What a pleasant morning at Røysvatnhyttene, I slept in until about 8 am and enjoyed quite a few lazy hours in and around the cabin. Weather was sunny with a light breeze and it was very nice to sit outside with a cup of coffee just reading a book.
At 1 pm I left the cabin and followed the trail south until it crossed the ’gränsleden’ (border trail) where I turned eastbound on that trail.
My mattress had developed such a hump that sleeping on it was causing me neck pain and I needed to replace it. So I headed off towards Ritsem and decided to split the 40km into two more or less equal parts.
The trail was easy to follow and pleasant to walk, no real ups and downs, just a very mellow hike on the mostly soft ground.
Passing over Vakkatjavelk the trail is not consistent with how it’s marked on the map, just follow the stone markers and You’ll get there!
Coming down from that little mountain I encountered (and startled) quite a few reindeers. Finally I also ran into som ripe cloud berries and could pick a handful just next to the trail. A welcome taste of fresh berries, I love the tartness of them!
Reaching the bridge I quickly found a suitable campsite and after pitching the tent and having a quick dinner I just stretched out for a few minutes inside the tent.
Waking up about 1.5h later to heavy rain falling, I got ready for the night and slipped under my sleeping bag.
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Well, my restful night inside the cabin turned out to be everything else but as expected.
I woke up at 00:15 by the loud noises of people arriving, turned out that a group of 8-10 people just came in and intended to start cooking. After asking them twice to keep the noise down (according to NOT rules it shall be quiet after 11 pm), I just grabbed all my stuff and moved over to the smaller cabin. Hoping that these people would at least have the sense not to disturb there as well…
Luckily enough they didn’t and after some initial difficulty going back to sleep, I finally slept until 7 am.
Having had a rather large dinner the night before, finishing off the first batch of pecans as desert, I went for coffee only in the morning. Before 9 am I had everything packed and went to check on my fellow guest from the other cabin, yet she already departed. The group was also gone and I noticed that none of them had registered their stay in the cabin, thereby also clearly indicating that they didn’t intend to pay the fee. On top of that, they also left the cabin without either cleaning or locking it. This is, of course, completely unacceptable as the whole operation with the cabins here in Norway builds on trust and people paying the fees voluntarily.
Looking out I could still see the group on their way to Sitashyttene, yet they were too far for me to catch up easily enough and so I just started my hike towards Røysvatnhyttene.
There is a system of rowing boats to get past a narrow part of the lake and while on the water I’m overflown by a helicopter. They landed not far ahead of me and I soon saw the chopper on its way back again.
Reaching the first bridge I was presented with the explanation, three guys doing repair work on a bridge that definitely needed it.
Turns out they work with the NOT and one of the guys is the father of the boss.
Besides, these guys are 84,82 and 75 years of age, and still doing rather hard physical labour out here – respect!!!
I mentioned the issues with the group and that they’re heading towards Sitas and the three men were very interested in taking care of the matter. I hope they managed to land a helicopter on the group and set the matter right! Anyhow, I could now drop the whole thing.
Also, I got the number of the bosses father and he asked me to report anything that needs attention along the trails in Norway!
The whole rest of the day was just a pleasure, the weather was really nice, partly sunny summer day with a breeze that was far from chilly. The trail was pleasant to walk yet in some stretches really faint and poorly marked, at the same time there’s a bunch of reindeer tracks.
I highly recommend being really observant for the markers and, if You chose to hike this part, to make sure You’re ridiculously comfortable following map and compass. Chances are that You’ll lose the trail more than once, it always shows up again, though!
I took a short break at the bridge south of Skuogejavrre to charge my phone (sun came out brightly right there) and pick some mushrooms before continuing the last part to the cabin.
Arriving here I found the place deserted and, looking around, there was a sauna in a separate building!!!
Sooo good to be able to clean up again for real, the water in the lake was cold yet not freezing and sitting in the sauna first even allowed for a short (very short…) swim.
Finally, after cleaning up myself and washing some clothes, I had dinner after around 22h fasted. Adding in the mushrooms made it even more delicious and enjoyable, I’m just stoked how energetic and content I feel hiking that far in this region without having to eat all the time. I love being in ketosis and enjoy the freedom to choose when to take in food!
Having found a really nice campsite just a little bit away from the cabin, I look forward to an undisturbed nights sleep!
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After a rain-free early morning, the weather turned and rain shower after rain shower filled the morning hours.
I spent more time than planned in the cabin and only left at 11 am when it looked like the rain had passed. No need to start a hiking day with rain if not absolutely necessary, especially with just 23km ahead. I had time to linger.
The plan to wait for the rain to pass didn’t work out too well, though. Just after I left the gravel road and hit the first ascent it started raining again and continued more or less constantly for the next three hours. After that, there was about an hour of no rain followed by several heavy showers.
The hike itself was beautiful and very enjoyable, no real physical challenges yet rather mellow ascents and descents. The area around the highest pass was a little rocky yet that was more than compensated by the soft and pleasant trail after the first descent. Also, the rocks gave remarkably good grip even while being wet from the rain, and I never once slipped.
All in all a very nice hiking day, I’m so grateful that my new rain gear does its job really well!
Shortly before I reached Pauro I got hit by another rain shower, this time it still continues on outside, more than three hours later. The constant rain made me decide to stay inside for the night, the first time in 20 years I sleep inside a cabin.
Thankfully there’s only one other guest here and she’s got her own room!
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For once I’m actually writing this sitting inside of a cabin, I just finished dinner and enjoy a cup of coffee and some 90% dark chocolate.
Got up this morning at quarter to 7 am after almost 11h in the sleeping bag, my body needed rest and it was raining in the early morning hours so no point in getting up early. As usual, tent got wiped off before I started my other morning routines and a good hour later all was dried out.
I left the campsite at 8:40 and started downhill towards the Gautelis dam and the gravel road on the other side that would take me to the trailhead for Skoaddajavre.
The sun showed itself just moments before I reached the dam and was an intermittent companion the entire day, making a great difference in temperature. It was rather chilly in the air, just over 10C (50F) midday, yet as soon as the sun came out it was very pleasant.
The hike from the gravel road to Skoaddajavre cabin was great, first a long stretch of moderate uphill, followed by more or less level with some tendencies to descent towards the cabin.
I had planned for a midday stop there and the weather was perfect and the cabin is located in such a beautiful place!
The afternoon started with a slight ascent to the most wonderful highland plateau, beautiful rock formations and a marvellous view of the surrounding higher mountains!
Descending includes about 260m of elevation that is brutally steep and hard on the legs, I’m stoked how well mine handled the challenge after what I put them through yesterday!
Now, there’s not much to say about the last stretch of the day… 14km (8.75 miles) of gravel road, fast to walk yet not very interesting. And there might be alternative ways going off trail over the mountains, this tour I just don’t have the time to go that route.
I have been planning to follow this part of the Nordkalottenleden for years and finally, I found a good window to do so. Some gravel in the process is a low price to pay, looking at the low water levels everywhere, the rest of the trail should be a blast!
Still, I have to admit, that 34km in a day is a little too much, even counting the ease of walking on gravel. I’m tired and my feet are pretty sore, it’s gonna be another early night and I’m happy that no one else is here in the cabin.
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This day had a theme of walking on rocks and covering elevation, most of the tour happened in higher altitudes, over 900m, and involved a lot of stepping from rock to rock.
I started at 990m, went down to 630m, up to 1270, down to 1100, up again to 1210 and ended at 910m. Quite a few of the climbs and descents were rather steep!
Got woken up by heavy rain around 4 am this morning and lay listening to the drops falling on the tent for quite some time before I fell back asleep. Next time I woke up the rain had stopped and when I got up at 7 am my first action was to wipe off the tent so it could dry in the wind.
Wasn’t hungry at all so I just had a plain coffee without any fat while going through my morning routine and getting ready for the day!
Just shy of 9 am I picked up my backpack and went down to the glacier river, this time planning to give it a try upstream of the sediment delta. It worked out pretty well, I just had to change to get over the last stream and the bottom was made up of rocks so this was so much easier.
Once past the stream, the descent back to the gravel road was rather swift and soon I had made my way to the next trailhead and back into nature!
I love the hike up to Smaileriehpas, it starts with a fun river crossing (there’s a new bridge close to the lake that I deliberately ignored) and the valley is wild, beautiful and always different. This year there was so little snow left on the other ridge and an almost inconceivable amount of water came down from the snowfields and glaciers.
The ascent was rather heavy, yet I can’t say if that was due to the late evening climb up to Storsteynshytta or my fatless morning coffee.
I reached my favorite spot, right next to a little waterfall, close to the highest point of the pass around 1 pm and stopped for a coffee with PF, some jerky and walnuts.
The sun came out behind the clouds and warmed the air, yet as soon as it got obscured again the temperature was rather chilly and I moved on after an hour.
My plan was to continue for 3-4 more hours, or until I find a really nice spot for my tent.
Compared to last year the tour was rough, no snow at all, just rocks and some small patches of dirt. Even for me, it takes a lot of concentration and mental focus to keep the pace on that kind of ground and after some time it becomes rather tiring.
I got to the south end of Dolbotvagge in good time and originally wanted to do the 3km gravel road leading over towards the nest stretch of trail. Mainly to avoid having to do it first thing in the morning tomorrow.
Yet on the way down, I spotted a great campsite near the waterfall coming down from the mouth of Dolbotvagge and quickly decided to stay in the wild and do the gravel tomorrow.
Thereby, it turned out, I also got my tent set up just in time to get inside before the first rain shower really got started. And since then the rain has barely stopped at all…
There’s definitely been a complete weather change from the first week out and I’m so grateful that the girls got to experience the nice weather!
Even down here, at about 900m of elevation, the evening is rather cold and I’ll probably get into the sleeping bag early!
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Woke up early and just stayed in my sleeping bag as I didn’t want to disturb the guests inside the cabin. Turned out I should have followed my first instinct and packed everything up – minutes after 6 am it started to rain heavily.
Not until 8 the rain lightened enough to get from the camp to the cabin without getting totally drenched. I grabbed everything except the tent and went for breakfast.
As the cabin was rather cold and damp I made a fire in the stove, very appreciated by all the other guests!
After a couple of mugs of coffee with coconut oil, I went back to the camp and took the tent down. One of the groups had left their room already and I could hang my tent to dry, two hours later it was good to pack!
Still, I lingered in the cabin, waiting for the host to be ready for an interview, finally, I left at around 1 pm.
Getting into another rain shower on the first stretch, I dropped into the cabin at Cunojaure to have a cup of coffee away from the rain. Between chatting with two Austrian guys and a Swedish couple I met already on the trail to Unna Allakas yesterday, I stayed until 4:30 pm.
In the meantime, I had decided to go check out Storsteynshytta, as my original plan of going up towards Smaileriehpas felt a little cocky due to the weather. Pitching my tent in the clouds isn’t one of my favorites…
The hike up to that cabin was only around 12km and I’d easily been there before 8 pm if it hadn’t been for the last river crossing. Right below the glacier, the meltwater stream spread out into a kind of delta, leaving islands of sediment between the arms of the river. I made it about 1/3 of the way before I had to change into my Crocks and pack my trousers into the backpack. Water was more than knee deep and painfully cold, worse, the sediment wasn’t stable… I sank into the bottom and almost lost one of my Crocks, the last arm I did barefoot, carrying the wading shoes in one hand.
Once through the river, I didn’t stop to change yet continued up the hill all the way to the cabin in a successful attempt to get warm.
The cabin itself turned out to be a disappointment, though, there is a nice one that is privately owned, the NTO cabin didn’t have a stove to make fire and the ceiling was so low I couldn’t stand up. After a quick glance, I went and pitched my tent instead!
Soon I had dinner ready, followed by a couple of mugs of tea, and soon after 10 pm, I went to bed.
Even if the hike was neither long nor hard this day, the last 3km involved quite some elevation and the river crossing was tiring and I’ll have no issues sleeping well tonight!
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The rain had stopped just after midnight and the sky looked a lot more friendly when I got out and shaked most of the water off my tent at around 7 am. Ashleigh was already awake and we ended up chatting for a couple of hours having several cups of coffee while Cornelia slept in.
Altogether a very pleasant morning that led to a rather late start just shy of noon. The girls decided to make it to the campsite 3km (2 miles) before Abisko and aim for breakfast at the tourist station tomorrow morning.
So we agreed that I take them up to Kungsleden, make sure they recognize the markers and then move on westwards towards Norway, aiming to end the day here in Unna Allakas.
After spending a week with them and having a lot of adventurous experiences and fun together I have to admit getting a little emotional when we parted.
I’m confident that they make their way just great and will enjoy that breakfast immensely.
I, on my part, looked forward to the sauna in Unna Allakas and to clean up thoroughly for the first time in a week.
Didn’t make any real breaks during the hike, and didn’t need any, just stopped for water a few times and ended up being on the trail for almost 6 hours straight.
Feels so great how the body adjusts itself and has moved into hiking mode again. Of course, it’s also helpful that I’ve been using up some of my food and the weight of the backpack goes down.
I’m still amazed, though, how much less food I need than anticipated. My guess is that my body is well aware of the extra body fat I intentionally put on before the tour, use that first and that my hunger will increase down the road.
Obviously, we can’t fool nature and my trick to lessen the load a little by putting on some weight seems to backfire slightly as less food leaves my backpack.
Anyway, the sauna was wonderful, as expected, and the lake was warm enough to actually swim around for a while. The first time that happens up here!
After cleaning up I enjoyed a nice dinner inside the cabin, chatted with the other guests and got down to my tent just after 10:30 pm.
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Getting into another rain shower on the first stretch, I dropped into the cabin at Cunojaure to have a cup of coffee away from the rain. Between chatting with two Austrian guys and a Swedish couple I met already on the trail to Unna Allakas yesterday, I stayed until 4:30 pm.
