Abisko, Sweden and Kungsleden (King's Trail)
The bus from Å to Narvik, Norway on Tuesday (11 July) afternoon arrived at the Narvik train station in time for me to catch the last train of the day to Abisko, Sweden. I find my connections work out about half the time over here. The train ride from Narvik, Norway to Abisko, Sweden was, of course, absolutely amazing. We rode along this mountain side above a huge lake with water falls pouring down the opposite side. Unfortunately I was sitting on the wrong side of the train and I had to strain to get views in between the Japanese tourists' picture-taking. When I arrived in Abisko the weather was perfect, as was the scenery. The tourist station here is set on the edge of a lake and the base of a mountain. I made it to the store just before closing time to pick up dinner for the night. The people in my hostel room were nice and friendly. One, a girl from England, was starting my planned hike the following day. The other two people, a young Swedish couple, were up for a week of hiking and holiday.
On Wednesday (12 July) I woke up to rain. yuck. Fortunately I was not planning to start my hike that day, but I felt bad for the English girl who did. I needed to do some food shopping, buy a map, pack my bag, talk to the 'park rangers', and a few other errands before I would start hiking the following morning. It cleared up in the afternoon so I was excited about starting the next day. That afternoon I had my first 'traditional' sauna experience.
Thursday (13 July) I was extremely frustrated to wake up to rain again. I was slow to get moving. I really had no desire to hike in the rain. I just don't enjoy hiking in the rain. I put a bag of stuff that I didn't need in baggage room. I would later have to come retrieve this but I couldn't bare to carry the extra weight so far. Eventually I put on my rain pants and rain jacket and passed the starting gate for the Kungsleden (King's Trail) around 9 am. I was excited yet frustrated. After 3 hours and 15 km I arrived at the first hut, Abiskojaure. I hadn't planned to stop here but I also hadn't planned to hike in the rain! I went inside to use the drying room and to figure out what to do. I decided I would stay there for the night if it continued to rain. I was in a foul mood when I arrived there! Luckily after about 1 hour the rain stopped and the skies started to clear. After another hour my stuff was 'drier', although my shoes were still wet, and I decided to push on to the next hut which was another 20 km further up the trail.
So with rain pants back in my pack where they belong, I started off again around 2 pm. I was in a much better mood now. About half way to the next hut I got to one end of a lake. I knew the next hut was on the other end which looked so close so I was eager to get there. After a while I could see the flag of the hut. It seemed so close but I must have hiked for 2 more hours before I arrived at the hut. Its like the hut on the horizon never got any bigger! It was windy along this stretch of the trail contouring around the lake. I guess the only good thing about the wind and rain is it kept the mosquitoes at bay. It started raining again about 10 minutes before I got to the hut. And about 100 meters before I reached the hut I saw a rainbow starting on the shore of the lake and wrapping over to finish right on the hut. It was pretty cool! I only got a photo of half of it though because of the driving rain. That is another good thing about the rain here, lots of rainbows. So I arrived at the Alesjaure hut 4.5 hours after leaving the other. So that was 35 km (22 miles) of hiking for the day, about half of that in the rain! I was pretty tired. Luckily there was a sauna there so I jumped at the chance. It was very relaxing.
It was extremely windy at this hut. I wondered if I would actually be able to set up my tent. I ended up having to set it up inside and then take it outside. I staked it out well but I wasn't convinced that the wind wouldn't shred it. As I ate dinner from inside the hut, I watched the wind beat my tent repeated. Then the rain started again. I was not in a good mood. The others inside the hut thought I was nuts for 'wanting' to sleep outside in that weather.
Somehow my little tent survived the night with only slightly bent poles. The winds had to be gusting to at least 35 mph where my tent was set up, so I was pretty surprised my tent did okay. And more surprisingly, considering my tent, I stayed completely dry, even in that driving rain. It got cold that night too. Cold enough to snow on the mountain tops 1000 meters higher. I guess all that weather -- rain, wind, snow -- was supposed to remind me that I was hiking in the artic or something. I could have done without the reminder.
I was slow to get up the following morning (Friday, 14 July) because it was still windy and still raining! At one point during the night, I woke up and noticed it was completely light out and therefore must be morning. I was mad that it was still raining the next morning. I looked at my watch and it was just 1:30 am. It actually wasn't raining when I finally got up. But it did rain during breakfast. I used the drying room to dry my tent which was nice to do. I decided I wasn't going to hike in the rain today, since it puts me in such a foul mood. So one by one the others left to go endure the rain. But not me. Finally I was the last one in the hut. I had my principles and I wasn't going to hike in the rain.
15 minutes later I was hiking in the rain.
Actually it wasn't as bad as the previous day, but it was much windier. I did have my rain pants and rain jacket on and wore them the entire day. The wind kept me from getting too hot in this 'uniform'. It was hard work hiking into the stong wind for the first half of the day. I had planned to stop at the next hut, Tjäktja (13 km away), for lunch, but once I was there I just felt I should keep walking. I came up and over this pass, which at 1100 meters was the highest point on the trail. I learned later that it snowed there the previous night. Here I saw a heard of raindeer come up and over the pass. After dropping down into the next valley, the wind really picked up. Luckily it was at my back now. Occasionally it would knock me off my balance, from behind, so I decided it must have been gusting to 45 mph. It was the strongest winds I've ever been in when not near the summit of a high mountain in the Cascades, possibly the strongest winds I've been in other than on Mt. Rainier. I kept thinking I was so glad I wasn't up on one of the surrounding peaks that day. yikes. Finally, 6 plus hours after I left the last hut, I arrived at the Sälka hut, 25 km (16 miles) later. The trail had been really good these two days, relatively flat and easy, but considering the weather I was hiking in these were pretty big days for me. The weather didn't inspire me to take too many breaks!
Luckily, I found a less windy spot to set up my tent this night (although one gust did completely flaten my tent as I was walking up to it once) and it didn't rain that afternoon or the next morning. I enjoyed another sauna that evening in a surreal landscape of large, wide open valleys (above treeline) guarded by soft, high peaks.
It was easier to get going the next morning (Saturday, 15 July) although I left rather late. This day I enjoyed the best weather so far. No rain and it wasn't too windy. I also walked through a more dramatic valley, with steeper mountains on my way to the next hut, Kebnekaise mountain station. This was another 26 km day but the 'good' weather made it feel easier than the previous. It was more like a tourist station as it was really crowded, especially for being a 19 km hike from the nearest town. Here I had a proper shower and of course a sauna! This is the main hut for hikes up to the summit of Kebnekaise, the highest mountain in Sweden. I wasn't sure what tomorrow would bring for me, whether the weather or my body would be up for hiking to the summit. The wind died down that evening and the mosquitoes were annoying.
On Sunday (16 July) I woke up to no rain. But it was cloudy and windy. I debated for several hours if I should try for the summit. Eventually I talked myself out of it. The combination of weather (no views and terribly cold winds) and my mental and physical states didn't jive. I decided I would either try it the next day if the weather held or hike out. So I mainly just read in the hut all day and hiked up to the top of a small nearby hill a couple times. It was a nice rest day that I needed. It was also the only day it didn't rain on me.
Monday (17 July) it was raining when I woke up. I was really bummed about this as I had pysched myself up for the summit. I packed up and started the 19 km hike out in the rain. The rain didn't last though and these flat 19 km were the fastest of the trail. I arrived in the town of Nikkaluokta, Sweden less than 4 hours later where I caught the bus to Kiruna, Sweden that afternoon. It was a great hike in shitty weather. I know that not summitting is going to be hanging over my head now as unfinished business. I guess I have a reason to go back there now. At 105 km (67 miles) that is the longest solo hike I've ever done. I know I could never do a solo long distance hike as I found the lack of company rather boring after a while. A great novelty of this hike was almost all of the huts got their drinking, untreated, right out of the river.
On Wednesday (12 July) I woke up to rain. yuck. Fortunately I was not planning to start my hike that day, but I felt bad for the English girl who did. I needed to do some food shopping, buy a map, pack my bag, talk to the 'park rangers', and a few other errands before I would start hiking the following morning. It cleared up in the afternoon so I was excited about starting the next day. That afternoon I had my first 'traditional' sauna experience.
Thursday (13 July) I was extremely frustrated to wake up to rain again. I was slow to get moving. I really had no desire to hike in the rain. I just don't enjoy hiking in the rain. I put a bag of stuff that I didn't need in baggage room. I would later have to come retrieve this but I couldn't bare to carry the extra weight so far. Eventually I put on my rain pants and rain jacket and passed the starting gate for the Kungsleden (King's Trail) around 9 am. I was excited yet frustrated. After 3 hours and 15 km I arrived at the first hut, Abiskojaure. I hadn't planned to stop here but I also hadn't planned to hike in the rain! I went inside to use the drying room and to figure out what to do. I decided I would stay there for the night if it continued to rain. I was in a foul mood when I arrived there! Luckily after about 1 hour the rain stopped and the skies started to clear. After another hour my stuff was 'drier', although my shoes were still wet, and I decided to push on to the next hut which was another 20 km further up the trail.
So with rain pants back in my pack where they belong, I started off again around 2 pm. I was in a much better mood now. About half way to the next hut I got to one end of a lake. I knew the next hut was on the other end which looked so close so I was eager to get there. After a while I could see the flag of the hut. It seemed so close but I must have hiked for 2 more hours before I arrived at the hut. Its like the hut on the horizon never got any bigger! It was windy along this stretch of the trail contouring around the lake. I guess the only good thing about the wind and rain is it kept the mosquitoes at bay. It started raining again about 10 minutes before I got to the hut. And about 100 meters before I reached the hut I saw a rainbow starting on the shore of the lake and wrapping over to finish right on the hut. It was pretty cool! I only got a photo of half of it though because of the driving rain. That is another good thing about the rain here, lots of rainbows. So I arrived at the Alesjaure hut 4.5 hours after leaving the other. So that was 35 km (22 miles) of hiking for the day, about half of that in the rain! I was pretty tired. Luckily there was a sauna there so I jumped at the chance. It was very relaxing.
It was extremely windy at this hut. I wondered if I would actually be able to set up my tent. I ended up having to set it up inside and then take it outside. I staked it out well but I wasn't convinced that the wind wouldn't shred it. As I ate dinner from inside the hut, I watched the wind beat my tent repeated. Then the rain started again. I was not in a good mood. The others inside the hut thought I was nuts for 'wanting' to sleep outside in that weather.
Somehow my little tent survived the night with only slightly bent poles. The winds had to be gusting to at least 35 mph where my tent was set up, so I was pretty surprised my tent did okay. And more surprisingly, considering my tent, I stayed completely dry, even in that driving rain. It got cold that night too. Cold enough to snow on the mountain tops 1000 meters higher. I guess all that weather -- rain, wind, snow -- was supposed to remind me that I was hiking in the artic or something. I could have done without the reminder.
I was slow to get up the following morning (Friday, 14 July) because it was still windy and still raining! At one point during the night, I woke up and noticed it was completely light out and therefore must be morning. I was mad that it was still raining the next morning. I looked at my watch and it was just 1:30 am. It actually wasn't raining when I finally got up. But it did rain during breakfast. I used the drying room to dry my tent which was nice to do. I decided I wasn't going to hike in the rain today, since it puts me in such a foul mood. So one by one the others left to go endure the rain. But not me. Finally I was the last one in the hut. I had my principles and I wasn't going to hike in the rain.
15 minutes later I was hiking in the rain.
Actually it wasn't as bad as the previous day, but it was much windier. I did have my rain pants and rain jacket on and wore them the entire day. The wind kept me from getting too hot in this 'uniform'. It was hard work hiking into the stong wind for the first half of the day. I had planned to stop at the next hut, Tjäktja (13 km away), for lunch, but once I was there I just felt I should keep walking. I came up and over this pass, which at 1100 meters was the highest point on the trail. I learned later that it snowed there the previous night. Here I saw a heard of raindeer come up and over the pass. After dropping down into the next valley, the wind really picked up. Luckily it was at my back now. Occasionally it would knock me off my balance, from behind, so I decided it must have been gusting to 45 mph. It was the strongest winds I've ever been in when not near the summit of a high mountain in the Cascades, possibly the strongest winds I've been in other than on Mt. Rainier. I kept thinking I was so glad I wasn't up on one of the surrounding peaks that day. yikes. Finally, 6 plus hours after I left the last hut, I arrived at the Sälka hut, 25 km (16 miles) later. The trail had been really good these two days, relatively flat and easy, but considering the weather I was hiking in these were pretty big days for me. The weather didn't inspire me to take too many breaks!
Luckily, I found a less windy spot to set up my tent this night (although one gust did completely flaten my tent as I was walking up to it once) and it didn't rain that afternoon or the next morning. I enjoyed another sauna that evening in a surreal landscape of large, wide open valleys (above treeline) guarded by soft, high peaks.
It was easier to get going the next morning (Saturday, 15 July) although I left rather late. This day I enjoyed the best weather so far. No rain and it wasn't too windy. I also walked through a more dramatic valley, with steeper mountains on my way to the next hut, Kebnekaise mountain station. This was another 26 km day but the 'good' weather made it feel easier than the previous. It was more like a tourist station as it was really crowded, especially for being a 19 km hike from the nearest town. Here I had a proper shower and of course a sauna! This is the main hut for hikes up to the summit of Kebnekaise, the highest mountain in Sweden. I wasn't sure what tomorrow would bring for me, whether the weather or my body would be up for hiking to the summit. The wind died down that evening and the mosquitoes were annoying.
On Sunday (16 July) I woke up to no rain. But it was cloudy and windy. I debated for several hours if I should try for the summit. Eventually I talked myself out of it. The combination of weather (no views and terribly cold winds) and my mental and physical states didn't jive. I decided I would either try it the next day if the weather held or hike out. So I mainly just read in the hut all day and hiked up to the top of a small nearby hill a couple times. It was a nice rest day that I needed. It was also the only day it didn't rain on me.
Monday (17 July) it was raining when I woke up. I was really bummed about this as I had pysched myself up for the summit. I packed up and started the 19 km hike out in the rain. The rain didn't last though and these flat 19 km were the fastest of the trail. I arrived in the town of Nikkaluokta, Sweden less than 4 hours later where I caught the bus to Kiruna, Sweden that afternoon. It was a great hike in shitty weather. I know that not summitting is going to be hanging over my head now as unfinished business. I guess I have a reason to go back there now. At 105 km (67 miles) that is the longest solo hike I've ever done. I know I could never do a solo long distance hike as I found the lack of company rather boring after a while. A great novelty of this hike was almost all of the huts got their drinking, untreated, right out of the river.
posted by Dustin at 6:57 AM
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