Høruphav to Broager around Sønderborg Bight

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 12:55:00 +0000

Sometimes there is snow in winter in Denmark, but appears more likely to me that it will be very windy, rainy, muddy and possibly gloomy as well. This was the weather I experienced on this trip which was a complete contrast to my experience last year where there were snow drifts of over a metre deep. I set off from Høruphav in the early afternoon in cool but sunny weather, the trail starts near the Hotel Baltic, originally established as a ferry inn in 1665 it is now a luxury hotel and restaurant. Passing the nearby harbour where some boats were still moored I followed the well made and marked path around the shoreline, with the sun shining and little breeze it was cool but enjoyable, gradually I left the day walkers and the dog walkers behind as I continued past Stenholt and into the Sønderskov forest.

The trail gradually climbed and followed the cliff line providing expansive views to the south into Sønderborg Bight and in the distance Germany. The forest was popular with many day walkers taking advantage of the cool afternoon sunshine to enjoy the views and experience the wonders of the forest. Before long I had reached camp for the night, the site provided views across Sønderborg Bight to Skelde Købbelskov my destination for the next night. The disadvantage of the site was its proximity to the trail but as the evening cooled and it became darker I had the forest and the views to myself.

Well almost. I watched the sunset as I ate dinner and enjoyed the peace and tranquility, interspersed by the sounds of large fireworks going off in Sønderborg (6 km away). However, my peace was further disturbed when in the darkness of the night I heard an axe being used followed by the use of a bush saw, moving to a position where the sound was coming from I could see a head lamp being used as the person cut a small tree down. Deciding I did not need to know any more I sat and watched as the person left as quietly as they came. I never heard anymore, and the forest returned to its peacefulness with the sound of waves lapping on the shore. I retired for the night, looking forward to a wonderful view in the morning.

During the night I awoke to a strange electrical sound and looking outside realised it was now foggy and it was a fog horn I could hear, oh well back to sleep. Later the wind got up and by morning there was no fog but it was quite windy and given my exposed location I was very impressed by the way the Duomid barely moved in the wind. After a leisurely breakfast in bed, I packed up and set of pleased that the shelter had very little condensation. The weather was best described as gloomy and with a strong wind blowing it was going to be a long day of walking along the exposed coastline into the wind.

I continued along the coast and ultimately arrived in Sønderborg, I was impressed by the outside of Sønderborg Castle as I was with the multi colour facades looking out over the Alssund which connects Als Fjord with Sønderborg Bight.

It was as I wandered towards King Christian X Bridge, I noted that the navy were out on manoeuvres and was rewarded with the bridge being elevated to allow the patrol boat to head out into the bight, they did not seem to be in any hurry, nor were they when I saw them later in the day returning.

Having crossed the bridge I turned southward and headed into the farmland that surrounds the east coastline of the bight, the weather was not ideal and the views were limited and with the strengthening wind I did not stop for long. During this section I passed Danske Skanse 1 which formed part of the defences in the Denmark German war of 1864.

Further along the coastline I arrived at the quiet, at this time of the year at least, summer house area of Vemmingbund. Leaving the road I followed the somewhat narrow shoreline, watching swans feed in the sheltered waters adjacent to the coastline, ultimately the shoreline and the bank became one, so crossing over a barb wire fence I continued finally regaining an old trail that took me around a swamp and into the forest though the trail was never far from the sea. At least on this side of the bight the hills provided shelter from the wind, however, the roaring of the wind through the trees could be heard overhead. Some more ups and downs along the cliff tops ultimately brought me to a small fishing village with a caravan park, which was open (unusual in winter to say the least) I popped in for some water and had a pleasant chat with the proprietor, and felt that this campsite would be a nice place to revisit in the warmer months. If you are in the area take a look at the Broager Strand Camping. I commented that I had been in the area at the same time last year and the proprietor indicated that at that time they were snowed in for 5 days, which I can believe given my experiences on the other side of the peninsula. Having filled my water bottles I set off to find a campsite in Skelde Kobbelskov, a free camping area in the forest. By now the wind was roaring and it was cold, I quickly erected the shelter and dived in as the first shower arrived. Fortunately it was short and I was able to cook my dinner outside and sit (sheltered by a large tree) looking back over where I had come from including the lights of Sønderborg along with the occasional burst of fireworks across the bight. Soon however, the rained returned and it was clearly bed time, at 6:30 pm. I had downloaded part 2 of the Bob and Andy Christmas special podcast. In my view part 1 was better maybe it was the christmas cheer that made it so, however, I did need to take my ear plugs out on several occasions to determine where the rain was, it was mostly on my shelter, not their's. I awoke the next morning to even stronger winds and rain (later I found out that ferries had been cancelled because of the predicted gale force winds). As per normal I had breakfast in bed and then packed and viewed with trepidation a day of walking along the coast into gale force winds, many questions remained unanswered as I packed. The soft option was to walk along the roads, or find the nearest bus stop something you can do on smart phones now. However, I decided to stick with my original plan stay on the coast and avoid all roads. Thus I set off. I was wearing Haglöfs Oz, Macpac fleece, Rab Boreas, Smartwool hoody, BPL possum fur hat, Chocolate Fish TeMata Tuara as well as my Ibex soft-shell pants and Montane Featherlite pants.

As I left camp it was not raining and the views were briefly magical, before the cloud increased. Initially I headed through the forest before descending to the beach where I would spend most of the remainder of the trip. Following the beach I continued my walk south west and then heading northwest at Kragesand all the time noticing the swell and the wind. As I headed northwest towards Skelde Vig I was continually pounded by the wind, but was thankful that there was no rain, I was also impressed by the grip of the Innov 288's as I walked along the pebble strewn beaches, at no time did I slip and at all times I was able to feel the varying texture of the ground as I walked.

I had taken the "dotted line" on the map instead of following the road walk and whilst it may have been a problem at high tide times it seemed that today at least apart from the wind this was the better option. Ultimately I rejoined the trail at Skrækkehøj which took me across a newly built bridge across a stream exiting Vigsmose, from here it was an easy walk along a foot trail to Wolffsgårdvej. Now for some reason, which is unclear to me, the trail heads inland to the township of Gammelgab, before returning to the shoreline about a kilometre further on. Now for me that did not make sense so I decided to continue along the rock strewn beach. I was going fine and saw no problems, except that the weather gods decided to punish me, walking into the wind and a severe hail storm is not to be recommended wherever you find yourself and this part of the beach offered little shelter except to turn my back to the storm. I waited what seemed like an eternity until the storm abated and then turned around to see more blue sky accompanied by lots of cloud, yep more storms were coming. Onward, ever onward, I was pleased that it was not raining and ultimately I reached a place I had been 12 months ago, and found shelter out of the wind and sat down to eat and relax, if only the sun had been warmer it would have made my day.

Soon afterwards I left the beach and followed the roads and trails to Brusnæes and then to Broager where I caught a bus to Gråsten before catching a train home. There were more storms and more hail and more wind and more rain, which were interspersed with short sunny breaks. Overall I enjoyed the trip a lot, I feel the Gendarmstien is a trail I will revisit as it provides a touch of history, options for stealth camping as well as a wonderful seascapes.

Gear reflections.

Inov-8 288's I have now completed over 100 km's in these boots and they continue to provide comfort. support, protection and grip no matter what the terrain. Yes there is some seepage of moisture from the outside but when cleaning them at home I have noticed that they still hold water ( a disadvantage in my view) but it seems to me that until Inov-8 produce a non GTX boot then these will be my boot of choice. Of and by the way they are now lighter but I will need to wait until these are worn out.

MLD Duomid a lot has already been said about this shelter I feel that this shelter may suit my needs better than the Trailstar, but for now both are highly recommended, choice will depend on the user's needs.

Olympus EP-2 Do yourself a favour (to quote a well known Aussie identity) if you are in the market for a new camera then take a look at the Olympus 4/3 offerings, they may meet your needs.

Haglöfs Oz, Macpac fleece, Rab Boreas, Smartwool hoody a combination that kept me warm and dry.

A walk, a camp and a touch of snow.

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 15:01:00 +0000

I set off late towards Tisvilde Hegn and after leaving the station I headed into the forest, it was a cool, grey cold evening. But what really surprised me how calm it was, the sea was calm and with no breeze there was nothing to be heard. I wandered through the forest admiring the various twisted shapes of the trees, but being so dull the camera was struggling. After a while I set up camp and settled in for the night. Settling down after dinner I listened to Bob and Andy and their Christmas in a Tent podcast quite impressive and funny especially when the strong gusts of wind hit the tent, a contrast to my location. Soon I was nodding off to sleep to the sound of a Pearl Owl and later a Tawny Owl. I awoke during the night to the sound of light rain, which I realised in the morning was snow.

It was still snowing lightly as I exited the trailstar.

After packing I followed the coastline before heading inland, admiring the twisted pines with their light covering of snow.

I soon returned to the beach and looked out on a very calm sea with a few walkers out enjoying the calm.
I was amazed to see that the sword is still in the rock it appeared refreshed with its dusting of snow.

For me it was back to the train and then home.

In closing have a happy holiday season and enjoy the trails wherever you may be.

Lesson learnt in Gribskov

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 15:10:00 +0000

I had been hoping to get away for a couple of days but various distractions put paid to that plan. However, a window of opportunity opened, or was blown open with the passing of the last big storm. I was keen to try out a different clothing arrangement, and with very windy conditions predicted it seemed like the ideal time to head out.

I learnt a number of lessons this trip, which are;

Lesson 1; Mapping

I had spent some time the night before the walk downloading the walking route maps (Vandreture) from the Danish Nature Agency (Naturstyrelsen) for the Gribskov area and carefully printed them on waterproof paper. As I alighted from the train at Kagerup station I realised that the maps were still sitting on the dining table at home, so I set off with only a general idea of where I was going. Now such unplanned trips can be exciting and provide interesting insights into the area as you wander aimlessly along considering which way to turn next in order to get to your planned destination. Fortunately when all else fails I can turn to Google Maps on the iPhone. I enjoyed the wandering and ultimately arrived at Mårum railway station as it became dark. So the first lesson is if you need maps for a trip it is always a good idea to take them.

Forest and lake

Lesson 2; Food

Recently I had made some of Mike Clelland's Super Spackle using his recipe in Ultralite Backpackin' Tips, now those who have seen the pictures of super spackle will know that it has a marzipan like consistency which is high in calories and deliciously tasteful, though so rich that even a person who loves sweet things could not eat a lot in one sitting. So I put some in a ziplock with the intention of eating it with a spoon. Problem, no spoon was packed, and aside from possibly using a credit card as a spoon I was pretty limited, though I did find a bottle cap does work as a spoon. Now some will say you could carve your own spoon, that implies you are carrying a knife. The second lesson is if you are carrying spackle and intend to eat it, or of your having a lovely warming lunchtime pasta then packing a spoon (or knife to carve a spoon) is recommended.

Maglemose

Lesson 3; Clothing

I had been reading Dave Chenault comments on the Rab Boreas on his excellent blog Bedrock and Paradox and whilst I will never be able to attempt some of the wild adventures that he does, I find his insightful comments on the clothing he uses and abuses as informative. As well there is Mike Clelland's you tube video on clothing tips to further inform. Mike's premise is that you can keep adding layers on top of the previous one, that is you do not remove a layer of clothing before adding a new layer. I had chosen to go wandering on the day where the wind speeds were predicted to gust to 20 metres per second with temperatures between 0 and 5 degrees C, resulting in wind chills being well below zero. Informed by David's and Mike's suggestions I was wearing the following setup on my upper body:

Base layer: an original smart wool hoody (I had forgotten how much better the hood is compared with some of the newer merino hoodies), over which I layered a lightweight MacPac fleece, next came a RabBoraes Pull On, finally there was the Rab Demand. I was also wearing a Possum Merino hat and a ChocolateFish TeMata Tuara. I was soon too warm and the first to go was the hat, followed by the Rab Demand (as it was not raining) For the remainder of the day I found that these three layers kept me comfortably warm when walking. Even when stopped for lunch, sitting inside the DuoMid, I never needed to add the insulation layers I was carrying.

The Third lesson is; a breathable windshirt (Boreas) works in cold windy conditions and as part of a layer system works for me.

Gribsø from the picnic shelter

Lesson 4; Make your pack your own.

Over the years I have tried many packs, some very heavy and some very light. Lately I have settled on the Aarn Packs, not so much because of the way they balance the load between front and back (though I do feel for big loads this is very effective) but more because of the comfort of the harness system. Recently there have been a number of discussions concerning the design of harness systems and again there has been some excellent comments on the angle of shoulder straps and the design of hip belts over at Bedrock and Paradox as has there been by Chris Wallace on BPL. Recently I acquired an Aarn Peak Aspiration, because of its lower volume, certainly not its weight. Interesting design features of the pack include 2 horizontal aluminium stays and a single vertical stay, as well as a thin deldrin (or equivalent) hoop. I quickly removed the horizontal stays and the vertical stay was removed soon after I started walking, the resulting change in comfort was impressive especially given that I had 8 kg in the pack. Prior to the walk I had already removed much of the excess straps and the next item to go will be the pack lid, I have not used a lid on a pack in over 3 years and see no need for one any more (knife is coming out). Interestingly under the lid there is a roll top closure as well as a strap linking the front pocket (feature I like) to the frame of the pack. So the ultimate weight of the pack will be about 1.2 kg (2.6 lbs) still too heavy in my view. Hopefully, I can find someone who will the help me remove the pack fabric and replace it with dyneema or equivalent as I feel the frame, hip belt and shoulder straps works for me. The fourth lesson then, is once you have purchased a piece of gear do not feel constrained by the manufactures design, make it your own by modifying it in which ever way it suits you.

The walk: It was a pleasant walk through the windswept forest as I passed Gribsø, Maglemose and Hvildekilde. The forest was empty of animals, birds and people but still had a variety and colour that was indicative of forest in winter.

There are many places still to wander in the forest and I will return with a map and a spoon, but as always I will focus on the wandering and not on the destination.

In case you are wondering about the wind, the following short video clip maybe informative.

Præstø to Vordingborg; Along Sjællandsleden

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 09:00:00 +0000

Wandering the Sjællandsleden.

The Sjællandsleden is a series of interconnected trails around the island of Zealand, the island on which Copenhagen is located. The trail mostly follows the southern and western coastline but occasionally detours into the hinterland. The scenery can be rewarding, and often you will find places where quiet contemplation is possible.

I was looking for a walk for three days and scoured the online maps of the Sjællandsleden to locate an area where most of the time I would be near the coast, be in the forest and have opportunities for stealth camping, having walked the sections from Rødvig to Fakse Ladeplads and Stevns Trampsti, thus I decided upon the section between Præstø and Vordingborg.

After an interesting time on public transport, with delayed trains, missed bus connections I finally arrived in Præstø, the beginning of the walk along St Antonius Stien which forms part of the Sjællandsleden.

I followed the coastline, wandering through the outskirts of Præstø before finally heading across country along the trail through Næb Skov (forest) and then farmland along country roads before entering Rekkende Skov. By now the cloud had cleared and it was a cool, breezy clear afternoon and quickly I began to appreciate the forest, the light and the reality of being outdoors. As with most of my trips, whilst I plan a route I do not research on what I will likely see along the route and as a consequence there are unexpected surprises, both natural and man made. For this trip the first surprise was exiting the forest to see Oremandsgårds Husflidsskole (built in 1872 and declared a protected building in 1979). The school was intended to train students in in a range of crafts.

After passing the school I wandered through the farmland, passing an interesting

tree root arrangement before descending to Sandvig harbour with its boats and also 2 shelters with wonderful views out to sea. However, I continued south hoping to find a location in which to pitch a tent.

By now there was no cloud and and the air was cooling but I recognised that I had some more road walking to do to get to the next forest my home for the night.

As the sunset I located a suitable spot and set up camp, it was a relaxing night, whilst it was cool I felt comfortable stretched out in the dried leaves as a I ate dinner and drank coffee. The moon was beginning to rise and provided and a wonderful backdrop to a pleasant location in the forest.

The next morning I awoke to another overcast morning and after extracting the unwanted slug from my porridge I set off quickly being reminded that Christmas was fast approaching.

Ultimately I exited the Viemose forest and followed the coastline past the summer houses into Kalvehave, with it distinctive coat hanger bridge across Ulv Sound.

Leaving Kalvehave the trail takes you away from the coast and in the grey windy gloom this section was perhaps the most frustrating of the trip, though passing through the surrounds of Petersgård reminded me of the days when landed gentry owned large parts of the land.

I was surprised that there was so many pheasant around in the forests certainly more than I have ever seen before. Having settled down for lunch I looked up and noticed the tree, with its distinctive face. What do you see in the photo?

After lunch, I continued along the trail to find the unexpected sight of these two pentagonal shapes next to each other. Did the person deliberately stack them this way, or was it random? An interesting conundrum.

Leaving Langebæk Skov I entered Stensby forest, by now the cloud was beginning to clear and the views out to sea encouraged me to continue, I was now in the large Fredrikskov which abuts the E47 (E56) freeway which takes you to the ferry at Gedser and then onto Germany. Below the freeway on the shores of Storstrømmen is Ellehammers house (the birth place of Jacob Ellehammer a danish aviation pioneer)

The houses are now used by groups, nearby is a shelter place and with the freeway 30 meters above the continual hum of traffic will help those who need vehicle noise to send them to sleep.

The bridge itself provides some wonderful views and geometric features which fascinated me.

As the sunset I settled down in my shelter and enjoyed the evening.

It was a cool morning as I packed up and prepared to continue my wander along the coast, the cloud was now gone and the early morning sunshine provided a variety of shades and tones on the surroundings.

Along the coastline there were many buildings including this old pink hut.

Heading away from Bakkebolle strand I climbed towards Ørnehøj, a burial chamber dating back around 5400 years.

The morning light provided wonderful contrasts on the rock formations.

Visbile from this highpoint was both sections of the Farø bridges across Storstrømmen.

Descending from the burial tomb the trail returned to the sea and as I wandered along the shoreline I marvelled at the tranquility, the wonderful views.

It was easy to just stop and take time, I was in no hurry and in such tranquil surrounds I felt relaxed and invigorated.

All good things come to an end, and I reentered Vinterbolle forest, however, there were still surprises firstly Valdermars place, named after Valdermar Atterdag, King of Denamrk from 1320 to 1375.

Within the stones there is a rock with a circular hole, legend has it that Valdermar's horse hoof made this imprint, must have been one powerful horse.

As the trail meandered through the forest I finally arrived at Beværthuset part of the Køng Linen Works, interestingly when researching on the web about the linen works I discovered that a linen bleacher, Charles Burd, came from Scotland and became bleaching master at the Vintersbølle around 1800. The linen works ultimately closed down in 1900, and Beværthuset is all that remains of what was undoubtedly a very busy area in times past.

Beværthuset sits in a quiet valley with a stream quietly flowing towards Storstrømmen, as I crossed the stream and wandered through the forest I recognised that the trip was drawing to a close, soon I would reenter built up areas and before long be in Vordingborg. Passing through Nyråd the trail then joined the old railway line which once connected Vordingborg to Kalvehave Havn.

There was still one surprise to come I had entered the outskirts of Vordingborg and my focus had turned to which train would I catch to get back home, then as I turned the corner I was confronted by the remains of a large castle. Now my thoughts changed to did I have time to explore, yes was the answer.

The remains of what is known as Vordingborg Castle the largest middle age fort in Denmark which comprised 9 towers and over 800 metres of walls. Later I discovered that it was the first protected building in Denmark being preserved in 1808. The Goose Tower (Gåsetårnet) is the only preserved section of the original fort and is shown in the photograph below.

The remaining walls of the fort provided a colourful contrast to the surroundings and I felt that this was a pleasant ending to what had been an enjoyable walk and historical discovery of Sjælland.

In closing I would say that ignorance is bliss, I set of on a walk because I wanted to spend a couple of nights out, but in the end the trip was much more, I learnt a lot about the history of the country, found places that I did not expect and all in all learnt a lot from what I have realised has become for me a walking discovery tour of my adopted country. There will be more discoveries.

Some gear observations.

Innov-8 288 boots, I have had these boots for a while now and used them on a number of short walks but this was the first extended walk I had taken them on, and my feet were very happy, even with extended periods of road walking. What surprised me was how dry my feet felt at the end of the day, given that they are normally damp from sweat. I will be using them a lot more through winter so will write more in due course. One note of caution however, is the sizing, they seem to be bigger than the normal Innov-8 sizes in the toe box area and some people may be able to size down.

Trail Designs Sidewinder and Evernew 900 pot, my preferred alchol stove and even when temperatures hovered between 0 and 5 C the stove was as efficient as ever averaging 30 gms of fuel per litre of water.

I was pleasantly surprised to find the Exped Syn 7UL to be a perfect fit inside the Katabatic bivy and with the MLD Spirit 30 quilt was comfortable and warm at all times.

Blokhus to Hantsholm, along the Nordsøstien

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sat, 22 Oct 2011 09:55:00 +0000

In what is becoming an annual event I set off for the West Coast of Denmark, the planned route started in Blokhus a popular tourist area in northern Jutland and concluded in Hantsholm a large fishing and ferry port further south.

The weather outlook for the trip was for cold clear days at the beginning turning to rain and strong winds by the end of the trip, in this case the forecasters got it right.

After a long train and then bus trip Niels (from Backpackinglight Dk) and I arrived at Blokhus, after a quick visit to Aldi for a Jolly Cola we headed off along the trail firstly passing many summer houses before entering a landscape of farmland and forest. Along the way we passed a golf course where the continual "ping" of golf balls could be heard along with the sight of golfers searching in the rough for a ball. The trail wanders along small roads passing through farmland for much of the time and with the sun out and a slight breeze it remained cool. We passed by the Briket factory where turf was turned into brikets for heating, it was in the mid sixties with the increasing availability of oil and gas that these factories were no longer able to survive.

After passing the factory we soon entered Koldmose, a forested area, with plenty of water, fortunately the trail was elevated and as we wandered through the swamp the dampness and cold was evident, soon afterwards we found ourselves in Sandmosen, which was more like a sandy forest with trails of soft sand and rolling sand dunes. The trail took us to what appeared to be the highest point in the area, a quick look at the GPS indicated that the height of this point was 18 metres above sea level.

The sun was sinking in the western sky and the shadows lengthening so we took our photos enjoyed the views in the cool afternoon sun and moved on.

After leaving the highest point we entered Tranum Klitplantage (forest) and located a campsite for the night. However, in doing so we were surprised by both the number of deer in the forest and the size of the deer, especially one stag, possibly a Kronhjort which was the biggest I have seen in Denmark.

After dinner we soon retired to our tents and listened to the calls of the deer as they wandered around the forest some of whom passed nearby our tents.

We were up early the next morning and quickly packed before heading towards Overklitten Sø, the forest was quiet but the nearby roads were busy with the commuters heading to their places of employment. Overklitten Sø was calm and in the misty morning light there were wonderful views of heath and the water.

As we sat on the top of the viewing platform we could hear the ducks, and other birds, calling out and whilst it was cold it was easy to just hang around and enjoy the amenity of the area.

So it was time to move on and with a little drizzle falling we donned our wet weather gear and set off along the trail running parallel to the main road. Ultimately we turned towards Bratbjergsøene and after a slight navigational error resulting in a circumnavigation of the Sø we headed towards Tranum. We made a brief stop in the local supermarket in Tranum and then headed into Langdal Plantage with its early autumnal colours.

Langdal plantage was the site for lunch, and it was here that Niels discovered the largest tick he had ever seen, which was fortunately attached to the outside of his trousers. I knew then it was only a matter of time before I too would have an encounter with one or more of the little b's. It was a pleasant wander through the forest and we finally reached the beautiful Lerup Kirke sitting above Fosdalen, we stopped for a few minutes before descending through this magical valley complete with its old (and now dry) Frue Kilde coupled with this wonderful tree complete with a circular hole in the trunk.

Leaving the forest we descended once again to the heath land which led us to Slettestrand, a small village complete with holiday centre we followed the trail past the closed kiosk to the beach. A new boat landing facility was established here in 2000, when the fishing boats are to be beached (or launched) they are connected to cables and winched up onto the beach, or out to sea.

I believe there is only a few of these landings to be found along the west coast.

This was a small fishing village with only a handful of boats on the beach.

Leaving Slettestrand we headed towards Svinkløv strand with its majestic Badehotel with its commanding views of the sea, and it certainly was a tempting overnight stay, but we had other plans. We climbed away from the hotel into Svinkløv forest, here the trail skirts the edge of the heath below and with relatively clear skies, the views of beaches stretching to the horizon made for an enjoyable sight.

Equally however, we noted, (in the centre of the photo below) deer grazing in the heath.

Ultimately we reached Stenbjerg which provided spectacular views along the coast to the west to Bulbjerg, it was near here we decided to camp.

Overnight the wind had picked and it had rained so by morning we had wet tents. From our campsite we could hear the sound of waves crashing onto the shoreline, however, the wind had died down as we descended towards Thorup Strand. Instead of following the Nordsøstien inland to Kollerup and passing through Klim Klitplantage we decided to follow a trail through the heath adjacent to the beach, which had two advantages we would save some distance as well we would have less road walking.

Thorup Strand is a much larger fishing village with many more boats pulled up on the sand, when we asked one of the locals was there any boats out fishing he replied, no because it is going to get windier tonight, well at least we were prepared.

The old life boat route, Redningsvej (marked with a lifeboat symbol) which I had followed further south on a previous trip took us to the top of Bulbjerg. By now the wind was blowing hard it was difficult to stand and take a photo, a storm was fast approaching from the south so we dashed to the world war two bunker which includes a museum to escape the hail and wind and eat lunch. The bunker was a fire control post for a 38 cm gun located at Lild Strand.

However, all the local mosquitos had the same idea, so we found a drafty spot and ate a quick meal and with the weather improving we headed towards Lild Strand, seen in the distance below.

As we continued along Redningsvej towards Lild Strand we could look back to see Bulbjerg bathed in sunshine, but we also knew that looks can be deceiving as even at our level the wind was increasing strength and the air temperature was cool.

We continued through the heath along the trail, and at one point I noted that there was a lot of grass ahead (10 km actually), the skies were darkening and the wind increasing and with the wind in our face it made for less than pleasant conditions, though we did watch a Tårnfalk (or Common Kestrel) continually flying ahead for 100m or so as we approached it, until finally it decided to head away from the trail and thereby avoiding us. Ultimately we reached Hjardemal Plantage only to find that the camp site that we had intended to use was less than ideal and with more than hours daylight left we pushed on, into the wind, ultimately finding a better campsite in Esdal plantage we erected are Shangri La 1´s to the sound of thunder from an approaching storm, after a short hail storm the sky cleared for what would be a cold, windy and occasionally wet night.

We awoke in the morning to the sound of the wind howling through the trees we were soon packed and headed off into the gloom and the wind, firstly along the trail and then onto the beach. We now were heading directly into the wind and with the waves breaking close to the shore we spent what seemed like an eternity walking along the beach, after a while we found a road which whilst still exposed to the wind made for easier walking than the soft sand. A short cross country section led us to Vigsø shelter where we had a quick breakfast in the somewhat blustery conditions.

We continued along the trail on the gravel road which would take us to the next parking area where there was a couple of campervans being buffeted by the strong winds from the south west. To the north we could see some of the rain showers that had already passed, and the dark skies were an indicator of what was to come.

We continued along the well used redningsvej and while we were not on the beach the going was still hard into the head wind, after a while we turned inland and climbed the cliffs to gain a better view of the surroundings, this resulted in more buffeting from the wind and as the rain began to fall we found ourselves on some very exposed sections of trail with rain stinging our faces as we walked.

It was also about this time that Niels noticed something in the sea about 100 m offshore after a awhile we determined it was a large kite used by windsurfers and once we had determined that there was no one attached to it we watched as the kite rolled and tumbled in the waves while it was being blown parallel to the shore. Later we saw a person jogging with surfboard under arm intending to get the kite, given the wind strength we were not sure that they would succeed. We descended from the cliffs for the final section into Hantsholm, the wind was still blowing and the rain still falling, it was a miserable walk only made better by the thought of a warm ride home at the end of the day.

As we approached the township we noted that there were many vehicles parked in the vicinity of Roshage and we could see both wind surfers and kites there were many dressed in wet suits contemplating the winds and the stormy sea whilst others were out in the water windsurfing, another kite escaped while we were there. It was cold and wet here and Niels commented he thought the surfers were crazy, I suspect they thought we were too.

We continued past the large fishing factories the Hantsholm Wave Star wave energy plant, which was not operating because of the wind and high seas. Before climbing up to the township proper just in time to catch a bus to Thisted, the beginning of the long warm and dry trip home.

As always this trip along the west coast had demonstrated once again the diversity of the scenery the challenges faced by early pioneers in adverse weather conditions, it is a beautiful area and one that I will happily to return to many times over.

Some gear observations.

Jetboil Sol Ti, performed faultlessly even in windy conditions, with cooler and windier weather fuel consumption was 12 gms of gas per litre of water boiled.

GoLite Shangri La 1, ideal for these conditions with its small footprint, low profile and ample space for 1 plus gear, it was in conjunction with a Tyvek groundsheet.

MLD Spirit 30 quilt, this was my first trip with the quilt and I was very impressed, I look forward to using it more in the coming months.

Haglöfs Ozo Pullover, a stand out performer on this trip, even when walking into a strong head wind with wind driven rain there was no leakage through the zip or the fabric, furthermore the excellent hood design ensured that there was no ingress of water around the open face area.

Aarn Featherlite Freedom, as comfortable as ever.

Ibex Indie Hoodie coupled with a Merino Buff (thanks Hendrik) was ideal for these conditions.

Olympus E-Pen 2 coupled with the M.Zuiko 45 mm 1:1.8 and M Zuiko 9-18mm 1:4.0-5.6 lenses, I continue to be very happy with the quality of the photos produced using this set up and with a total weight of 800 gms I believe it provides the level of compactness and quality that suits my needs at this time.

Gribskov

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 17:30:00 +0000

Gribskov is a forest to the northwest of Copenhagen and forms part of a connected series of forests, the area is accessible by train and even though the day was gloomy with showers predicted I decided the time was ripe for a visit. Leaving Kagerup railway station I headed south with the intention of visiting one of the primitive overnight campsites in the area. I turned onto one of the many cross-country ski trails in the area and I was taken by the tree standing sentinel over the surrounding semi cleared area.

The forests were silent, apart from the occasional toot of a train and the cyclists chatting as they followed the nearby cycle trail. Fungi was also prominent wherever I walked.

I stopped for lunch at the primitive campsite, nearby was a corral which I assumed had been built to keep the birch tree from escaping.

Swinging east I zig zagged along the forestry trails, under my umbrella as the rain began to fall. At this point in time I finally found a use for the bottle holder on the shoulder straps of my AmpRace 25, it is ideal for holding an umbrella.

It did not rain for long and as I passed Fruebjerg Sø, I noted that the water lilies were now receding with the onset the cooler weather, this was another idyllic spot and I could have spent a lot of time just watching the world go by.

Leaving the Sø I rejoined a forestry road passing Røde dam as I headed towards Store Gribsø

Many of the forests are used for timber production and I have often been disappointed to return to a special area after a couple of years and to see that it has been logged. There was still the remnants of vehicle tracks and as I passed the stacks of timber the aroma of pine was very evident.

It appears that these newly felled trees were up to 50 years old.

Before long I had reached Store Gribsø, the wind had picked up but there were still calm sections at the edges of the lake.

However, as I passed one section of the lake, the ducks took flight, being hunting season I assume they were a little concerned that I may start shooting at them. Store Gribsø is a large lake which abuts the railway line.

There are still several areas of the forests to visit in this area so I will be back and may even do some overnight trips in winter.

Kullaberg: A day out

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 17:45:00 +0000

It has been quite a while since I had been out for a walk, so when the opportunity arose to visit an area that I had been interested in for a long time I took it.

The Kullaberg Peninsula is less than 2 hours from Copenhagen and is in southern Sweden, the area is also a popular tourist destination for walkers, holiday makers and golfers.

We set of from a carpark on the north side of the peninsula and and followed the trail towards the coast, reaching the coastline we were immediately impressed by the views, calm waters and cliff line.

Swinging west we followed the often mud covered well trodden trail through the forests with the sounds of birds and the ever present "ping" of golf balls being hit in the adjacent golf course.

The trail continued past the golf course before descending towards the point as we begun to exit the forest I was amazed to hear a jet travelling at high speed and at low elevation. A quick look and I noted it was a Vampire jet following the peninsula, these jets were based in the 1960's in nearby Ängelholm. I assume this was a joy flight as later in the day, again when I was in the forest, the jet gave a second show doing a roll as it past the point on Kullaberg Peninsula.

The peninsula is a popular area with many walkers as well as scuba divers in boats and on the rocks enjoying the calm seas and warm sunshine.

The lighthouse is still in use and is also open to the public and with an ice cream shop located nearby the point was an ideal lunch spot.

After lunch the cloud had mostly cleared and the views as we headed along the northern side of the peninsula were stunning.

Finally, the trail turned inland through a cow paddock, the "old man of the paddock" calmly watched us as we and several other walkers wandered by, he did not seemed concerned.

There was many different types of plants and fungi growing in these warm moist conditions.

However, it was also evident that autumn was on its way.

We were intrigued to pass this Queen Bee breeding station, where all the queen bees for Sweden are bred. Hmm there must a "one liner" here somewhere.

By now we had returned to the other side of the golf course and were presented with a wonderful view of the small township of Mölle, which is accessibly by bus from Helsingborg via Höganäs.

Turning away from the coast we reentered the lush green forests on the outskirts of Mölle, before the final climb took us back to the car.

Whilst it was a short walk in a very popular area, it had been a pleasure to experience both the forests and sea scapes of the western section of Kullaberg. I will return to visit the eastern end and maybe combine both for a long day walk.

Travelling to and from the Nordkalotten Trail

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 08:57:00 +0000

Travelling to Lapland is very easy and there are many options including bus, train, plane or your own vehicle.

The following map provides an overview of the Nordkalotten Trail between Kvikkjokk and Abisko.

There are a number of of options when travelling by train to lapland, I prefer the night trains, there are trains commencing in Göteborg, Malmö and Stockholm, all of which will get you to Lapland with a minimum of fuss, I used the Swedish rail booking system to book my ticket to Murjek.

From Murjek I caught the Länstrafiken Norrbotten bus, Linje 94, which passes through Jokkmokk before arriving at Kvikkjokk. There is a short stopover in Jokkmokk which gives you sufficient time to visit the nearby ICA store for those last minute supplies, as well there is an alternative rail service which may be of interest. Along with being the start of the Padjelantaleden and Nordkalotten, Kvikkjokk is also the start of the Kungsleden which will take you north to Abisko there is also a large STF Hostel in Kvikkjokk.

From Kvikkjokk the start of the Padjelantaleden and Nordkalotten can be accessed via boat a short walk from the bus terminus in Kvikkjokk.

If you are commencing hiking further north then the trail can be accessed at Ritsem. A bus service from Gällivare, Linje 93, will take you to the STF lodge at Ritsem, a ferry service (scroll down) then takes to the trail at Vajsaluokta, or you can head north from Ritsem towards Hukejaurestugan and then on to the Kungsleden.

Transport alternatives in Abisko include the night train as well as several regional trains to Kiruna and beyond to Boden, or alternatively train to the Norwegian port city of Narvik. I used the regional rail service to Kiruna from which I flew to Stockholm and then home to Copenhagen. The choice of flights to and from Kiruna is limited so booking early is recommended, especially during the peak tourist seasons.

There are also bus services linking Narvik and Kiruna with Abisko, information about these can be found at Länstrafiken Norrbotten.

Heading further north? In 2010 I commenced at Björkliden railway station (west of Abisko) and walked north to Kilpisjärvi, from where I caught a bus to Tromsø and flew home from there. The bus service was excellent an provided some stunning views of the Norwegian mountains before arriving in Tromsø.

Gautelisehytte to Abisko: Along the Kungsleden

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 23:19:00 +0000

The weather continued to be windy, cool with occasional light showers when I left Gautelisehytte. I was thankful for the DNT markers and appreciated the artist flair on this marker.

The trail headed east towards the Swedish border and ultimately to the Kungsleden. I continued through open moorland with occasional bridges, rocky paths and swampy sections. By now I had decided that my boots would probably hold together, and I with only 5 days of walking left my pack was also noticeably smaller.

Having crossed the border I headed along what I thought was the trail, but it appeared that at some point I wandered off on one of the many reindeer tracks, a look at the map indicated to me that if I continued I would ultimately cross the trail again. However, after awhile I began to realise that not only was I not on the trail but the trail did not appear to be in the same location as shown on the map. A close look at the map indicated a summer bridge about 2 km away, so I decided to head across country to the bridge which entailed a 300 metre climb crossing a plateau and descending to the river. It was still cold and windy and the isolation of the plateau with some views to the valley below made for an eerie walk. I finally began to descended to the bridge, and as I sidled down and around a small peak I came across the bright orange coloured cairns marking the trail. They appeared to come from a different direction to the one I had expected, and thus I decided that the trail had been rerouted since the map was drawn. Feeling happier because I was now back on the trail I descended to the river and sought a sheltered spot for a late lunch.

It was cool and while it was not raining the strong westerly wind ensured that I was wearing my windshirt and my possum fur beanie.

After lunch I finally joined the trail from Hukejaurestugan this trail continues to Ritsem and is often used by walkers wanting to miss the Norwegian section of the Nordkalottleden. However, my advice to anyone heading north or south along the Nordkalottleden is do not miss the Norwegian section, it is in my view the best section of the trail.

I met a solo hiker from Finland heading south to Hukejaurestugan and we chatted for a while, though as the air temperatures were dropping and with the wind strengthening we both headed on our separate ways. I followed the trail east before crossing the river and climbing to a sheltered spot to set up camp for the night.

I was able to achieve a tight pitch and while I did not need the innernet I used it reduce the draft, as well ensuring there was a dry area in which to keep my sleeping gear. During the night I heard a herd of reindeer wander past the tent and continued on to graze further along the valley. In the morning it was still windy and cold and I set off towards the Kungsleden. Again I was having trouble locating the trail with cairns seemingly located on 3 different trails and the occasional boardwalk located high up above the river. However, not to worry there was always a chair to relax in if needed.

Navigation though is not difficult as you are following the river valley to a large suspension bridge across the Tjäktjajåkka. As I approached the Kungsleden groups of walkers could be seen heading south, I decided to have a break beside the Tjäktjajåkka before joining the Kungsleden. Once on the Kungsleden I came to one of the several Meditation Places along the trail, with a cold wind blowing it was difficult to stay for long without getting cold.

I headed towards Sälka Stuga which was about an hours walk away and in that time I passed more walkers than I had seen for the past week and possibly for the whole trip.

Stopping at Sälka Stuga I spent some time talking about lightweight gear with one of the hut hosts, he was using a GoLite pack and a GoLite quilt, we discussed why people were carrying big packs when they were going hut to hut. My answer is "I have no answer" but I guess part of the answer relates to a lack of experience (there were many who seemed very new to hiking along the Kungsleden), others were influenced by a belief that they needed to carry what they normally used at home (including the kitchen sink) others were influenced by staff in outdoor stores and others by some other view. Suffice to say most people I met on the Kungsleden fitted into these categories with quotes such as

"Do they sell coffee here?"
"Can you hold my pack while I take my jacket off?"
"Its okay, the hut has a drying room"
"We gave her a waterproof jacket as she did not have one"
"Last year because he (a 7 y.o) did not want to go any further we got a helicopter to take us back to Abisko."

and visions such as

Male carrying large pack, female carrying small pack.
Man carrying small pack on front large pack on rear while female partner walks ahead without pack.
Hiker wearing poncho which is being blown sideways so most of clothing is exposed.
Jeans, I saw many pairs of jeans being worn in wind blown rain with temperatures just above zero.

There was of course many others who seemed well prepared and happily wandered along the trail, the most common brand of tent seen was a Hilleberg.

With the rain increasing and the wind in my face I continued northward from Sälka Stugen with a plan to camp own the valley towards Tjäktapasset, as the wind was increasing in strength I decided to camp on the southern side of the pass, hopefully out of the wind. Arriving at what I had considered to be a suitable area, which was not as protected from the wind as I would have preferred but given the deteriorating weather I chose a flat spot and set up camp. For an hour or so the was several thumps as the sides of the SL2 flapped, but at no time did the shelter look or feel like it was about to collapse. I snuggled down into my sleeping bag and I was soon asleep and by morning the wind had abated, and better, was now coming from the south ensuring that the wind was behind me, not in front. A quick look at the thermometer confirmed what I suspected it was about 3C and with windchill was probably below zero, it was evident that there was fresh snow on the peaks and I was glad I would be walking with the wind at my back.

I saw many walkers that morning, walking into the wind driven rain as they headed south, I felt sorry for them as I knew it would be a miserable experience, and for many this was their first taste of walking in Lapland and their desire was to get to Kebnekaise and be able to see something. Hopefully they were successful.

Having crossed over Tjäktapasset the remainder of the trip was generally downhill, I spent some time sheltering from the wind and rain at Tjäktastugan and putting on my BPL Cocoon vest which I wore for the rest of the day, this was the only day that I really had to rug up from the cold and damp.

The Kungsleden is a well used trail and as a result it tends to be wide, as people try to avoid the mud, the rocks etc. and as a result I found it harder walking than all of the trails I had covered previously. But the good point is that no navigation is required, just follow the trail so it is easy to wander along thinking about anything else and if the weather is poor then you tend to wander along with your coat hood and the ground in front of you forming a tunnel. Sadly I tended to adopt this approach as well, possibly because I was approaching the end of the trip and with the views being restricted I was happy to walk keeping warm and to get to the end. However, there are always surprises, after passing Alesjaure Stugan I noticed in the distance a lot of activity and as I got closer I could hear a loud thundering sound. I soon realised the sound was from the hooves of many reindeer as they were carolled and the sami were "marking" the young reindeer (scroll down). The picture below does not give a sense of the enormity of the endeavour nor the sound thousands of hooves hitting the ground.

I was fascinated to watch the sami lasso and then mark the ears of the young reindeer before letting them go to rejoin their mothers.

After a while I decided it was time to continue on and with the wind still blowing, but without the rain I found a somewhat sheltered spot to set up camp for the night.

I was up earlish the next morning and continued my journey north, I soon passed 4 tents and there was not a sound or evidence of any movement as I passed. The trail continued to descend towards Abiskojaure stugen and as I got closer I passed many walkers who had stayed at the stugen the previous night. They were from many different countries including Australia and New Zealand and were happy as the weather was improving.

Soon I was crossing the suspension bridge towards Abiskojaure and I noted the unusual object spinning in the water, I later found out it was a water pump used by the stugen to pump water to the communal area. I found this to be fascinating and disappointing at the same time as it appeared to me that the hosts were trying to replicate what was found at a normal hotel.

Interestingly one of the hosts noted that as they were the first stugen on the Kungsleden when heading south they had to teach the uninitiated what was expected when using the huts.

I continued on, wanting to spend one more night in the bush before returning to civilization. Fortunately about 4 km before the end of the trail there is a national park campsite which is where I chose to stop. By now the sun had appeared and it was pleasantly warm meaning that the mosquitos had become active, but not to worry it was the last night and I intended to appreciate and reflect upon what I had achieved.

I had a restful night and with no rush in the morning I finally left camp to walk to Abisko, the end of the trip. Along the way I met several walkers looking fresh and clean and in one groups case I was left with the lasting aroma of perfume.

So here I was at the end of the trail, cars whizzing by on the highway, iron ore trains heading to Narvik, I had returned to reality after 19 wonderful days on the trail.

Whilst also recognizing the input and work from many others who have gone before.

Reflections

this was the longest trip I have ever done, in both time and distance
hut hosts have an important role in providing information and support
the variety of scenery is awesome
thanks to those who mark the trails
if your going, take a tent as it allows you more flexibility along the trail
if you are new to the area take a look at the Padjelantaleden and take a tent
I want to return
I have reached epiphany regarding my gear

Gear Reflections Lapland 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 23:50:00 +0000

I thought I would describe the gear I used and how it performed for this instalment of the report of my trip along the Nordkalottleden. The final report on the trip will appear soon.

Packing

Aarn Natural Balance

The Aarn Natural Balance (NB) is the big brother to the Aarn Featherlite Freedom (FF), I recently wrote a review on the FF and many of the design features are also the same for the NB. Perhaps the major differences are;

Vertical bars form part of the frame on the NB as shown in the picture below
The NB has 2 compartments one accessed at the top of the pack and the other at the bottom.

For this trip I used the lower compartment of the pack for my sleeping bag and dry clothes, the upper section included all my food along with the GoLite SL2 and other odds and ends.

Similar to the FF the NB includes watertight inner sacks and thus there is no need for a pack cover.

For the trip I attached the Expedition pockets on the front, and the starting volume of the pack was 83 litres, which is similar to many packs seen on the Kungsleden. This volume enabled me to easily pack all my required gear and food in the main pack whilst the front pockets contained everything required during the day such as food, camera, stove, navigation equipment.

The starting weight of the pack was approximately 23kgs, which was heavier than I prefer but once the fit had been adjusted I found it to be comfortable with none of the sore shoulders or hips that can come from carrying big loads. By the end of the trip, the pack was too large but I was able to compress the pack to a smaller size as shown below.

Sleeping and Shelter

GoLite Shangri La 2

The GoLite Shangri La 2, was in my view perfect for this trip and no matter whether it was windy or rainy or there were mosquitos I was always happy to get into my shelter later in the day. The only downside of the shelter is if the wind changes direction and comes from the side, which happened to me on one occasion, interestingly it took little effort to get out of bed and rotate the shelter 90 degrees and using Dondo's technique of angling the Pacer Poles towards the centre of the ridge line it was amazing to see how tight a pitch could be had once the shelter had been rotated. All in all this will be my shelter for longer trips for the foreseeable future.

I used Easton pegs (8" and 4") and at no time did they move once inserted.

MLD Innernet
Coupled with the SL-2 I used an MLD Solomid Innernet, whilst this may not have been the optimum set up, it worked. I had complete protection from the mosquitos, and it provided me with a “dry space” within in which to sleep, relax etc. I am considering having a custom made inner net that will utilise the design of half the SL 2 more efficiently.

PolyCro ground sheet

I used the PolyCro ground sheet (available from TrekkingLite ) under the inner net as I knew I would be camping on wet ground, the ground sheet had one small tear in it and was repaired with duct tape. Otherwise it was perfect and I will use this ground sheet for many more trips.

Exped Mat

I used the Exped SynMat UL 7 and though it was a little heavy (460 gms) it was sooo..... comfortable as a consequence there were mornings where I could have easily stayed in bed. The Exped Pump Pillow made inflating the mattress easy. The pump pillow does have an advantage, it has self inflating foam inside and as a pillow it was better than pillows which are best described as shaped airbags. As a lighter alternative to the pump pillow there is the Exped Schnozzel (scroll down), which could be used in conjunction an Exped Shrink Bag thereby reducing the need for one of the bags in the pack.

Cooking and Hydration

Jetboil Sol Ti

The Jetboil was a star it worked perfectly and with a fuel consumption of 9 gms. per litre of water boiled I was very happy. This stove will be my gas stove of choice for the future. During the cooler weather the efficiency was decreased a little and as the canister empties it does burn slower but I was able to use the 100 gm canister effectively till the final drop of gas was used. However, I do not understand why there is a handle on the cozy, it is pretty much useless in my view. On a happier note the cozy fits nicely around a Fuizion freeze dried packet, so it does double duty.

A more detailed report on the Jetboil Sol Ti can be found at Lightweight Outdoors

For those interested in using wood stoves, I kept a note of the availability of burnable material and in my view 50% of the time a wood burning stove could be used, so with a back up fuel source it would be possible to use a wood burner such as a Back Country Boiler.

Kupilka

I used the Kupilka 21 and the Kupilka long handled spoon for the entire trip and whilst there are lighter options, the kuksa in my view is ideal. The spoon is a joy to use, it does not have that cold feeling of Titanium and weighs the same as a long handled Ti spoon. The Kupilka spoon is long enough to be scrape every last mouthful out of a Fuizion Freeze Dried food packet. If you have not used one, give them a try.

Clothing Worn or Carried

Inov-8 Roclite 370

These boots were very comfortable and I had none of the foot and leg problems I experienced last year with heavier boots, but sadly after 200 kms, the instep of both boots was coming away. Fortunately I was able to sew them back together which I did twice before the end of the trip. Whilst doing this I recalled a Roman Dial comment about another brand of shoe where seam sealing before a trip ensured that the shoes held together, something I will do in the future. I will be having the boots repaired and expect to get many more kilometres out of them before they are finally retired.

Rab Demand PullOn

This eVent jacket was ideal for the wet and windy conditions experienced. When wearing the smock I never felt damp inside and as I have previously stated when there is a breeze blowing I find it cooler than the windshirt. The hood on the smock fitted well no matter whether I was wearing my Outdoor Research Radar Cap or a Possum fur beanie.

Montane Featherlight Pants

These pants are perhaps a little too minimalist for a trip like this, but it does depend on the amount of wet weather experienced. I wore them for 3 days when there was wind driven rain all day and at other times as wind protection. Overall, they were fine, though in extended rain periods they do wet through resulting in wet and possibly cold legs. However, once it stops raining they dry quickly and allow your body heat to dry you pants underneath. Probably on another trip such as this I would choose one of the following Rab Drillium trousers, GoLite Tumalo pants or the new Montane Minimus pants.

Silkbody Polo Shirt

Before I left home I realized that I would be spending about 24 hours on a train, so I decided to wear a Silkbody Short Sleeve Polo Shirt. This was a blessing in disguise. I wore this shirt several days as it was cool to wear in the warm sunny weather, it was easily rinsed out, dried quickly with no evident odour. I will use this shirt more often on summer walks.

Columbia Titanium Long Sleeve Shirt (Fossil colour)

There is no doubt that this shirt limited the number of bugs buzzing around my upper body, it was comfortable to wear, dried quickly and did resist odour build up. Some days I wore it over the Silkbody shirt as a windshirt, I found this arrangement comfortable and warm enough without recourse to windshirt.

Montane Terra Pants

Lived in them for 3 weeks, tough, quick drying comfortable pants.

Socks, I started off wearing Smartwool Adrenaline socks with Teko Liner socks, but found after 3 days of continually wet feet I was getting rub marks on my toes. I removed the liner socks and just used the smartwool socks for the rest of the trip. This worked perfectly for me and as I had two pair I would rinse a pair out and dry them on the side of the pack, I would then swap pairs every second day, occasionally I was able to start the day with dry socks.

Reflections

One evening whilst relaxing after a long day I was reflecting on my gear I was using for the trip. I realised that I was very happy with my set up whether it was for this trip or for shorter trips. For me there was a right mixture of comfort and lightweight and the minimal amount of gear carried ensured that packing and unpacking was easy and could be completed efficiently with a minimum of fuss.

Vajsaluokta to Gautelishytta: along the Norwegian border

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 00:06:00 +0000

After a pleasant time at Vajsaluokta, I headed west towards the Norwegian border, with some apprehension as it was a forested section and the weather continued to be warm and humid, with lush green foliage the insects were active. However, like all other sections there was always something to occupy my interest, such as the flowers, trees, rocks and the occasional Dalripa (Ptarmigan) family.

There was also lovely open plains, often with boardwalks and it was at the verge of one of these plains that I developed the skill of putting on the headnet and having an afternoon siesta, something I can thoroughly recommended.

The photo below is taken looking back towards Ahkká and its accompanying glacier, I continue to be amazed by the number of glaciers that are seen high up in the mountains, sadly they are retreating but I feel privileged to have seen them.

I continued westward towards Hellmobotn, intending to camp in the vicinity of Njallávrre, as I approached the area I noticed that 3 people were standing well off the track, looking like they were waiting for a bus, well it wasn't a bus but instead a helicopter came up the valley stopped picked them up and flew off. It took some of the wilderness feeling away, but once they were gone, it was peaceful beside the lake.

Later in the evening I noticed 3 canoes heading down stream towards Ritsem, I wondered how far they went as I never saw or heard them again.

The following morning I set off with Roysvatn in Norway, as my intended destination. The first challenge was to cross the crystal clear river, the colours were magnificent.

The trail along here was less evident in places and I was very pleased when I found the sign below. Later I found out that part of the problem is that I was still in Sweden, well away from any huts so no one takes responsibility for marking the trail to a Norwegian hut.

I found this to be one of the most physically demanding days, the distance to be covered was about 24 kms, but after the initial climb to the saddle providing views Jiegnajávrásj and the peaks behind

The remainder of the day consisted of climbing to the top of a small ridge, then dropping back down to the river only to climb the next ridge whilst always trying to keep an eye out for the infrequent (for my eyes at least) cairns. There were, however, many rewarding views in all directions including Ahkká.

With lovely warm sunshine and a light breeze it was a demanding but enjoyable walk. After crossing several deep snow patches I finally reached Roysvatn in the evening, soon after three other walkers arrived coming in the opposite direction, 2 Dutch walkers were staying in the hytte, whilst the third walker from France who was walking the entire Nordkalottleden having started in Kautokeino in early June was using a Golite SL 1. He was as surprised to see an SL2 as I was an SL 1. We spent a lot of time discussing the merits of both, he had already decided that an SL 2 for such a trip, particularly in wet weather, may be a better option than an SL 1. Furthermore he felt that a single inner nest similar to mine was the ideal option. Also of interest was that he had been using GoLite Tumalo trousers for the 4 weeks and considered them to be perfect having withstood a lot of hard treatment in the marshes along the way.

After dinner we both settled down in our respective shelters and I was taken by the lovely pink colours on the snow capped peaks.

French to the rescue.

There was, however, a problem, the stitching on the instep of both boots was coming away and given that I had only covered 200 of the proposed 400 kms, I was a little concerned to say the least. Fortunately my french colleague, had a needle and thread so with some careful but not elegant sewing I was able to sew the rand back onto the Roclite 370's. I did have to repeat my sewing efforts a couple of more times but the boots held together. I recalled reading comments by Roman Dial indicating that he seam sealed the stitching on his shoes, which is something I will do in the future.

After repairing my boots I set off for what would be the longest day in both in time and distance. Initially I headed down the valley past the mist covered Svanjávre. At the bottom of the valley the trail crosses the Svártljåhåke on a bridge, now I always thought that bridges were intended to keep your feet dry. A look at the photo below indicates the problem with this bridge, you have to wade out to the ladder to get to the bridge.

But at least the other side was dry : )

Once on the other side I wandered along the grassy plains and the sandy beaches complete with reindeer hoof imprints.

It was noticeable however, that the weather was deteriorating and as I begun the climb around the sides of Noadetjåhkkå, the sound of thunder could be heard.

The approaching thunder and accompanying darkening skies encouraged me to push on, but fortunately the heavier rain stayed to the east, though, the light showers encouraged me to put on the Rab Demand pull on. I noted that when wearing the Demand, I felt cooler than when wearing a windshirt, something I have experienced before, especially if there is any breeze at all. I soon crossed the border into Norway as I headed to the next river crossing.

I had been warned by my french colleague the previous day that the trail and summer bridge across Noaidejávri shown on the map was not correct and that there was an extra 3 km’s to walk before the bridge was met. However, there were stunning views of the surrounding lakes before ultimately descending to the summer bridge. Now I am normally confident when crossing bridges of all types, but this Norwegian summer bridge left a lot to be desired, it was well weathered, the hand cables were connected to every second or third upright, the ladder to bridge was missing rungs, I was glad to get to the other side, in one piece and dry.

The new trail then took me over a low ridge and down to the next challenge. There is about a 50 m gap between 2 isthmuses on Bovrojávri, it was unclear from the map how to cross until I got there. Upon arriving I discovered that I had to row boat to the other side.

The aluminum row boats firstly needed to be dragged down to the waters edge and I was surprised how heavy they were. Once the boat was in the water I then loaded my gear in preparation to row to the other side. Problem. I have never rowed a boat before, initially I tried to row using both oars but found myself drifting into the lower lake, after a minor panic I decided that a kayak paddling technique would be more effective, it was. Once across the other side, then I had to paddle back with the other boat in tow and then return so that there were boats on both sides. I still cannot row a boat, but my kayak paddling technique did improve.

Once across the other side a two kilometer walk took me to a campsite adjacent to Pauro hytte, it was 10 pm by this time, it was not long before I was asleep.

Waking the next morning to a breezy but sunny day, I set off along the banks of Bovrojávri admiring the ice covered lake as I walked.

The trail ultimately climbed away from the lake and the saddle provided wonderful views to the east, north and south. I also marvelled at how the flowers could grow in large rock faces.

Descending to Baugevatnet, where another interesting bridge was crossed I continued westward again along the shore line, here much of the lake was covered in ice crystals which made a chiming sound as the wind caused ripples to form on the lake.

Finally I climbed away from the lake and entered a rocky landscape with views to the west, as I climbed to the higher sections of the valley small lakes surrounded by snow and rocks required careful navigation to ensure that I did not end up in the water. As I continued along the valley the high tension powerline from the hydro electricity scheme became evident as did the increasingly dark clouds.

The trail descends towards Siiddasjávri following the powerline, it was during this time that a severe thunderstorm hit, I took shelter behind a large rock, underneath the powerline, I felt this was possibly not the safest place to be, but was glad of the protection from the strong winds and rain.

After the storm had passed I descended towards Sitashyytene and set up camp as another large thunderstorm arrived with torrential rain.

The next morning was calm and there was mist on the lake, indicating a nice day. The first section of the walk was a 14 km road walk, which was a blessing and a curse. It made for easy fast walking, but also after a while became a bit boring. As the mist begun to lift the calm waters of Siiddasjávri provided a wonderful back drop to the walk.

Reaching the point where the track climbed steeply up to another plateau and with dry boots I took the opportunity to have lunch and resew my boots after which I climbed the steep and rocky path to the top of the plateau, glad of the red painted stone cairns that were evenly spaced along the way. Once on the plateau the trail crosses from Norway to Sweden and then back again.

There was as always many fascinating geological features and I was fascinated by this large rock sitting on three much smaller stones.

Ultimately I reached Skoaddejávri and sat there entranced by the still lake, the reflections and the beauty of the area, I needed no encouragement to set up camp for the night. This was perhaps the most scenic spot for the whole trip.

The following morning it was foggy with visibility limited to about 100 metres, it was also much cooler, so again I was glad for the well marked cairns as I crossed the barren plateau before descending to the road again to skirt the sides of Gautelisvatnet. There were many reindeer grazing here and they did not seem too perturbed by me passing by.

Returning to a well marked trail on the north side of Gautelisvatnet I continued on to Gautelishytta, a wonderful hytta with views across Gautelisvatnet to the peaks on the other side. It was here I met two members from the Narvik and Omegn Turisforening (DNT) they were cleaning as well as digging foundations for a new cabin. I quickly appreciated the challenges that went into building here with digging by hand and removing large rocks so that the foundations could be established. I was also impressed with their willingness to chat about the area and was as chat about what I was doing. A very pleasant evening was spent and I left the next morning feeling very refreshed.

Kvikkjokk to Vajsaluokta: the first 9 days

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 09:30:00 +0000

Travelling by train to Stockholm then night train to Murjek and bus to Kvikkjokk I arrived at the beginning of the walk in a little over 24 hours. My first appointment was to take a boat from Kvikkjokk for about 5 kms. upstream to the trail head. It was a warm sunny day (too warm) and the lush green growth accompanied with the warmth ensured the mosquitos were plentiful.

The trail followed the valley and provided many view points of the surrounding snow covered peaks.

Within the first hour my feet were wet from a crossing a river and they stayed wet for most of the trip. Further up the valley after a short steep climb from Njunjesstugan the panorama of what lay ahead encouraged me to push on.

I camped near the lake the first night and the inner net inside the SL2 was tested and found to be successful and as Dondo has noted many of the mosquitos happily drifted to the top of the shelter. The next morning I awoke to sunshine, and increased humidity but I was aware of the impending change in the weather which was confirmed by the hut host at Tarrekaisestugan, who was happy to note that I was the first visitor for the season, even though I was just passing by.

As I climbed towards Vaimok, the clouds darkened and then it rained, which at least gave me some respite from the mosquitos. It continued to rain for most of the afternoon, and having only worn my windshirt I was pretty wet by the end of the day. But once the tent was up I soon settled in for the night (if you can call it night at this time of the year).

The next morning was overcast and with a light wind it was cool as I continued on towards Vaimokstugan, as I came over a rise at the end of the valley I was pleasantly surprised to see Vaimok was calm and with ice still floating on it, I sat there admiring the view recognising this is what I had come for. Descending to the shoreline I then rock hopped for what seemed like an eternity in misty rain on slippery rocks, something that is not to be recommended, especially with a fully loaded pack.

I had lunch sitting on the verandah of the locked stugan watching the mist rise from the lake.

The trail crosses a large waterfall and climbs vertically for about 180 metres, with a fully loaded pack I made slow progress. But the views back down to the lake were something special.

The weather had begun to clear by late afternoon and I chose a campsite and set about setting up camp, only to find a couple of pegs left by a previous user. I have never quite understood how people to can leave pegs behind. Admittedly these two pegs were to become useful later.

The following morning I continued the descent to Pieskehaurestugan, it was a pleasant descent, until I neared the bottom and found myself confronted by a deep fast flowing river with no bridge, though there were foundations for a suspension bridge. With the trail evident on the other side I assumed that I had to cross.

After crossing I continued along the trail to find an alternative route avoiding the crossing, which had not been obvious when coming from Vaimok.

Lunch was at Pieskehaurestugan which was also locked, after which I crossed a bridge over the Varvvekjåhkå before climbing into a beautiful valley which was occasionally shrouded in mist, all along admiring the plants and the surrounding peaks.

Along the way I crossed a number of bridges, including this interesting design.

Whilst walking I had occasional encounters with Long tailed Skua (Fjällabb), before reaching the thunderous and rapidly flowing Varvvekjåhkå. Fortunately the bridge was intact and with a drop in the water level of over a metre in a very short distance, a river crossing was not an option.

Having survived the crossing, and just settling into my walking routine, I suddenly realised that there was a pair of very angry Gulls attacking me and while they did not actually touch me they swooped very close and persistently. Clearly they were nesting near by.

The remainder of the day can be best described as walking through a swamp, it was still very wet from the thaw. After a an evening camped on a slope watching the herds of reindeer grazing on the river flats I set off towards Staddajåkkå fjällstuga, where the alternative Nordkalottleden to Sulitjelma is met. Once through the pass adjacent to Jålle, the trail descend through grassland to Staddajåkkå. As I approached Staddajåkkå the thunderous sound of yet another waterfall could be heard, I reflected on the fact that the thunderous sound of water passing through gorges was one of the common themes which ran through the whole trip.

Stopping at Staddajåkkå for break I was intrigued by the shrill like sound of the Småspov (Whimbrel). Later in the day as rain began to fall I found a flat spot and set up the shelter, I was pleased that I was able to quickly set up the outer and get inside to complete the set up of the inner of the tent as the rain poured down.

The next morning I continued north along the banks of Stálojåhkå ultimately rejoining the Padjelantaleden near to Staloluoktastugorna. Staloluoktastugorna is a wonderful stugen and apart from all the expected amenities it also includes a sauna. I was fascinated when reading the guest book on where people were coming from or going to especially those travelling by helicopter, I realised that I was no longer in the wilderness but in a tourist area. This feeling was to reamin for the rest of the Padjelantaleden.

But there are always surprises and for me it was the Sami church which stands above Staloluoktastugorna, looking a little like a space ship on the outside.

Its origins were clearly evident on the inside, it was an amazing building.

It was a magic place with its stained glass windows, spaceship look on the outside and its mixture of wood, hides and grass matting on the inside.

It was my plan to continue on to Arasluokta for an overnight in a hut which would allow me to do some laundry, and just chill a bit. What I had not considered was the wonderful walk between Staloluoktastugen and Arasluokta there were many perfect campsites, but when it is laundry day then ... I arrived at Arasluoktastugorna and found a cabin and quickly set about getting the chores done. Later in the day I accompanied a swedish couple to a traditional sami smokehouse and purchased freshly smoked fish and smoked dried reindeer meat. The fish was cooked on the cabin stove that night and was perfect, the reindeer meat was a delicacy that I savoured for several days after.

The next morning was clear and sunny and as I climbed away from Arasluokta the views of the peaks across Virihaure was fantastic, these views were to remain with me the whole day as I crossed another plateau before descending to Låddejåkkestugan.

The plateau not only contained some fine views and enjoyable walking but also had its own geological formations. The varying types of rocks and the general geological structures is another theme that was intertwined with the trip.

I stopped at Låddejåkkestugan for a rest, and I was the only one there soon however I met many south bound walkers. They were a mixture of less experienced walkers and some who were walking from the northernmost point in Norway to the southern most point. Later I met a couple with 2 dogs who were walking north to south as well as east to west in Norway, they had already been out 3 months. This put my trip into perspective.

After a short sharp climb from Låddejåkkestugan you find yourself on an 800 metre high plateau which provides wonderful views to the west and north. I met many walkers heading south on this section, some who chatted, some who did not, but I was just happy with the wonderful weather and the views.

It was during this time I decided it was time to show that I was there, mud stained Montane Terra's and all.

Eventually I found campsite overlooking Vastenjaure and the path north to Akkajaure, it was a warm evening but with a slight breeze the mosquitos were kept at bay and I was entertained by the steady flow of helicopters flying up and down the valley, taking fisherman out fishing, rounding up reindeer, or taking sami to their summer houses, it was busy.

Strange things happen; when I set up the shelter there was a gentle breeze from the south, but by midnight I was out changing the alignment of the shelter from North/South to East/West as the wind had changed direction and had increased in strength significantly. The bonus was that I got to see the awesome sunrise/sunset. I have no idea on which it was.

Th next morning I descended to the trail and crossed Vuojatädno, on what has to be one of the biggest suspension bridges I have seen.

I crossed the plains to the STF Kutjaurestugan where I spent time talking to the cabin hosts. The STF cabin hosts wherever I went on the trail the were always friendly, helpful, informative and genuinely interested in hearing about what I was doing. After lunch I began the climb up to Guossjájávrre in search of a campsite for the night, whilst following the trail I met a lighweight hiker from Germany carrying a large GoLite Gust and using a Tarptent Contrail, he had started in Hellmobotn in Norway and was heading to Sulitjelma. We chatted for a while about gear and the lack of lightweight hikers in this part of the world before we went our own ways. I soon found a spot to camp overlooking Guossjájávrre.

The following morning I descended to Akkajaure and then followed the trail along shoreline through many cottages to the STF stugen Vaisaluokta, where the cabin host supplied cool lemonade which was greatly appreciated. Incidentally, this was the first area where I had a mobile phone signal since leaving Kvikkjokk.

The remainder of the afternoon was spent following the trail along Akkajaure towards Norway, more about that in the next instalment.

Back from Lapland

noreply@blogger.com (Nielsen Brown) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 10:56:00 +0000

Well I have been back a couple of days from a wonderful 400 km trip along the Nordkalottleden in Sweden.

It will take a few days to sort through photos, notes etc., a full report as well as gear comments will appear in due course.

Some summary information:

Distance covered: 402 km.
Total Ascent: 12140 m.
Temperature range: 2C to 23C.
Some beautiful sunny days, some very cold wet days, dry days were in the majority.
Total Nights 19; nights in tent 17.
All gear, with one exception, performed as expected.