A Summer in the Mountains- Part Six and Now What?
Champagne was the perfect way to end the trip!
The day started at 5:30 in the morning. We were told by our ride home to meet at Treriksröset (Three Country Cairn) at noon. It was 14 kilometers away, and we didn’t want to be late. It had been a cold night in the tent, and the warmth of the wood stove in the cabin got us out of our sleeping bags quickly. With our food bags empty, our packs were at their lightest, and we felt like we could sprint down the trail. The rainy weather of Norway had been unrelenting, so we were happy to have small patches of blue sky once we had reentered Sweden. Where would this long trip end? We were heading toward a big round cement stone that marks where Sweden, Norway, and Finland meet. We expected the arrival to be anti-climactic. It’s essentially a big yellow rock. Through the trees we saw it, and we heard our arrival party shouting to us. Stefan and Inger (Jerre’s dad and his wife) met us with champagne and chocolate, and to our surprise it was an emotional arrival. Our lives for the past 68 days were spent getting to this small dot on the map, and the final steps brought tears of joy.
Now let’s rewind.
We left Abisko with just ten more days on the trail, nine of which would be spent in Norway. If you have never been to Norway, there are two things you need to know about the country; it is wild and rainy. Jerre and I were extremely lucky with the weather this season. We had barely needed our rain gear, but now that we were in Norway we knew we couldn’t escape it. We spent days walking in unstable weather conditions. At times the fog was so thick that it felt like we were walking to the edge of the world, and some days were spent fighting to stay upright against the strong winds. With the help of DNT (The Norwegian Trekking Association) cabins we were able to get some relief from the weather and dry out our clothes.
Norway is a tough country filled with tough people. They like to keep their backcountry wild, so when the trail goes through the marshes, you have to forge your own path without the help of friendly boardwalks. While wet squigy feet are not so nice, the wet ground is the perfect climate for cloudberries. Cloudberries are not your average berry. They only grow in northern mountainous areas and are sensitive plants growing only in the most perfect conditions. Families hold prime cloudberry picking spots secret, revealing them only to their children. We had been waiting all summer for berries, and we were finally able to take advantage of their arrival. When you find the small patch of ripe cloudberries they look gold against the green grass. The perfect trail side snack.
Perfect cloudberries
We had made some miscalculations before we left Abisko, and soon realized that we had an extra day on the trail! What would we do with this day? We could spread our kilometers out and have shorter days, or keep them the same, and take a rest day in a DNT cabin. With the unstable weather we opted for a day spent inside by the fire. Dærtahytta lies at the end of a valley, and is surrounded by small lakes filled with tasty fish. Three years ago they knocked down one of the old cabins and built a new one that turned out the be the ultimate spot for a day of rest. During the day, the trail outside is quiet. Hikers have left in the morning, and those who would arrive in the afternoon were still a few kilometers away. The stillness outside invited herds of reindeer to munch on the lichen covered ground. In the quietness of the day I sat on the sofa with a cup of coffee and watched them eating, undisturbed.
The first to arrive at the cabin in the early afternoon was a Norwegian couple who dropped their things off and went back out with their fishing rods. To our surprise we were offered their extra grayling for dinner. Our first and only fresh fish on the trail wasn’t eaten until the very end, but it was worth the wait. We shared it with the others in the cabin while we relaxed and told stories.
News travels fast on the trail. If you see something strange when heading northbound, that story will probably reach every southbound hiker before they see it. I am almost reluctant to tell this story because I don’t want my family to worry, so I will preemptively saying that nothing bad actually happened. We were in Dividalshytta one evening, and we met a woman heading southbound. We were telling stories about the trail, and it jogged her memory that she wanted to warn us about something. “I don’t want to scare you, but about 7 km up the trail there are what seems to be the remains of a half burnt backpack. You can still see some women’s clothes, and a paper with emergency contact info on it. I will contact the authorities as soon as I get phone service.” The rest of the evening was spent telling ghost stories that took place in the mountains, so by the time we actually came across the backpack we were a little nervous. Upon closer inspection we noticed that it was not a backpack, but a duffle bag that was in a plastic bag, and half burnt. We took pictures of the emergency contact page that was visible, and moved on. By the time we made it to Dærtahytta we had fabricated all sorts of stories, but in the end it wasn’t that exciting. A lot of military groups use the area to practice survival skills, and one group had left some gear. At least, that’s what they want us to believe...
So, we did it! We walked from Grövelsjön to Treriksröset. Now what? Don’t fret, this hike is over but the fun has just begun. This autumn we will be releasing more articles from this trip. During our time on the trail I wanted to tell a story, but now it’s time to get technical. We will tell you about the planning of the trip, the data, and most importantly where we went wrong. If you’re itching for more stories from the trail, fear not. Jerre is an extremely talented photographer and filmmaker, and will be releasing a short documentary about the trip, this fall. This was our first trip together, and before we made it to the end we were busy brainstorming more trip ideas. Our adventures have just begun.
