Day 9

Wednesday, September 22

We've set our alarm clocks early and walk along the beach to see the sun rise. The surf has dwindled to a murmur again while the slanted light lines out footprints as well as tiny dunes and ripples in the sand. This has been another great place to wake up to! Now it's time to get to the ferry.

It's hard to leave with so much still to see and do but we make plans for coming back and also I am definitely looking forward to a bathtub and a soft bed!

Day 8

Wednesday, September 21

Today is our last entire day in Sweden, we'll have to be in Trelleborg tomorrow morning so we'll have to make our way South today. It's a beautiful morning, the sun is already out but there's fog on the ground and hovering over the water. It's still quite cold, about 2 °C - fall has arrived.

As we have breakfast next to the cooking fire and boil some eggs for the drive we notice a cricket, very slowly moving into the sunlight, warming up and beginning to chirrup. There won't be many more mornings for it.

One our way South we stop at Karlskrona. The city was founded in 1680 as base for the Royal navy and covers over 30 small islands, it's really interesting. Sadly we only have time for a short walk and a mug of coffee before we hit the road again.

The far South of Sweden is very different from what we've seen in the last few days, in fact it's not much different from what Germany looks like some 100 kms south across the Baltic Sea, there are lots of fields and farms. Also it's the most densely populated region of Sweden. As we leave the E22 towards Ystad, now and again the sea comes back into view.

The afternoon is drawing to a close as we arrive at Ales Stenar, a large stone ship probably dating from the Iron Age. It sits atop a grassy cliff over the sea and was probably used for astronomy and after all these centuries it's still a sight to behold.

Dozens of sheep wander across the grassy expanse but except for one they won't let us approach them. We sit on the cliff for a while, looking down on the pebble beach below, phantasizing about camping there but it seems to hazardous with the sheep clambering all about the steep slope looking for food.

As we're not far from Trelleborg now we might as well find a camp spot for the night. There are camp sites but they all seem to be closed off and we'd like one last night "out in the wild" anyway. We head for the beach of Sandhammaren, hoping camping might be allowed there. Turns out it isn't but the beach is amazing, huge and empty. It's also great to walk on as the sand is firm and hardly yields underfoot.

When the sun has set we hide the tent between the dunes and I step out into the cold water. The surf is loud and it's a queer feeling standing there in the half light that softens the borders of beach, sky and water.

It's also getting cold really soon, dew begins to fall shortly after sunset and there are millions of stars despite the lighthouses left and right getting in the way. Even the lights of the Danish island Bornholm can be seen clearly across the water.

As we don't want to draw any attention to ourselves with a campfire we retire into our sleeping bags pretty soon, but I sleep uneasy, waking up frequently and looking out of the tent over the surreal landscape of dunes and beach grass under the pale light of the moon.

Day 7

Tuesday, September 20

I wake up to the sounds of something moving near the tent though we never find out what it is. For breakfast we have some Knäckebrot and eggs we boiled over yesterdays's campfire, sitting right at the lakeshore und admiring the view.

After that we set out to More Kastell, a canyon from the ice age. The name originates from a formation of rock looking remotely like a ruined tower.

One funny thing about Sweden is that there are toilets in the middle of nowhere, like at the small parking lot near More Kastell. There was one in Segersgärde as well, very convenient for campers!

After a stroll through the canyon and along its top we head on to Växjö. It's one of the largest cities in Smaland and also has it's own college, the Linné university. Else it's not very remarkable. One funny thing about Swedish cities in general seems to be the window decorations: lamp, candle, potted plant seems to be the thing and there's hardly any exceptions to this rule.

In Växjö we stop at a small supermarkt and get some really great Chorizo sausage for the campfire, then we head out into the countryside again. Today's home will be Torsjö where we spent the very first night and noticed a really cool fireplace in the morning.





There are thick clouds in the sky but over the lake the sky is bright blue and the golden early evening sun is smiling on us. Heiko builds a fire and even finds a grill which he sets on two stones. On this contraption he even manages to cook the package of dried bulgur salad which Heiko's parents gave us and which has to cook for 15 minutes - not an easy feat on a campfire!

The hot bulgur and lentils are mixed with feta cheese and accompanied by Chorizo sausage cooked on a stick (Stockwurst!) - it's a feast, especially after a few days of instant soup!

After the meal we take my tablet between us and watch a movie while night slowly falls. Every so often we look up into the sky where a myriad of stars is starting to appear. The fire gives off plenty of warmth which is dearly needed - as soon as we step away from it our breath starts to make clouds in front of our faces and we realize it's gotten pretty cold indeed.

As we retreat into the open tent and crawl into the sleeping bags I realize it's the first night I'm not borderline uncomfortably warm. I pull my buff over my ears and zip the sleeping bag shut right up to my nose and have a really good night's sleep.

Day 6

Monday, September 19

We start our day in a very relaxed manner this morning. Plans for the day are to head inland and see some moose. As we head back into Västervik for the umpteenth and last time it's nearing noon. The guy at the tourist information is helpful again and provides us with the address of a moose park that hasn't closed for the season yet so we head on to Malilla while devouring some Subway sandwiches.

Smaland changes quite a bit while we get there. We drive through a large valley, the forest has retreated, instead there are huge fields laying bare after the harvest. A hazy sun shines overhead and tints everything golden as we follow a gravel road to the moose park.

The moose are shy at first but later on we get an opportunity to see them up close, feed them oak leaves and even touch the little one's nose. They are huge, even the calf is massive, even more so the bull with his prominent antlers.
When they lie down they bend their front legs first, then very awkwardly lower their hind quarters.

Now it's time to sleep apparently!

On our way out we have a chat with the owner, a young woman about my age who runs this place together with her husband. They are from Stockholm and moved here only last year with their three children - what a huge step from a town flat and a cat to this large compound with a dozen moose, goats and rabbits!

We ask her how they care for the moose and she tells us that there's not much to be done except feeding and watering and there's also not much known about them or how to treat them should they fall sick. They more or less just let nature run its course.

A mysterious object.

We stand there chatting for a long time and have an overall great afternoon at the moose park. When the afternoon turns into early evening the search for a camp spot starts again: We pick an area with several lakes, drive there, park the car somewhere and head off into the woods. Tonight's home is the shore of a quiet forest lake. The water is so warm and looks so inviting I've already made up my mind to go for a swim but the first step into the water has me stand ankle deep in muck. This is not what I envisioned! So I just wash quickly, put on whatever clothes are within reach which is how the weird picture below came to pass!

Soon we encounter the masters of this forest: huge red ants and their equally massive anthills. The ants are everywhere and it's the first night we sleep with the moscito net of the tent closed. During the night a slight drizzle begins to fall but nothing serious.

Day 5

Sunday, September 18

I wake up at first light and in hardly any pain at all and spend some time on the flat cliffs of the island facing East and the glorious sunrise. The water is so smooth it reflects the clouds and even the incessant sounds of the surf have quieted down to a murmur.

As clouds start gathering in the South we decide to set out after a quick cereal for breakfast. As Heiko pushes my kayak and me off the rock and I slide out over the still water I feel pure joy.

Later the tediousness of mastering the technique and the pitfalls of navigation take back most of my attention but these first minutes are just perfect awesomeness.
The sun being soon entirely obscured by thick clouds the water becomes leaden and the landscape with its exposed rocks, pines and shrubs strangely somber and alien. Yesterday we met the odd motorboat along the way but now we're all alone. The sea is quiet and when we paddle near cliffs our voices make funny echoes.

As for navigation I throw caution to the winds and put my phone into my life vest instead of into one of the hatches so I can have a look at the GPS and take pictures too.

I still manage to get us a little lost as I underestimate our progress but a few hours later we're back on the sandy island where we had our tea break yesterday. The sun is back, I feel very warm und also exhausted by all the exercise. We call Magnus to expect us back at the harbour in two hours time.

Magnus's kayak rental

We're almost there and have 90 minutes left as we set out again - ample time -, but these last kilometers are among the longest I've ever experienced. The sun is back and it's getting warm inside the kayaks and outside. I take a lot of breaks, just drifting and moving my arms about. When we paddle back through the canal leading to the harbor I have to stop for a foursome of very relaxed ducks crossing from right to left.

Then we're back. What a ride and what a place to camp!

We stroll around Västervik for a while, the town is very pretty indeed with colorful wooden houses and some very interesting historic buildings too. As it's still early and we've decided not to look for a new camp spot we still have time so we take a drive around the area and to a nearby nature reserve. On the way we stop at a supermarket and get some sausages and marshmallows to cook at today's campfire!

The nature reserve is called Segersgärde after a nearby estate. Ada Rydström, a writer and contemporary of Selma Lagerlöf, used to live there but you can only read what she wrote if you understand Swedish! I picked this reserve for the two mountains Fruberget and Önberget and of course we have to climb a Swedish mountain - the Fruberget (early mountain). It's an impressive 67 meters high and indeed is the highest landmark for miles around.

 

As an Austrian I can only laugh at this idea of a mountain but as we climb it there is indeed a rather alpine feeling to it, trees become scarce, there's heather and blueberry shrubs but farther up it's just a desert of rock, smoothened by the centuries. Walking downhill, we marvel at the same fast motion transformation in reverse: within a few dozen steps heather and brushes come back in sight, then trees, then meadows. In the alps you would have to cross hundreds of meters for this.

Indeed we even manage to get lost here, on this miniature mountain though only for a short while!

The light is already golden again as we travel back along the narrow, winding roads through the countryside, back through Västervik and out to Händelöp where we laze next to the fire and settle in early - it's been a long but great day.