Sweden - in the swampy land of rubber boots

Swiftly we crossed the border into Sweden, as we had already made a rough plan beforehand on how we wanted to spend the remaining days and which routes needed to be covered when. So we drove 3 hours inland from the border. Lotti had also picked out a sleeping spot right by the lake for the coming night and we were not disappointed by neither the spot nor the weather. We played a round of cards by the fire pit and chatted via video with home before taking countless sunset pictures of the lake. Quickly made a fire and had dinner, only noticing the temperature dropping by our toes. So much so that 2 hours after sunset, the water in our washing-up bowl was already frozen. Fortunately, we are equipped with two hot water bottles, thermal underwear, a hat, and a scarf, so we were able to spend the night quite cozy, but the car and the surrounding landscape were covered in thick frost, with Willie's thermometer showing -5°C, the coldest night on our trip. It took a while for the morning sun to gain enough strength to melt the tent (until then, we swept the ice crystals from the inside and outside of the tent with a broom), and we were able to pack everything up. In the meantime, we kept warm with tea and playing beach ball.

The journey with Willie took us to Östersund, or rather to a wool outlet near Östersund, where we used the credit card several times again and equipped ourselves with warm clothing for cold days. From here, we continued to a sports airfield, where we camped for the night at a non-existent fence, close enough to the hike of the next day. In the morning, just before we set off, we observed the nearby dog pension taking the dogs out for a walk... with a quad bike and a group of about 8 dogs, that's what exercise looks like.

The hike itself was... challenging and wet, foggy and cold. Generally, the sky only cleared up on the way down, so once again we carried all the photo equipment up the mountain in vain. The hiking itself was not very rewarding either, we note: if the hiking guide for Sweden says you should wear hiking rubber boots, there's a reason for it. We often sank more than ankle-deep into the marsh with our boots, took a few detours to find a less muddy spot. In the end, the moisture was not a problem for the coming days, as we had booked nearby accommodation for the next 2 nights. It was only upon arrival that we noticed it was a complete farm with sheep, cows, horses, (Indian) chickens, and racing pigeons. To our delight, there was also a dog and a cat (which did not protect us from the nightly visit of a chip thief in the form of a mouse). The host gave us a detailed tour, as well as fresh eggs and potatoes. She also gave us good tips for walks in the area and an evening car route to see wildlife (we were hoping for moose, but had no luck). We enjoyed the warm shower and the cozy bed, also took the opportunity to do laundry and dry everything.

After the relaxing day, it was time to get back in the car, 4 hours south, into the landscape of Dalarna (Google Maps showed us as a point in the middle of nowhere), from where we would go through some villages the next day for cafe crawling and in search of Swedish specialties towards Stockholm. Willie's odometer already shows 5800km and we still have a little ahead of us, when we continue to the ferry tomorrow with a stop in Stockholm.