From Amsterdam, I flew to Manilla with a transfer at Jeddah. The first flight was together with my sister and her family. Which made the flight more enjoyable, especially because I had another pore seat selection.

The second flight wasn’t full, so I had a full row to myself. Which slept very comfortably.

When I arrived at Manilla, I was really confused because the hotel was supposed to be on the opposite side of the airport. But the airline I took was very cheap and thus I arrived at departure hall 3 instead of 1. It took some figuring out bit there was a shuttle. It took forever to arrive so 2 hours later than I landed I was at my hotel.

The next day the flight to Siargoa was without problem and soon I was on a tropical Island with palm trees everywhere. I am meeting my friend here, but unfortunately, Flor’s flight got canceled so she will arrive early the next day. In the hostel, 3 others just arrived after I unpacked. Two British and an Italian. They let me hang- out with them for the night. But after two cocktails and a meal, I felt really weak and actually, it became black for my eyes. Despite it being only 7:30 p.m., I went to bed. However, due to the jetlag, I woke up two hours later and couldn’t sleep until deep in the night.

The next morning, Flor had arrived and we went for breakfast! What a luxurious feeling! Beach views, ice coffee, and seeing Flor after a year! However, the temperatures and humidity are no joke for my sweaty unadapted body!

The rest of the day we lay at the beach and some more incredible food and discovered that our chosen hostel was a full-on party mode. The welcome drink, free shots, and every tour they offered had free booze. The one Flor and I booked (Sohoton swimming with non-stinging jellyfish) didn’t have free booze because it wasn’t allowed. But we didn’t have to worry they added an hour of free drinking at their bar!! Flor and I both laughed very hard at this.

The next day we rented a scooter and visited beautiful sites. For all touristy spots you need to pay a small entrance fee, but it’s worth it. The dive of a higher cliff did have the usual stutter because it was surprisingly high. On a 4-lane road with no traffic, I had my first scooter lesson. Went really well. It’s a perfect combination between cycling and driving. The location of Palm Tree Drive remains a mystery because everywhere were palm trees and nowhere were there exceptionally many.

In the evening we joined a pub quiz. With 2 really good rounds and two really bad rounds. Cartoon characters and drink slogans are not my or my teammate’s things.

The next day we got up really early for our tour of the jellyfish only to discover that the boat didn’t have the required permits and we couldn’t go. Why they didn’t tell us this yesterday evening when we confirmed the departure time is a puzzle to us. We found another tour operator to take us on a tri-island tour. Which definitely wasn’t the same but still really nice. Similar to the Filipino’s we did a full-on photoshoot, however, our laughing at ourselves didn’t make for very photogenic pictures. On the way back a thunderstorm rolled in. Being on the water with lightning isn’t the best and on top of that, the motor broke down. Flor and I weren’t worried, the thunder was still away from us and there were so many tourist boats that surely one would give us a tow. However, not everyone was so calm. Some hide their head down and near tears. But 10 min later we were towed and arrived safely in the dock.

In the evening we did another quiz ‘category’. This time with the support of Steffie. Or as the locals would call hete Sophie. 10 different categories you need to name a right answer with the letter that is drawn. If your answer is correct and no one else thought of it, you get a point. Surprisingly we got a point for ice cream flavour with an ‘A’ Ananas. Which made us laugh very hard.

Thursday was already our last day. We rented a scooter again to go to a more sandy beach for a surf lesson. On our way, we stopped at a cold spring. Oooh so refreshing!! After the constant heat. At the moment of departure, a tropical rainstorm hit. So we waited for more than an hour. After that, we weren’t in the mood to continue. So we went back and took a lesson at Cloud 9 beach. We had individual instructors mine was named Jack Sparrow. Why not. The surfing was amazing!! Some tough exercise for my arms and with a beautiful sunset view. It was so enjoyable. The instructors had some interesting comments. Jack wanted to compliment me on my strength but halfway through got scared it was insulting. Thus eventually this what he said ‘Wow you’re shoulders are …. Working’. The advice for Flor, who struggled a bit more with standing up, was: ‘Just balance!’

Videos coming – but not sure when😅

We finished when darkness fell and with an early flight, we went to bed after dinner. We need the rest because next on the list is hiking the highest mountain of the Philippines: Mt. Apo.

After finishing I stayed in Sweden for another week and a half. I spend time with Alex a friend I met in New Zealand. We hiked for about 5 weeks together with two others on Te Araroa. He lives in South Sweden, but Kungsleden is still very far North. So the first challenge was getting south. Either by 16-hour bus journey with multiple transfers or my best option getting a lift from the Dutch couple I met three days ago. Extremely lucky I saw Maarten and Sabiene when I was on my way to the little museum. They were still happy to offer me a ride. So I raced down to pack my stuff. The ride to Uppsala still took 2 days, but the company was great and in the Netherlands, I went to visit them again.

In Uppsala Alex picked me upp. We spent a few days at his childhood home. Where I felt like a true Swedish person picking blueberries and mushrooms (with guidance from Alex). The only thing lacking was the language. I could speak some Swedish but the conversations between Alex and his mom were lost on me.

I bought trail running shoes and after a few days, we headed in his van to the Norwegian mountains to start my trail running journey. Alex is already a pro with 8 months of trail running in Spain.

The trail run was a lot of fun. Depending on the elevation I walked more or less. The links to the strava activities are here:

The running didn’t take all day, so back in the van we played some cards, and ate a lot of food. With the main dish being pasta. Easy life, but with still a lot of rain, I went home a little earlier. But it was a good decision as I still needed to organise a lot before I left for my long-long travel. My last night was celebrated with pizza and I couldn’t resist getting the large one!

Thank you Sweden and Norway and everyone I met. I had a great time and all I can say is ‘Jag kommer tillbaka’.

So I thought I already wrote this, but apparently not?? So there is a bit of a mix-up.

Since Donald left, the weather has been more rainy. Tomorrow again the weather will be bad with high wind speed, rain and even thunder in the evening.

I don’t trust my tent in high wind, so I’ll aim to reach a hut before tomorrow night. There are two emergency huts and the furthest is a really nice privately owned hut. The price is actually very decent. So that is my plan, but that does mean I need to cover 65km in two days. But as the weather is shittie tomorrow, I should walk 40+ km today.

So I set an early alarm because based on the information, the terrain will be relatively slow. Thus to cover such a distance I need an early start (again). Wasn’t very happy to get up, but I didn’t want to wake the others. So I packed swiftly and went on my way.

As expected the terrain wasn’t an easy stroll, but I was content with my progress. Near a lake, I passed Joel, who was eating breakfast. He will catch me soon enough! And indeed after 3 hours I took my first (chips) break and he passed me.

The trail became easier and turned into a 4×4 road. Which are a lot faster. Pleasantly surprised I walked into Adolfström. Still early the coffee shop wasn’t opened yet. I needed to pay the hut for tomorrow in advance, so I just had to wait 15 minutes. I wasn’t the only one waiting. Another Dutch hiker was there. This brave soul didn’t have a tent but a tarp construction. Unfortunately, he already discovered that a tarp and the combination of wind and rain isn’t successful as the rain will be blown into the open spaces of the tarp. So he also wanted to stay in the hut.

The lady of the coffee shop could not understand that we both spoke Dutch, and were there at the same time, but weren’t together. This made for a confusing situation especially as she only accepted cash, but he didn’t carry any cash (why??) so I lent him cash and sent him a Tikkie. Eventually, when I booked only one night she finally understood that we were complete strangers to each other. The guy sprinted off to the boat that would take him across the lake (8km walk otherwise). I wanted to walk everything, plus I didn’t want to pay for the boat, therefore I stayed behind got a coffee, and relaxed for a bit. Then it was time for the lake section. Very beautiful, but again not very fast.

A little bit after lunchtime I arrived at the drop-off location of the boat. I enjoyed my lunch there and so far so good. I still needed to cover 20km, but with the long daylight, I had plenty of time.

However, my feet thought differently about another 20km. Those pussy feet of mine were tired and even though the terrain was perfect, I was really slow. So I put some music on and pushed on. The kilometers crept by and finally, I reached the first hut. But still got 15 km to go. Still slow I took a break hoping it would help, but only more parts started to hurt. Now my ankles were painful as well. I took 1 paracetamol (for adults 2 tablets is the regular amount) because I didn’t want to push my body too far. At 36.5km I called it a day. Tomorrow 28km is not ideal, but my limit was reached and for now, there wasn’t a good enough reason to push further.

I set up camp, were many mosquitoes again, so I ate dinner inside the tent and fell asleep quickly.

The final day.

I did set an alarm for the slim chance that the sky would be clear and I could do Sytertoppen. One glance was enough, but as I was already awake I might as well start hiking. So I packed up and left. Soon I was walking through the mist and just in time I put on rain gear. I did picture my final day a bit differently and the lack of view saddened me. So I was a bit downcast.

Luckily I crossed paths with a fellow hiker who invited me for a chat underneath his umbrella-ella-ella. His happiness put me in a better mood. After an hour and a half, I reached the emergency hut where an elderly couple was already sitting. Despite being in their seventies they were still hiking and camping in wind and rain. Something I admire and hope will be my future (if my knees and hips last that long). At one point they said that they were heading on and I couldn’t stay behind. In a much better mood, I continued to the final hut.

On my way to the hut, Joel caught up with me and decided to lower his pace to mine. The way to the hut went quickly and once there we had a snack break where we finished as much food as possible. Because of the weather forecast posted in the hut, it became clear that camping here and hiking up Sytertoppen the next day was not possible.

We continued to chat as we walked the last kilometres to Hemevan. Luckily the weather became much better. Unexpectedly, we met the running girl on the way down. She finished the day before and was now going on a hike with her boyfriend. It always surprises me that from those I met and wondered if they succeed, I meet again. The underprepared German girl and now running girl.

When Hemevan was only a few kilometers away, there was this ski lift that could take you down. I was really tempted to take it, but it didn’t feel right to not walk to the end.

So I reached the final sign by foot!

Then it was going to the stuga and relax. Okay first pitching the tent and so I did that first thing. Still really wet, I hoped I could let it dry first. Nope, the weather gods gave me the shortest shower of the trip, just when I was putting up my tent to dry. So I fully set it up, unpacked my stuff, and went to take a long, warm shower.

After that, it was time to chill and do nothing. Too early for dinner, it was phone time. If I was smart, I would use this time to write the missing day summaries. However, I didn’t. So that’s why I’m now a week into my Philippine travel and I’m only now finishing the Kungsleden stories.

So Joel and I went for dinner and I was extremely happy with the dessert because I was craving rhubarb and they had a rhubarb dessert. Nomnomnom. With full tummies, we went back. Did some more chilling and then it was off to bed!

Yes yes, you all know the drill now. Get up early because the weather will be better today than tomorrow. So at 6 a.m., my alarm went off. I didn’t pack very quickly so I left an hour later. The Dutch and French couples were just waking up.

The weather was greyish but if it’s dry, it’s good enough for me. On the way to the first hut, I held another photoshoot for the reindeer I saw along the way.

The route to the first of the three huts today was lovely. Beautiful surroundings, so a joy to walk through. At 9:30 I reached the hut which hadn’t emptied yet. I checked the weather forecast which said dry in the morning, rain in the afternoon. However, I needed a snack break. Don’t judge me, because the people leaving the hut to start their day already did: my 9:30 snack was a bag of Cheetos chips. Did it’s job so I continued soon after.

Unexpectedly, I saw rain clouds creeping up from behind. Unfortunately, I wasn’t fast enough, and even worse it was a 3 hour heavy rain shower. On my way to the second hut, in the rain, I met so many people. Everyone stopped for a brief chat and the most asked question was ‘How far to the hut?’. The further I walked the more depressing my answer to this question was. The funniest interaction was with a guy.

I said: Hey how are you

He said: okay. I’m just okay

Fair enough. so I let him be.

When I arrived at the second hut, the rain was only a slight drizzle. Still soaked so I looked forward to a dry meal inside. The hut warden turned out to be very strict and I could only come inside if I paid the day fee. Honestly, it’s not the craziest amount (€4), but I am Dutch. And so I am too much of a cheapskate to pay €4 to sit inside for half an hour. With my decision to stay outside, the rain had completely stopped and I was joined by more cheapskates (non-Dutch).

After lunch, I still had about 15km left to the hut. I already had 23km in the pocket.

The route went passed a large lake, but the views over the lake were less than expected. After an hour or two I wanted another break. Good decision because I felt more energetic.

When crossing the lake with several bridges it was really sunny and the views were gorgeous. I was tempted to camp here, but if I wanted to do Sytertoppen, it was better to camp right at the junction and not 5km before and another 150(?)m elevation. So I continued. My determination was again tested when I saw Joel, but I didn’t divert from the plan.

Whilst climbing up to Syterstuga (the final hut), I saw more rain coming. Looked like only a tiny bit of rain. But I felt like I already had my portion for that day. Before reaching my final hut destination, the rain had already stopped. Still, I felt like I could pay the stuga camping fee and use the sauna.

Arriving at the hut, the hut warden was surprised I asked for the sauna as there wasn’t one. So instead it was a cold river bath. I also checked the weather forecast but it hadn’t improved. So no hike along the Sytertoppen. I saved the last 20km for tomorrow and pitched my tent near a Swedish couple. Little bit of a chat, but after my cold river bath, I was cold so I ate dinner in my tent in my sleeping bag. Eventually, I got warm again and fell instantly asleep.

Got up to be ready for the 7 o’clock breakfast buffet. Also with the belief that today would be great thus an early start would be nice. Unfortunately, there was rain and the next part was in the clouds. This did mean that I couldn’t take forever with the buffet. So I ate a second and third breakfast. It went so fast that I didn’t even take a photo. Oopsie

Robert (the guy in whose cabin I slept) joined me with the same idea about maximising the breakfast buffet. With the mountain still in the clouds, I called my parents. And drank some more coffee.

At 9:39 the sky was blue so it was time to start packing. Packing went really fast until on my way back from filling up my water, I met a Dutch girl. With whom I chatted for a long time. Then Madeleine (girl from the hiker’s group yesterday) and Robert were done and so we chatted some more. When there a few raindrops fell my hiking motivation went to zero. So many people that I know were taking a rest day which made it very tempting for me to also take a rest day. However, my body doesn’t need it plus today would be dry so it would be a shame not to start hiking. And so I went.

The first hut was only 7.4 km away. Even though it was a little bit of a rooty and rocky uphill, I still made it in a good time. Had some lunch together with an Italian man and met a woman who was running to Hemevan in 2 days. Super impressive and jealous of how easily she ran uphill. She was staying in Hemevan for a few days extra so I hope I’ll see her there.

After the first hut, I wasn’t sure how far I would walk. The wind was very strong in my tent would not survive it. After seeing a little hut near a lake, I thought I passed the first shelter so when I reached the actual first shelter, I thought it was the second. Caused a small disappointment. But it was indeed a beautiful day, despite the wind, and so I was enjoying the hike when I reached the second hut and no one was staying there. I decided to sleep inside, technically it’s not a real emergency, however, destroying my first tent to be able to sleep in the hut, seemed a bit ridiculous.

Near to the hut, there was already a tent who belonged to a Dutch couple. Had a nice chat although I was a bit too straight forward by concluding that there impressive abroad carriers that wouldn’t need a pilgrims hike to over think life. As they told me soon after they suffered a great loss. So a personal reminder to not assume that someone’s life is a fairytale after 10 minutes of chatting.

After we all finished dinner, a French couple entered (different French couple) The third young French couple I met. The atmosphere was nice and plans for the next day were discussed because everyone received different information from the NoBo (northbound) walkers. My plan is to hike up to Syterstuga and hopefully climb Sytertoppen. If the weather cooperates.

After they all left the hut I went down to the stream for a cleanup and found two sporks (spoons forks) from the Dutch couple and the water bottle from the French couple. I guess I’m not the only one who forgets things sometimes. And now it’s time to go to bed.

Sleeping in a hut when it is raining is the best feeling. Nonetheless, there are downsides to sleeping in a hut. For example, you wake up as soon as the first hiker gets up. This hit was no exception. So I just got up as well.

I left with the French couple (yes the one from the rowing boat) a few minutes ahead of me. They arrived yesterday at the hut as well, but they camped.

The trail goes over the next ‘ridge’ (it’s the top of the mountain, but it’s so wide that you cannot really call it a ridge). From the hut, I could already see that most of it was in the clouds. It was clearing up but at a very slow pace. So I anticipated more views being blocked by clouds. When hiking up I could see the French couple and more reindeer. So far I’ve seen them nearly every day. I still get excited and make a whole photo shoot, live photos, and videos.

I reached the ‘ridge’ and it was still in the clouds. No views but the trail did go through a small tarn. As my feet/shoes were already soaked, like every day, I just went straight through. But I did find it hilarious that the trail casually goes through a tarn, like no biggie. Halfway on the ridge, there is an emergency shelter which would be a perfect spot for a break. I arrived shortly after the French couple. We chatted and ended our break at the same time so we continued together.

It was nice to have some company again after Donald left. But there was a reason they passed me on the way to the rowing boats, their pace was good plus they never stopped for photos or anything. So every time I took a photo, I made them wait. Not the best feeling. And so after an hour, we split up.

Reaching the last peak along the ridge, the weather cleared up enough that there was a view. So I had a second break. It was around lunch time but it was also only 5km left. So I figured I would go to Ammarnäs and buy something there.

I got a bit lost on my way down, so I ended up walking a ski slope down. But it got me where I needed to go. When I was nearly at the Fjällstuga, I met a woman on the way. With two sentences she invited me to stay in the cabin she booked. Which was really kind because with bad weather the huts in town are typically full.

This Fjällstuga was indeed full, so I went to the supermarket hoping she would be back once I got back and I could settle in. She wasn’t, so I went back to the store to resupply (first trip was for lunch). Whilst chatting with the owner, the electricity died. She didn’t even blink. Apparently, this happens often with high winds. Luckily I already paid, because with no power, you couldn’t buy groceries.

Back sitting in front of the hut, the kind woman wasn’t back. So I chatted with a guy I met in the hut yesterday. He also had places left in his cabin. At this point, I didn’t care in which cabin I had a bed. I wanted to settle in and so his offer was hood. Moments after settling in, it came pouring down!!! Very glad me and my backpack weren’t outside anymore.

I did meet up with the woman and we all graved burgers from this highly recommended place. but with no power, no food. So to kill time, I went for a shower in the dark. However, at that point, the lights turned back on!! Hallelujah!

We rushed down and I forgot my phone, so no food photo. But it was delicious, still drooling. In the restaurant, there were more hikers so we joined to form one big group exchanging stories. The instant connection within a hikers community is amazing and one of the main reasons I want to hike ‘popular’ routes. People make the trail and I laughed and stayed up wayyy past my bedtime (like 22:30😱).

So yeah sad that the views weren’t there, but there is no way I can say this was a bad day.

So the big rain day was here. Especially in the evening, the weather would be awful with high winds and thunder. Not something to look forward to even more with the fact that the route goes over a high plateau without shelter. So the plan was to get up early (again) and walk the 25km as fast as I could.

Yeah, good plan. Still stand by it. However, my alarm didn’t go off….

So tired of the day before, I woke up at 7:30. It was still dry at that point, but I knew it wouldn’t be long until the rain came.

I was right when I packed my tent in at 8, the rain started and never stopped that day. So a soaking tent wasn’t the best start, but the knowledge that I would sleep at a hut tonight really really helped.

So I set off and soon the terrain became smoother with more dirt and less rocks. I used my hiking poles no more to speed myself up.

All in all the morning wasn’t bad. No stopping for breaks though. Just a hip-pocket full of bars. 6 bars for 25km. I did see a few tents that looked like they were going to wait out the weather there. Brave but possibly a bit stupid decision.

At the start of the climb to the high plateau, I saw two people coming down. Excited to see someone, because apart from the tent, I hadn’t seen/spoken to anyone this morning. They were NOT happy. Just coming down the plateau, they had headwind and rain. So they were soaked and cold. Thankfully I had a tailwind and my backpack blocked most of the cold wind plus my face was dry. I mean it was still awful, but the fact that it was less awful for me than for them, did help with the morale. Although I still had some ground to cover. So the views must have been great, but it was all in the clouds. I walked as fast as I could.

On the way down, just before the forest, I met someone hiking in the other direction. As it was already 1 o’clock I was puzzled what the plan was. So I asked. There wasn’t any plan. Wasn’t even aware that a storm would roll over. Despite my advice not to continue because it would be a long way to find a sheltered camp spot or a hut and you don’t want to risk getting caught in the storm (that’s my philosophy anyway) he continued.

So I did the same! Only ~7km left to the hut!! Whoop. Although there would be another forest section and indeed it was extremely slow going. The trail was a bit slanted in combination with wet rocks and roots, slipping was easy. Luckily it was only for 3 km (so an hour of walking). The last 5km was over a gravel toad and I loved it. Because it was fast and near to no wind, just rain.

At 3 I arrived at the hut. It was already so nice and warm! Hang up my wet stuff, including my tent. So it would all dry up. And had a good lunch. Plus many more snacks. I had still a lot of food left and tomorrow I will be in Ammarnäs where there is a supermarket.

In the gut it was nice and I met many new hikers. In the evening I asked around for interest to heat the sauna. Only four other people out of the 10 wanted to join. But this was enough to justify heating the Bàstu.

So lovely! Near the river for cold dips and my muscles were pleased. Plus this is more effective for getting clean than my 30-second baths because the water is so cold.

Back in the hut, made some dinner and went to bed the rain ticking on the roof and the occasional thunder made me very content with my choice

Awoken by an early Alarm I noticed that it was a relatively cold morning. So before getting up, I put my hiking clothes in my sleeping bag to warm them up. The worst of all were my wet and muddy socks and shoes. I mean 100m on trail and they would be the same, but still not a pleasure to put them on.

I packed quickly and was on my way. I knew I had sufficient time, which was nice. I nearly nearly fell on one of the boardwalks, so glad it was only a big wobble and not an actual fall! That would’ve been really wet and a struggle to get back on my feet. So I blessed my stars I didn’t actually fell.  

On the way I met two Japanese hikers whom I passed yesterday. They thought the boat left at 10 so they were thankful I informed them 9.

I arrived well in time at the boat dock. Nice timing without stress. There were many more hikers, some I had seen before and some new faces. Most memorable was the one of a handsome Swedish guy. After the boat arrived he jumped out at hiked at a super-fast pace. I started later because my feet required some tape. However, I do enjoy the occasional challenge/chase. Especially one so literal. At the summit, I caught up with him but sadly he took a break. Assuming he would be fast, I continued downhill (my slow terrain) and started to plan all the different ways we could end up in the rowing boat together. There was a mandatory 300m row coming up after 10km of trail.

Option 1: he passes me on trail and then I’ll speed up and we end up at the boat together
Option 2: I stay ahead and wait for him and the boat
Option 3: There would only be one boat left, So I would row across, tow another boat back, and at that moment he appears.

Content with my options I hiked happily onwards. Of course, the whole plan fell through. The French couple who I let pass on purpose were waiting for me because they knew I was alone and otherwise there would only be one boat left (my option 3). I mean it was really kind! Plus handy for them because I could row and they couldn’t. I guess you cannot force meet-cutes.

On the other side of the lake, there was a family who offered us food. Can’t say no to that. It was delicious. In the meantime, I was looking at the other side, but no handsome Swedish guy came and so I continued cured from the small obsession I developed in the previous 2 hours.

In Jäkkvik I resupplied (bought way too much because I was hungry). Saw some people, had a chat with Joel, and a lovely lady with two husky dogs.

As it was still early and sunny, I continued a little bit further to a hut. On my way, I met the French couple I rowed with again. I did ask their names, but I forgot ☹. I was tempted to camp with them, but I did continue, as more rain was coming and my plan was to walk far tomorrow and then on the rain day reach another hut.

Arrived relatively late at the hut and no one was there. So I assumed no one would come. I took a river bath and as I was alone, I didn’t put my bikini on. And as the water was really cold, I might made some sounds to deal with the coldness. However, suddenly I heard very heavy footsteps. So still wet (and naked) I ran up to see which animal it was, turned out to be two other hikes who I didn’t hear arriving due to my high-pitched screams. That was an interesting introduction, but luckily they didn’t mind and laughed it off.  

After I finished my bath I had a nice chat with them and went to bed early. Tomorrow would be a long day to dodge the rain the best I can

Woke up with sunshine and a dominantly blue sky. Unfortunately, the tent is still soaked from condensation. I took off the other fly to dry and slowly started to pack up. Decided that tonight I would camp on higher grounds to spot reindeer up close and have a beautiful view (plus fewer mosquitoes).

The route at first was a bit slow going and I was happy I didn’t continue yesterday. It’s astonishing how green it is. In every possible place, plants are growing. Forming green blankets over the rocks. As it had rained a lot the past few days, there was no way I could keep my feet dry. So much for cleaning my socks and shoes yesterday in the river.

Soon I was at the big river. It became immediately clear that the river was majestic. With the additional water, it roared deep and my earth science heart beat a little faster pure out of enthusiasm. I had an early break to take it all in. Plus I knew I would finish after 25km.

During the break, I got company from a Swiss guy (think his name is Joel) and we had a nice chat. He wanted to go a little bit further than I planned. I finished my break before he finished his but he soon passed me on trail. The track was along the lake, but it wasn’t as taxing as I on beforehand thought.

after the lake section, the climb would start and so did the rain thinking that I would be hot during the climb. I decided to only wear my rain jacket… when I was putting on my rain jacket, I saw Joel picking a lot of berries. we had discussed this during our break, and he said he hadn’t picked any yet so apparently our talk unleashed the berry-picking fanatic in him.

the rain came down much much much harder than I thought, turning the path into a small river. Which, as an earth scientist, I still enjoy. Seeing structures and flow dynamics on a micro-scale. The rest of me enjoyed the rain, much less, but I’m trying this new attitude to just accept the things out of my control as they come and not waste energy on it. I’m not yet there, but I found that I dealt with the rain pretty well. After an hour the rain stopped and I slowly dried up. On the verge of being completely dry, new rain clouds appeared. Oh well….

In the distance, I could see other hikers and their colourful rainbow protective covers over their backpacks. Walking steadily in the rain. No one stopped even though it was well past lunchtime.

At three I made my first attempt at lunch for new raindrops, which made me cancel. Luckily 15 minutes later, the Sun actually came through and I had lunch. The rest still continued, making me realise that all the possible camp spots near the boat crossing for tomorrow will be taken plus I already decided yesterday that I wanted to camp up. I chose to go a little bit further than the planned location but kept a longer distance left for tomorrow.

I did not regret that decision. I have a beautiful view good weather, and most importantly, when I was in my tent very early on two reindeer, came very close to my tent. Yes me trying to take a photo of them scared them away but it was still awesome. Loved it!!! Got me so hyped!!

I also called to the next boat, which I could catch at 9 o’clock in the morning. I still have 10k left to do with an average pace of 3 1/2 km/h plus some extra time to be safe, which means my alarm is set at 5 😦