Canoeing in the Stockholm Archipelago

The plan was to take a trip to the Stockholm archipelago and experience ‘endless islands’ in the most simple form of sea transport.
The sea kayak. We wanted to go as wild as possible so made the decision to try and get kayaks from as far out as possible in the archipelago
so that we were in the wilderness as quickly as possible.

I had only been in a sea kayak once before going on the trip, but had done a wee bit of freshwater kayaking. This proved to be enough, but I was glad
that I had been taught some paddling technique from former world adventure race champion Chris Forne.

Other preparation was to get a few drybags together and to test out some kit which we plan to use on a slightly bigger expedition later in the
summer.

Day 1

I woke up in a large ferryboat approaching Stockholm having been in Helsinki the night before. The last thing I could remember was
doing klinsmans over a bunch of swedes laid out in the corridor. Too much high quality russian vodka had been consumed!

After arriving in Stockholm, priority was to stock up on food. We bought food for the whole trip in one go. There is a wee bit of thinking required to
do this, but its much better having all the food sorted in a oner. Cost about £60 for all the food.

A bus, then a slow ferry took us to the town of Berg on the Island of Moja. From here, it was time to sort out all our stuff and leave the beer soaked
jeans and smelly orienteering shoes behind!

Getting our shit together

After getting maps from the kayak guy, fixing a broken rudder and getting everything packed, we were on our way. We paddled for about 2.5 hours through beautiful thin waterways in the evening sunshine.

We randomly picked a little island that looked like a good starting point for the next day and went about getting out of the boat. Turned out there is a lot of bare rock in the archipelago which has a slimy covering. This means you have to pick out inlets and grassy areas for landing the kayak. We found this out the hard way. First, I got out of the boat and proceeded to fall over and swim in the deep water. Next, I held onto the boat and ‘helped’ Helen get out of the water. The result was she went swimming too!

Sunset with the Kayak

We setup campsite and for the first time felt the sense of peace and chilledness that was to set the tone for the next few days.

Tree Banter

Day 2

The plan for day 2 was to do an 8km open water stretch to reach the Store Nåsa nature reserve. A collection of wild islands in the outer archipelago.

Wilderness

For some reason I was crapping it, the idea of falling out of the kayak in open sea seemed daunting. Luckily nothing with awry and we made it to the islands in the mid afternoon. We setup camp then I tried some fishing with the rudimentary fishing equipment I had taken along. I was unsuccessful but luckily we had enough food to get by.

Jarlsberg and Wine

Day 3

Bantered about the outer islands looking at the protected birdlife and lazing around in the sunshine. We went swimming in the afternoon sun and got attacked by a couple of arctic tern birds.

Arctic Tern

The wind dropped so we decided to make the open water paddle back to the moja reserve. Quick dinner and wine, then hardcore paddling. Open water navigation is difficult, you really need to trust your compass and not your eyes!

We found another top class little island, with a top view and no mosquitos. Best of the trip.

Sweet campsite

Day 4

As we had been carrying all our drinking water (cooking with sea water however) we were running a little low so decided to try and take a detour via a well to get some more water.

Cooking equipment

We hunted for a bit, then had lunch, then tried again and managed to find it! Cold fresh water on a hot sunny day was ideal.

Well

A couple of hours paddling and later we started looking for an island to setup camp. The first one I was attacked by another arctic tern, then at the second one I disturbed a family of toads sheltering in a drying up bog.

We managed to find another camp spot which was pretty sweet.

Sweet Campsite

Day 5

This was the last day of the trip, we left relatively early for us (9:30am) and proceeded back towards berg to return the kayak.

We stopped at a wee town for some lunch then made the paddle back to Berg. On the way we nearly hit a ferry head on and the result was the we had to ride the wake! We hit is straight on a were happy we had spray decks!

When we arrived back in Berg it was midsummer, a big party in Sweden; especially big in moja. There were loads of fast speedboats with noisy engines. I have decided that if I had the pleasure of being able to decide between getting a yaught, or getting a speedboat, I would go for a speedboat any day! Those things are PHAT.

Ended up in 747 that night. (converted into a hostel at Stockhol Arlanda Airport)

Jumbo Hostel

Doing it yourself

Can fully recommend this trip, it was pretty relaxed with not a great deal of physical effort. You could have gone more full on and did bigger kayaking distances than us if you like.

Hired the kayaks from Möja Havskajaker

• Remember you need all your water so make sure you have enough vessels. 2l per person per day is enough.
• Buy all your food before starting the trip. There is a supermarket in Berg but recommend just buying all of the stuff you need in Stockholm as there is more choice in the supermarkets there.
• You can get petrol in the islands so a liquid fuel stove works quite well.
• Watch out for mosquitos as there were quite a few at night so you need a mossie proof tent and the ability to choose good campspots.

Walking into the sunset

Often the ski patrol does avalanche control after a big dump. You normally hear it before you get out of bed.

Here in Kazakhstan the ski patrol might have had one too many vodkas as the avalanche control didnt go so well!

Juratind Summit Ridge, Romsdalen

In my continuing quest for not being as slow to pack for weekends away I have included a packing list for a weekend ski touring trip.

Equipment

• skis
• boots
• skins
• transceiver
• shovel
• probe
• map + compass in map case
• food (enough for tour plus a little extra)
• strap (for attaching skis together on back)
• poles (collapsible)
• ski leashes
• rucksack 35l

Tour Dependent

• crampons
• ice axe
• walkie talkies + charger

Clothes

• jacket lightweight
• jacket beefy
• waterproof trousers
• thermal bottoms x2
• thick gloves
• inner gloves x2
• ski socks
• goggles
• sunglasses
• hat x3
• buff x2
• sun cream
• waterbottle
• thermal tops x3
• down jacket
• lightweight fleece
• watch
• first aid (incl compeed)
• survival blanket
• knife
• small headtorch w/ spare batteries
• mobile phone

Civi Stuff

• toiletries + personal medication (eg. asthma inhaler)
• trousers x2
• boxers x3
• socks x3
• tshirt x2
• towel
• sleeping bag + pillow case
• trainers

Drew packing away.

I am really slow at packing. In an attempt to reduce the time spent here is a list of stuff I took to Verbier.

• Snowboard
• Boots
• Bindings
• Thermal tops x4
• Thermal bottoms x2
• Jacket
• Salopettes
• Large Hip flask (full of Bowmore)
• Small Hip Flask (full of Bowmore)
• Snus
• Wax + Scraper
• Passport
• Tickets
• Phone + Charger
• Walkie Talkies + Charger
• Snowboarding Socks x2
• Normal socks x5
• Boxers x7
• Tshirts x3
• Petzl Tikka + Spare Batt
• First Aid inc Compeed
• Knife
• Spoon
• Cup
• MSR Whisperlite Stove + Fuel Cannister
• Pan
• Slippers
• Jeans
• Lightweight Trousers
• Food
• Towel x2
• Down Jacket
• Insulated Lumberjack Shirt
• Shovel
• Probe
• Avalung
• Tranceiver
• OMM Jirichanca Rucksack
• Snowshoes
• Poles
• Helmet
• Googles
• Shades
• Buff x3
• Hat x3
• Gloves x2
• Inner Gloves x2
• Sleeping Bag
• Pillow Case
• Fleece
• Ipod Shuffle
• Camera x2
• Waterbottle
• Book
• Sun Protection

Verbier is a ski resort in the Valais region of Switzerland. It is known for its extreme offpiste and lively apres ski.

Verbier Piste Map (click for full version)

Places to ride

There is a lot of terrain on offer and we only managed to scratch the surface in the week that we rode there. It would take a few seasons before you could really become familiar with this ski area.

Note: If you are riding / skiing off-piste you do so at your own risk and should be using the necessary safety equipment and know how to use it.

If it is snowing and visibility is bad head to Bruson. This little area which is accessible by bus will show you a good time in the trees.

Picking a route

Virgin lines above the trees.

If the snow conditions are good you can ride from Bruson to Le Chable.

When the snow is good head to the controlled off-piste runs. These give an off-piste experience with some avalanche control and preparation. Vallon d’Arbi and the Col des Mines offer some great riding. Watch out for the long ski out for the Vallon d Arbi.

Riders after the storm

roof drop

Higher up there is the genitals run which has a lot of nice varied terrain and a lot of vertical. There is the Mont Gelé cable car which takes you to the top of Mont Gele. From here there is only off-piste runs! The front side is relatively fierce with the back side offering a slightly easier route with the beginning being the most technical.

The highest lift in the resort is the Mont Fort cable car. This run takes you on a glacier so be careful to watch out for crevasses if you are venturing off piste. The snow here can be very, very lush.

For a day trip head to the top of the left Tbar which takes you to Greppon Blanc and there is a long offpiste run which takes you to a road at the edge of the 4 vallees ski area. There is a caravan here which sells tasty food and snacks. From here you can get a free bus to les masses then spend a chunk of the day getting back to Verbier. Nice open bowls followed by tight tree runs.

Places to stay

If you have a group of 6 or more I would recommend getting an apartment in Verbier village. You will have easy access to the lift system and to the afterski. The afterski access may or may not be a good thing ;-P

If you are on a budget then you can, like we did, stay in the village of Le Chable below Verbier in the valley. It is linked to the Verbier by a Gondola which stays open to 1830. We stayed in a ghetto hostel called Le Stop . The owner is friendly and it is in a old bomb shelter with 3 a piece bunk beds. The breakfast is relatively good and worth paying for. There is no luxury here however, it is cheap but also pretty extreme with no kitchen etc. Take your own stove!

Chillin at le stop

Places to party

Pub Mont Fort and Farinet are the best places to go for apres ski. Pub Mont Fort also livens up later at night as well with a couple of happy hours happening, one and 4pm and one at 10pm where beers are half price.

We were to focused on skiing to go out clubbing!

Rating out of 10

If you hit it right this is one of the best places to ride in the world. 10/10.

On the pistes for once.

Roof drop

Boulder drop

The Crew

Summiting at Dusk

Outdoor equipment of some kind is a pre-requisite for doing most outdoor activities. Jackets, bags, bottoms, shoes, gloves, hats, skis, crampons, ice axes, bikes, ropes, wax, tents, stoves, sleeping bags, pans, food, maps and wetsuits to name but a few.

It is easy to let all this equipment get out of control, spend too much packing for a weekend away, take far too much equipment or replace equipment that doesn’t need replaced.

This is where making and mending comes in. Here are a few core elements to this philosophy.

• quality – this relies on the equipment being of good quality that can handle many years of use. Cheap throwaway equipment is a false economy, and may let you down in times of need.
• minimalism – take and keep around the best tools for the job, get rid of the chaff.
• making – improve your tools to make them even better. This could include modifying a rucksack to better suit your needs, custom upgrades to bikes and general small improvements to existing setups. You could even attempt to make your own equipment.
• mending – when stuff is used it gets damaged. There is no way around this and it should not be tiptoed around. Not skiing a line because there might be some base scratching rocks is lame. To keep your equipment in good working order you should repair problems when they occur yourself. This will make your expensive equipment last longer. This could include base repair and ski servicing, mending holes in clothing, washing ropes etc.
• your tools – think of your equipment as YOUR equipment. Something you have chosen and created rather than just a collection of brand names.

Making and mending is best done when there is unavoidable downtime. Snowed in and got nothing to do for 12 hours? Pap on the telly? Do a bit of making and mending.

Got any making and mending experiences?

Things to take when touring hut to hut in Norway.

Silk liner
Silk pillowcase
Down jacket
Waterproof jacket
Waterproof trousers
Light fleece
Thermal tops x2
Torch
Spare batteries for torch
Thermal bottoms
Leisure sock x1
Hiking socks
Blister prevention and treatment
First aid
Camera
Indoor shoes (slippers)
Boots
Compass
Map
Toiletries
Book
Key
Hat
Gloves
Buff

30km to Katterat

Cunojavrihytta to Katterat

The beast day. 30km due north and we had to get a train at 15:08. An early start was on the cards.

Up at 6am, started at 7am with a good tailwind and hard snow. The time constraints changed the feeling of the day, we were in race mode. Skinning a lot faster, and resting was kept to minimum. Helen kept hurrying me along and was a bit more stressed about the situation than me.

Helen hurrying me along

After 2.5 hours we made it to kvilebu (pictured above). This tiny little hut has 2 beds and must take a beating in the winter as it is in a really exposed spot. At this point we realised that we were 1.5 hours ahead of schedule. The combination of determination, tail wind and favourable snow conditions had really paid off.

We pressed onto the first descent of the day. The snow was in bad shape having been destroyed by strong winds at some point. The gradient was pretty serious though which made for a good time, something like 35-40 degrees I reckon.

Line into hunddalen

This is were we really appreciated our wide skis with sharp metal edges. Although lighter mountain skis are better most of the time, they are rubbish for descending. For me, its mostly about descending!

Next we skated out of the frozen riverbed and onto the next descent where we passed a bewildered group of men inspecting some hydro equipment. Again the snow wasnt ideal, we straightlined a lot of the descent to maximise speed. This meant that as we entered the hundalen valley flow we managed to get a fair way across it!

We stopped for a power break and basked in the glorious sunshine. (It really warmed up after about 12pm most days. But was often cold circa -15 at the start of the day.)

Next we skinned towards katterat and as we approached the final section I became very excited and took off my skins. This was a mistake. It turned out to be very undulating so we had to skate for a lot of the uphills with heavy rucksacks. I ended up exhausted and sweatier than a ‘paed in a playground’. Finally the frustration was over and there was a sloppy powder descent back to Katterat station, where it all began.

This is a former German stronghold from the German occupation of Norway during the second world war.

I heartily recommend ski touring in the mountains around Narvik. April is a great time it seems, as days are longer and warmer, whilst the snow conditions are still good.

See this post for a list of things we took on the trip. Really cutting down on what you take avoids a heavy pack which really spoils the fun.

We met one guy who has a packed to the brim 130L rucksack; and others who were pulling sledges as well as rucksacks. Not my idea of a good time.

Next on the list is some ski touring in either the swiss or french alps. Also planning on taking up the sport of splitboarding to keep the snowboarder in me alive and well.

Finished!

Cunojavri at Dusk

Lossiestua to Cunojavrihytta

(lifted straight from my notebook)

A ‘shorter’ day this time, again in brilliant sunshine.

The day started with a nice little descent into the valley. Leaving the hut without your skins on is a good feeling. Gravity assisted excitement from the word go. Bags are starting to get lighter now which adds to the skiing experience.

DNT Logo

There was a little more wind today so breaks were taken at sheltered spots. Behind boulders were a favourite and we started tucking into the banana cake. It is really good stuff!

The error of the day was trying to cross the outlet of an underground hydro station. The water was warmer as it had been underground and this resulted in a huge uncrossable torrent, sitting in a deep snow gorge. Suffice to say, we went round.

We stopped for lunch sometime after 1pm as it was starting to get pretty hot.

Cooking at lunchtime

There was a mirage as we approached cunojavrihytta in the form of another hut! We went hard and as we got close we realised it was just a wee one and had to ski on further for some minutes in the baking lunar landscape.

There was an exciting section in the middle where we got to choose our own lines through some undulating rocky terrain. We have spent a lot of time just following skin trails, which is a little bit boring sometimes. Its like a string course through the snow without the exciting pictures at control sites. And you have to provide your own sweeties.

All in all a fairly easy day at 4hrs. This should allow us to be prepared for tomorrows beast. I actually just managed to sneak out on my own for some extra. I skied up a wee hill near the hut in the evening sunshing. Pretty nice decent with long sweeping turns.

Cuno at dusk.

Self portrait

Hunddalshytta to Lossiestua

First ‘serious’ day.

Up early and away to escape the insanity of the full hut. It was another blue sky day, but at 8:30am it was -18 degrees centigrade. Welcome to the arctic circle.

There was a cold headwind to being with which froze my trusty sigg waterbottle solid. Luckily, Helen had some water so it was all good.

We knew that there would be another group following out skin track later in the day. We drew a few pictures in the snow for them. My favourite was the classic immature sketch of male genitalia that I drew.

Thankfully there were a few descents, the first one had an amazing backdrop and was more of a cruise than anything else. I enjoyed finally getting my skins off and the feeling of turning with fat powder skis.

Product Placement

Next, we climbed up to a col. Due to the fatness of the skis it means that the skins are also relatively wide. This means you are able to skin straight up fairly steep slopes. This saves you a lot of time, but with a heavy bag buts a lot of strain on the central system. I was ‘poked’ (as my kiwi friend would say) as I reached the summit. Soaking wet. Time to change my thermal.

Lunch break; Had polarbrøds smeared with children.

Children in a tin

Next, I taught Helen how to rip your skins off without taking your skis off. Something which saves an age at transitions.

We skied down the longest descent of the trip making nice lines in the sun baked snow. Heres a shot of Helen in action.

I managed another cheeky sun baked descent to wee loch later in the day. It was cheeky in that I had to do a 15min skin out as a result when Helen just traversed and beat me by ages. I like descending tho; the feeling of slashing the slope was well worth the tiring skin out.

Arriving at Lossiestua

We arrived at Lossiestua before any of the other groups. Beating the large group by 2.25 hours. Total for the day: 6.25 hours.

The wind is getting up as I write this into my little black book. Buffeting the hut; reminding me of the harsh reality of where we are. I feel lucky that the weather has been so good, so far.