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26.02.2025

Femundløpet 2025

Two weeks have already passed since the start, but as always, there was too much to do to write a report right away. But patience pays off, because now it’s finally finished. You’ll just have to wait a little longer for the pictures, as I’m still fighting with the upload.

How it all began

I guess I have to go back a long way, but only about ten years 😂 You already know that, since I started working with sled dogs “professionally,” I have mostly, if not always, trained race dogs for long-distance races. Even when we started our own little kennel, the training was structured from the beginning as if we were going to race, even though it would still take some time before the races would begin. And when you train for long-distance races, you can’t avoid the Femundløpet. It might not be the longest race in Europe, but it’s the biggest in terms of participants. Not that I care much about that. No, but the area where it takes place and the atmosphere around it are just incredible. You have to experience it for yourself.

So, after we got back into the racing business with our own dogs last season, the Femundløpet was at the top of our wish list. We started planning over a year ago, thinking about the guest tours, handlers, etc. But I won’t tell you that I also started drafting a preliminary race plan – that is, run and rest times – a year ago 🤫 Of course, all of these plans were tossed around multiple times due to date changes, the cancellation of my originally planned handlers, suddenly valid vaccination regulations, and not to forget the disastrous training conditions this winter. I had always said that I wouldn’t start if I wasn’t sure the dogs could handle the 450km. So, I was unsure for a long time whether I should even go to Røros. I had almost decided against it, but after conversations with experienced mushers, veterinarians, and Raffi, we decided to just treat it as training for the dogs. Because even if we didn’t complete the full distance, they could still learn a lot. The long trip to Røros, the start in the middle of the historic old town with what seemed like millions of spectators, the checkpoints with countless other teams, new trails, and changing trail conditions… just to name a few.

Alright, we’re going 😊

The Team

  • Barolo – 8 years old, my main lead dog. I knew that for him, especially due to his size and weight, the expected trail conditions could make it difficult to finish the race. But I wouldn’t have started without him. He’s my rock, the one I can always rely on.
  • Max – 2 years old, lead dog in training. Max is currently learning what it means to be a good lead dog. Sometimes he’s a little stubborn, and his appetite could clearly be better, but he was meant to prove himself in the race.
  • Timon – 4 years old, a “get up and go” kind of dog. Timon belongs to the “Rangers,” and just like his father, he never seems to get tired. No matter how far he runs, he stands there wagging his tail, waiting – impatiently – for the next leg.
  • Mavas – 3 years old, my hope. Mavas is very sensitive, which often affects her appetite and her will to run in lead. But she showed last year in the Metsjövidda Fjällrace that she can grow during a race.
  • Pumba – 4 years old, the “Happy-Dog.” There’s really nothing more to say about Pumba, another “Ranger”, other than he’s probably the happiest dog alive. No matter what happens, he’s always happily bouncing around.
  • Stella – 4 years old, the powerhouse. Stella may not be particularly large, but she’s a real powerhouse. She pulls like crazy and eats like there’s no tomorrow.
  • Zazu – 4 years old, my favorite. He’s 1000% his father. Extremely strong in the team, especially in the wheel position, and knows exactly what I’m thinking and feeling. A race without him? Unthinkable.
  • Mose – 5 years old, full of power. Mose always goes “all in,” maybe not the best strategy for long-distance races. That’s why we wanted to see how she develops over the distance.

The Preparations

I could go back even further here. Of course, the whole training was already tuned to the highlight of the winter… as far as the conditions allowed. Apart from that, you have to start early looking for accommodation in and around Røros because with nearly 200 participants in the Femundløpet alone, plus the other World Championship participants from sprint and mid-distance, it can get tricky to find a place to stay. But we were lucky, I found a very conveniently located Airbnb that had a large parking lot, giving us enough space for our trailer.

In the last week before departure, it was mainly about cutting and packing the right amounts of food and preparing the equipment. The food part was easier said than done. I was so excited that my head was completely confused, I had to recalculate a hundred times how much of which snack to bring. Plus, we couldn’t prepare too early, as there were already warm temperatures in between, and small-cut snacks thaw much faster than, say, large meat blocks. But little by little, everything was cut – meat, fat from moose, reindeer, and chicken, fish, and not to forget, the magic weapon, heart ❤️ – and packed into different-colored bags so I wouldn’t have to search during the race but just grab the right color.

For the equipment, we had to pack the right harnesses and coats with spares, as well as booties in the correct sizes and the necessary amounts. And of course, the mandatory equipment. But that was easy because we could just tick off the list. Speaking of the list: the entire packing list, including clothes and food for us, was only four pages long, with two columns per page 😉

The Journey Begins

Since we wanted to be on time for the opening ceremony on Sunday, February 9, in Røros, we planned to leave on February 8 with a stopover in Östersund to save the dogs (and the driver) from an excessively long journey in one day.

So, we got up at 5 am, gave the dogs a soup so they had time to digest before the drive. Then quickly loaded all the food from the freezer. The equipment and dry food had already been handled the day before. Then, the most important part: the dogs 🐕 and off we went.

The drive went smoothly, and by the afternoon, we were able to settle into our accommodation at a campsite in Östersund. The dogs first got something to eat since they were too excited to eat during the drive or stops. Afterward, each dog got a walk… Michelle, who was my handler for the race, quickly warmed up, too. It’s funny when you take two dogs at once. Mmh, sled dogs are pulling dogs… they proved it without a doubt 🤪 Then, Michelle and Yves went shopping and came back with pizza and ice cream. It doesn’t get much more typical than that 😉 but it was delicious. At least the ice cream. The pizza couldn’t compete with our homemade one at home. In the evening, more food and another walk, and the first travel day was done.

The next morning began as usual, with breakfast and a walk for the dogs, breakfast for the musher and handler, and then we could continue. At the border, we stopped to show the deworming proof of the dogs. However, it was Sunday… and the customs office was closed. Great! Well, onward to Røros for the last few kilometers. Timing was such that we could do the registration right before heading to our accommodation. Again, the same routine: dogs out, feed them, walk.

In the early evening, Michelle and I went back to Røros for the opening ceremony. Due to the size of the event, it wasn’t held in the church but in a sports hall, which unfortunately took away some of its atmosphere.

Waiting for the Start

We had two free days before things got serious. On Monday, I wanted to take the dogs for a little run to stretch out after the long travel. I received the information that the trail from the checkpoint in Tolga towards Tynset was quite poor, so I decided to start nearby and drive a bit towards Tolga. It couldn’t get worse, right? In fact, the trail was very hard and icy since there was almost no snow. There were also some stones to watch out for. But it was definitely manageable, and we enjoyed the training.

On Tuesday, I sent my handlers to the start of the 650km race. Neither of them had ever been to a race, and I thought it wouldn’t hurt for them to get an impression of how everything works before they kept bombarding me with questions. Meanwhile, I had time to take care of my dogs.

Wednesday was the day of the days. The start was scheduled for 11:00, and since I had start number 166, my start time was 12:05. However, everyone had to be at a designated meeting point by 8:00. There, all the cars were sorted, which took about an hour, and then we were driven in a convoy to the start area in the old town. We let the dogs out again, and then I packed the sled. Although I had to unpack half of it when the sled was checked for mandatory equipment ✅ Then, I changed clothes and started to harness the dogs. In addition to the harnesses, everyone got booties, and Max and Mavas received coats. And then it was time to put them on the line…

The Start

Once all the dogs were harnessed, the sled was hitched to an atv, which then slowly drove towards the start. The road had very little snow, and without the support of the atv, it would have been absolutely impossible to get to the start without damaging anything. At the start, the snow anchor was attached to a tire, and while the seconds counted down until the start, someone held a microphone in my face and asked odd questions… I only understood about half of them. Though, that might have been because I was thinking about something other than an interview 🤭

And just like that, it was 12:05:00. Off we go. The dogs were highly motivated and ran up Kjerkgata, despite the brakes. And then came the turn I had feared for years. I don’t know if it was particularly well-prepared this time or if it was because I only had eight dogs… But I survived it without falling in front of hundreds of people and even more on the livestream screen ☺️

Actually, it gets tricky after the turn, as it’s quite fast and still somewhat curvy downhill out of the town. Shortly after passing the stadium, where the finish line would also be, my dogs wanted to go wrong briefly at a barrier. First, the anchor wouldn’t hold on the icy trail, and then it held so tight that it took me a few seconds to get it off. But now we were on our way.

Stage 1: Røros – Tufsingdalen

The first stage had to be completely rerouted due to a lack of snow. Instead of going over the mountains, we went through the valley. Nevertheless, it still had its ups and downs, and especially the latter were challenging, as they were very steep and, with nearly 100 teams already ahead of me (the 650km teams also used this trail), deep brake grooves had formed, making it difficult to brake and control the sled.

Even on the new route, the snow was limited, which led to a rather adventurous first snack break. First, my dogs got tangled up when I stopped because they all wanted to reach the best and deepest snow on the side. Once I finally untangled them and had the first snack in hand, a team came from behind, and as it passed, my anchors came loose. I had the option of trying to secure them either on the icy trail or in the loose snow at the edge. Neither worked really well, and I had to be fast to keep the dogs and the sled under control without getting the anchors in my legs… So, we decided to postpone the snack break by two or three kilometers to first calm down a bit. The rest of the shortened 45km stage went smoothly, and after a little over three hours, we reached the first checkpoint.

In Tufsingdalen, we stayed for about an hour to snack and lower the pulse. With the weather at its best, we then set off for Drevsjø.

Stage 2: Tufsingdalen – Drevsjø

The next stage was supposed to be 64km. At first, there were some more ups and downs, although I honestly can’t remember the details 🙈 But what I remember very clearly is the magical atmosphere when the full moon peeked out from behind the clouds. It was only there for a short while before the clouds took over, but those few minutes were simply breathtaking. Moments like these are why you endure all the hardships. Just me and my dogs, surrounded only by the indescribable beauty of nature.

Later, the trail went for several kilometers over a lake, which felt like an eternity. After that, there were another 20km, where you go in and out of the checkpoint, so you could also encounter oncoming teams, which my dogs handled with great skill and even drew new motivation from. We arrived in Drevsjø shortly before 9 PM, where I planned to take the mandatory rest break, so six hours plus 25 minutes for time adjustment.

Checkpoint Routine: First, you hook the dogs with the second snow anchor. On the way back, they get their first snacks, and I take out the tuglines, which is the signal for the break. At the same time, I remove the booties. Then I put the coats on them and distribute straw to make them comfortable. Now, I fetch the checkpoint bag and water to cook food for the dogs. While waiting for the water, I check the dogs, massage their joints, and work out any tight muscles. Then, it’s time for food. While the dogs eat, I pack the new snacks for the next stage in the sled so everything is ready. I place the additional snacks for later during the break and the next set of booties right next to the sled. Then, I quickly check that all the dogs are fine, and then head to the car… which was parked quite far away. Yves had already prepared food. Of course, I wasn’t really in the mood to eat, so I could only manage a few spoonfuls. Then I quickly crawled into the sleeping bag to get some rest. At least the timing was right. After three hours, Michelle was supposed to wake me, but my internal clock was quicker 😉 So, I quickly got dressed, went to the dogs, gave them snacks, massaged them, and warmed them up for the next stage. Just before the start, I put on their booties, and off we go…

Stage 3: Drevsjø – Søvollen

The next stage started with the same familiar end of the previous one. Relatively early on, I overtook another team… and from that point on, I was mostly alone for the rest of the stage. I was able to see the lights of the team once more when I took a snack break, but then I was on my own again. Most of the time, the trail followed some forestry roads, or at least that’s what I assume. It was relatively boring, though maybe that was because it was still dark, and I couldn’t see anything of the surroundings.

After about 50km, the ascent to the mountains finally began, which Raffi had told me to enjoy the view of. Hmm, well, first it was still dark, and when it got brighter, it was snowing, and the sky was very overcast. So, there wasn’t much of a view to be seen 😔

Just before the end of the stage, Barolo started to get a bit tired and stiff, so Max took over the role of motivating the team. Happily, we reached the checkpoint Søvollen shortly after 8:30 AM. Here, we followed the same routines as in Drevsjø, with special attention given to Barolo, who was showing some pain in his left shoulder and, due to compensating, also in his right carpal joint. He received extra care in the form of massages, warmth, and a check from the race vets. Meanwhile, I was thinking about whether and how the race could continue without Barolo. We had always known it was possible that Barolo wouldn’t be able to finish the whole race, but it’s still really hard to take out your main lead dog and continue…

When I was done with the dog care I went back to the car. My handlers had brought me waffles, which I quickly ate before I wanted to lie down again. And here came probably the funniest situation of the entire race. I had sat down on my sleeping bag with my feet outside and asked Michelle if she could pull off my shoes. However, the sleeping bag was quite slippery on the mat, and everything was sloping towards the door, which led to Michelle almost pulling me out of the car. I tried to hold on to something while we both nearly died laughing.

Okay, now I had to quickly sleep for two hours… Not happening, though. At that time of the day, you just can’t sleep, especially when you check your phone to see how the 650ers are doing and what the rest of the 450ers are up to 🙈 I did put the phone away, but sleep was still out of the question. So, I got dressed a little earlier to spend more time with Barolo, even though I already knew I would take him out. When I unhooked him to walk and warm him up, the rest of the team suddenly became fully awake and desperately wanted to continue. But first, of course, they got a snack. Then, I had one of the race vets check Barolo. After he had a bit of rest, it turned out that the pain on the left side wasn’t coming from the shoulder but from the elbow. For me, this was the clear confirmation that he would now take a break in the handler’s car. Meanwhile, the others were eager to move on. But I decided to give them a bit more rest, so I took my time with the warming up, putting on booties, and so on. We set off for the next stage just before 1 PM.

Stage 4: Søvollen – Tynset

Originally, I thought about letting Mose run with Max in lead. But it quickly became clear in the first kilometer that Mose was a bit overwhelmed by the racing situation. Since Max had done really well in single-lead during a more demanding training session, I decided to try it this time too.

For the first half of the stage, we were basically alone, so there was no question about how well the single-lead would work when being overtaken or overtaking, which is still somewhat new to our dogs. It’s a very different situation when you train with another team from the kennel, where everyone knows each other, compared to encountering unknown teams.

The stage began with some uphill sections, before we descended quite steeply. Later, though, the ascents clearly predominated, some not so steep but long, others much steeper. Apart from the cleared roads, on which we were sometimes traveling, the trail was mostly deeply trenched, which made it relatively difficult for the dogs to run. It was pretty warm, and the runners seemed to be sticking to the snow. So, I only made slow progress, though Raffi, tracking the GPS, told me that it was probably similar for most teams on that stage.

In the meantime, Mavas probably strained something and showed pain in the shoulder (which later turned out to be the biceps). Given the trail conditions and the less-than-ideal training conditions this winter, I decided already on the way to end the race in Tynset. I didn’t want to risk any further or more serious injuries, and I wanted the dogs to finish the race happy.

I’m not sure about the exact kilometers, but the last climb was a real challenge. It felt like it went on forever, with several steep sections. But my dogs were just amazing, handling it brilliantly. Afterward, though, we had some “discussions” because the “Rangers” again didn’t want to run in front or behind each other. In the end, I just put them side by side. Also, I had initially planned to put Mavas in the sled to spare her shoulder during the last downhill stretch, but she – to put it mildly – thought that was an extremely stupid idea. So, on the last five kilometers, we must have stopped 50 times to sort the lines and adjust the dogs 🙈

But after six hours for 56km, we finally reached Tynset. The whole team went for the snacks I offered, and some even drank clear water, which they had previously refused. Since I planned to stop, all the dogs were checked by the vets. They confirmed that all of them were in excellent condition, well-hydrated, and with a good body score. According to the vets, Mavas could have continued after a break, but I had already decided to stop, and that decision was made.

By the time we arrived at our accommodation, it was about 10:30 PM. Now, it was time to take care of the dogs again, and already here it became clear that the vets were right – Mavas showed no signs of pain anymore. Barolo was happy as well. The rest of the team was doing well, too. The next morning, they all would have preferred to continue, which confirmed to me that I had made the right decision. Of course, one could argue that the dogs could have continued the race. Yes, they might have. But by stopping in Tynset, they gathered many positive experiences: the checkpoint routines, sleeping next to many other dogs amid all the hustle and bustle, encountering other teams on the trail, knowing they get a break before they are exhausted, eating under stress, etc. All of this is foundational for future training. And it wouldn’t have been worth it to spoil these positive experiences with negative ones like injuries and overexertion, just because I wanted to see the finish line. The dogs didn’t know where that finish line was. They only knew they had fun and ran a great new trail.

Thank You for Everything

In conclusion, I want to say thank you.

Thank you to my wonderful dogs, who are the real superstars of this adventure.

Thank you to Raffi for all the support on our long journey to Femund. Whether it was training the dogs, countless massage and stretching sessions, or the encouragement to start, no matter what came.

Thank you to my handlers, Michelle and Yves, for their help during the race.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to making this dream come true.

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24.12.2024

What a winter 🙄

As good as the summer was for “autumn training,” the winter has been terrible for weeks, or rather, months. At the beginning of October, we had a brief spell of snow for two or three days, but since then, it’s mostly been too warm. Or it rained. Or it was at least cold enough that the rain froze. A real disaster for training.

We had to take countless unexpected breaks because our training paths were so slippery that it would have been too dangerous for the dogs. When we were able to train, they still ended up damaging their paws, even with booties, because the trails were so rough. I’ve been training huskies for ten years now, most of that time for racing, but I’ve never experienced such a high bootie wear-and-tear in autumn. Which, of course, is a lot of wasted material and money, but the bigger issue was that we felt like we had to change the booties every five minutes 😬

And as if we weren’t already behind schedule with our training, the Femundløpet organizers came up with their next brilliant move. Although it had been decided in the fall, at the time of registration, that Norwegian, Swedish, and British dogs would not need a rabies vaccination, on the evening of November 30th, we suddenly received the opposite message. For fairness, it should be mentioned that it’s not actually the Femundløpet organization demanding the vaccination, but the IFSS, the International Federation of Sleddog Sports, as the Femundløpet is also the World Championship. However, in previous World Championships held in Norway and Sweden, the IFSS had always made exceptions since the national regulations neither require nor recommend rabies vaccinations, because fortunately, rabies doesn’t exist here. To be precise, it’s even questionable whether veterinarians who vaccinate dogs that don’t travel outside of Norway and Sweden, without a medical need to do so, are violating ethical professional standards. But even if we were to accept that, vaccinating during the peak of training is absolutely the wrong time. You can imagine how thrilled most mushers were about that. So, I spent the whole Sunday wondering whether I should scrap the Femund plans or go ahead and vaccinate in December. I had almost decided on the former when the weather forecast made me change my mind. Again, warm weather, rain, and icy conditions were predicted, meaning very poor training conditions, if training would even be possible at all. So, somewhat reluctantly, I decided to have the A-team vaccinated on Monday morning. Another training break.

How much this will affect our plans remains to be seen. We’ve kept the option open to go to the Femund. But if we determine beforehand that we’ve had too many training setbacks, we may have to drop those plans after all.

For the past week, we’ve finally been able to go sledding, not on all the trails yet, but at least it feels more like winter again 😉

And so, we send you Christmas greetings from snowy Lapland and wish you a fantastic start to the New Year 🎅🏻🎄🥳

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30.09.2024

8 Days Dogs, Cold & Northern Lights

This time, it won’t be a report about a specific tour, but rather a description of what this tour usually looks like, although in reality, every tour is a bit different. This can be due to adverse weather, the wishes of our guests, or other unforeseen events. In any case, I think all guests have enjoyed the tour so far, even if deep snow or wind has tested their limits along the way.

The stay always begins with a shared dinner, where not only do we get to know the guests, but they also get to know each other. This provides an opportunity to satisfy initial curiosity about our life with the dogs through questions and answers, and particularly to discuss what clothing would be good for the next day based on the current weather conditions. This introduction allows us to get a first impression of the guests, which will be the basis for the composition and assignment of the dog teams.

The next day, it gets serious. While one of us picks up the guests, the other prepares the dogs. The dogs wait at the stakeout in the correct order for the planned teams. The sleds are also ready. This has the advantage that each guest can initially focus on getting to know their four dogs, instead of being completely overwhelmed by a wildly running pack.

But before we start, there’s, of course, an introduction. How does sledding work? What is the most important thing? What is the second most important thing and the secret recipe for better riding? If you want to score points on your next tour, I’ll already share the answers 😉 The most important thing: never, and I mean NEVER, let go of the sled! The second most important thing: brake!

Next, we cover the commands, speed, distance, lines, etc. Most guests’ heads are already spinning a bit here, but unfortunately, it doesn’t work without explanation. Yet, there’s no need to overthink it. As long as you follow our instructions— which we often repeat or elaborate on during the tour— sledding isn’t that difficult.

Now finally, let’s talk about the dogs. Each one gets their harness put on. Attention is needed here as not every harness fits every dog. First of all, there are different sizes, which can be recognized by various color markings on the harnesses. Additionally, we have different models, as depending on the individual body shape, coat type, and running style, some dogs fare better with one type than another.

Oh, and by the way, your dogs have names too 😂 We understand that it can be hard to remember them all at the beginning with so much information, but later in the afternoon, you should take the time to learn them since you will be a team for the next few days.

So, the dogs are harnessed. Are you ready? Then put away your phone or camera, because the start requires full concentration and two free hands. Together, we’ll harness the dogs. We start with the last team and work our way forward. You will stay with your lead dogs until the guide team is ready, and you get the signal from Raffi or me to get on the sleds. And now, attention, we’re off! But remember to go one at a time and don’t forget to brake!

In the first few hundred meters, you will probably be completely overwhelmed by the boundless power of the dogs. You might forget how to steer around the corners without a steering wheel and somehow feel like you’re always going too fast or too slow 😬 but just wait and try to implement the instructions. It doesn’t take long before you get a feel for the sled and the brake; you’ll understand how weight shifting works and that braking doesn’t necessarily make you slower, but improves your riding.

After a few kilometers, you’ll also be able to take in the wonderful surroundings: the sparkling snow, the silence, the perfection of nature. Depending on the conditions, we usually cover around 20 km, plus or minus. At the beginning of winter, with deep snow and more difficult conditions, it might be a bit less, and at the end of winter, with faster trails, it might be a bit more. For most guests, this distance is perfect for the first day— long enough to get accustomed to sledding but not too long to be completely exhausted.

Back at the kennel, you can cuddle your dogs before they are unharnessed and allowed back into their warm huts. Depending on how strenuous it was for the dogs, they will either receive soup or food right away or a bit later, while you also get a snack (no, not the same soup 😂) and we warm up in our grill cabin. Afterwards, we prepare the equipment for the next days. Either we load the sleds today or the next morning, often depending on the weather. After that, you’ll return to the guesthouse. Together, we prepare dinner, and you’ll have another opportunity to ask questions for the upcoming days and prepare your personal items.

The next morning runs similarly to the first, with the difference that today you won’t be coming ‘home’ again. Our tour leads us to our first overnight stop, either in a tent or in a wilderness cabin. Here, too, the dogs are taken care of first; they will sleep at a stakeout during the tour. If it’s very cold, they’ll wear coats; otherwise, they simply enjoy lying in the snow. 

Next, it’s time to fetch water or melt snow. In some places, there are open springs or a lake where we can drill a hole; if not, we rely on snow. You’ll be surprised how many pots full of snow it takes to fill a thermos with water. And we’re not the only ones who need water; the dogs need it too. Those assigned to fetch water will have their hands full. But that doesn’t mean the rest of the group is idle. The fire needs to be lit and tended, meat chopped for the dogs’ dinner, and food prepared for the group. Not to mention that the cabins usually have a dry toilet and a woodshed, for which a path needs to be shoveled first.

Once the basics are taken care of, we’ll take time for the dogs again; we cuddle and massage them and check their paws for any injuries—this can also be done while taking off their harnesses. With a bit of luck, you might witness a beautiful sunset, or perhaps the Northern Lights will dance above us during our ‘work.’ Depending on our schedule, the dogs will get fed either before or after dinner. After that, not much happens. Believe me, even the night owls among you will fall into bed, or rather onto the sleeping mat, early.

The next morning, you have to get up early; the dogs need breakfast. While they digest, it’s our turn for breakfast, then we clean up and pack everything back onto the sleds. The start today basically goes the same way as the last two days, with the difference that there’s usually a second person at the kennel to help out and the chains stay there. On the tour, you’ll have to manage it alone and also collect the chains. But after two days of practice, you should be ready for this 😉.

We continue through marshes and frozen lakes, past birch and coniferous forests. Our daily distances on these tours range from about 25 to 60 km, always depending on the conditions and the guests’ wishes. If you’ve ‘survived’ the third night out, you can feel happy—or maybe a little sad? Because today, we head back to the kennel. After taking care of the dogs and giving them some last cuddles, you’ll probably be longing for a warm shower at the guesthouse.

Now you can relax, as the next day is free. Some guests book an excursion to see reindeers or go for a snowmobile ride. Most, however, simply enjoy the tranquility, grabbing snowshoes at some point during the day to walk to the kennel and spend a little more time with the dogs, maybe even feeding them one last time. But even if departure is on the agenda for the next day, it doesn’t have to be a farewell forever… the dogs and we are certainly looking forward to the next tour with you. Perhaps even the advanced version in the mountains?

8 Days Dogs, Cold & Northern Lights
8 Days Huskies & Mountains
Uncategorized

17.09.2024

Autumn is here 🍁🍃🍂

This year, autumn arrived quite early. By the end of August, the leaves had already started to change color. So, it was the perfect time to go for a hike again 🥾

Originally, I had planned the first week of September for the northernmost section of the Kungsleden trail, but just three or four days before, I got sick 🤧. Nothing serious, just a cold, but it was persistent. So, it was a sensible decision to postpone the Kungsleden hike. A week alone on a route with no mobile reception and initially rather poor weather forecast in a weakened state could easily lead to unpleasant situations. Of course, you’re almost never entirely alone on the Kungsleden, and I always carry a GPS emergency device with me, but there’s no need to take unnecessary risks. Instead, I considered taking a shorter trip of two or three days. And since I still had time, I came up with the idea of visiting our friends in Vilhelmina. It had been a few years since the last visit, and even though I had seen some of the dogs during a tour together, I was curious to see everyone again. As luck would have it, Simone had also planned to take a few days to go into the mountains with Yentna – a half-sister of Zazu. Perfect timing, I’d say 😉

So, on Thursday of the first week of September, which had turned out to be quite warm, I drove to Vilhelmina. Zazu was, of course, with me, as he would accompany me on the hike. We spent the day socializing the dogs and, naturally, catching up. On Friday morning, we set off toward Saxnäs. The plan was a three-day hike covering about 49 km.

The first day began with lots of undergrowth 😂. We started from the parking lot and immediately went off-trail. We were supposed to come across an old marked path shortly after, but it seemed really, really old, as there were no markings to be seen anywhere. Nor was there a path. So we battled through knee- to waist-high bushes or marshy areas that quickly soaked our feet. Well, mine, at least, since I had deliberately chosen not to wear Goretex and was hiking in trail runners. Sure, you get wet feet, but while walking, they warm up, and the shoes dry extremely fast. Okay, not when you’re constantly walking through water, but even Goretex shoes can’t handle that and don’t dry out afterward. 

So, we continued on our “path.” Occasionally, we spotted a marker, but they were so scarce that we had to constantly check the GPS to make sure we were still on the right track. Along the way, we came across lots of reindeer antlers and occasionally a reindeer too. But that was nothing compared to what was we will see the next day. Shortly before reaching our first stop, we decided to shorten the route and go straight „over the field“… which, to be honest, felt like what we had been doing all day anyway. We reached a river where we took a break and decided to camp there rather than walk the additional 1-2 km to the originally planned campsite.

We found a beautiful spot between two arms of the river, and just as we set down our backpacks, the sun came out and soon treated us to a stunning sunset. It had been quite warm all day, but luckily the sun had hidden behind some clouds for a while, making the hike much more comfortable. Though the day’s distance was only 14 km, it felt longer due to the lack of a trail and the trudging through bushes and swamps. So, after dinner, we quickly retreated to our tents ⛺️.

The night was quite windy, so I ended up bringing Zazu’s bag into the tent’s vestibule. It was heavy enough not to blow away and was sheltered anyway, but better safe than sorry. Zazu, of course, slept in the tent with me, and the wind didn’t seem to bother him during the night. However, in the morning, he got scared a few times by the flapping tent walls. So, after we had already stepped outside to take some sunrise photos, I decided we might as well get up. Conveniently, the wind had dried the tent completely, so I could take it down and pack it right away. We waited until Simone and Yentna were up, and after breakfast, we headed out for the next stage.

Soon, we reached a slightly better-marked trail. There were still lots of little waterholes and another river to cross, but that was all manageable. Shortly after, we encountered quite a few reindeer, over a hundred in total across several groups. Yentna barely paid any attention to them, and even Zazu stayed fairly calm, though he kept staring at them with great interest. After crossing the mountains, we started to descend slowly. The view into a colorful valley was lovely, though due to the fog and clouds, the colors didn’t come out as vividly in the photos.

And this is when I was reminded why I had sworn not to hike with Zazu anymore 🤣🙈. When a strong dog like Zazu pulls you downhill, you really have to watch your footing to avoid face-planting. So, we took it easy on the descent 😉.

Just before turning onto the Lapplandsleden, Simone spotted some chanterelles and couldn’t resist picking them. Although we had packed mushrooms for dinner, fresh ones are always better 😋. Afterward, the trail was much better marked and led mostly through the forest, which provided nice shade from the now-shining sun ☀️.

Not long before we planned to stop for the night, we came to a river that was missing a bridge for crossing. This sometimes happens with smaller streams or shallow water, but this river was fairly deep and fast-flowing. So, we walked upstream for quite a while but couldn’t find a suitable crossing point, so we went back and then walked downstream. It took a while, but eventually, we found a spot that was shallow enough for us to cross easily. The advantage of already wet trail runners is that you can just leave them on 😂.

We walked a little further to the next river and set up camp after 21 km. As soon as we sat down in front of our tents, we had visitors. Two curious reindeer came by to check us out. After dinner, we quickly retired to the tents again.

This time, the night was completely quiet, with only the sound of the river nearby. The next morning was extremely damp. It was so foggy that everything felt clammy, and the tent was pretty wet. Oh well, since it was the last night of our trip anyway, we just packed it up wet. Not that it would have dried in the next few hours.

The day’s stage began with a climb that would have surely offered a fantastic view of the Borgafjäll valley behind us, had it not been so foggy that we couldn’t see anything at all. But as we climbed higher, the fog started to lift, at least in front of us. And suddenly, another group of reindeer appeared, majestically crossing our path.

After the climb, we began descending again and approached a forested area, which was ablaze with beautiful autumn colors. After crossing the last major river – this time over a bridge 🤣 – we took a short break at a shelter. From there, it was only about 4 km to the parking lot. However, those kilometers included a fairly steep climb that we hadn’t expected from the map. But what the heck, if nothing else, it gave us something to complain about 😉.

At the parking lot, we let the dogs cool off a bit before heading back to the kennel. The three days had passed far too quickly. But it was a great trip with perfect hiking weather and wonderful company.

When I drove home the next day, the other dogs were eagerly awaiting me. But we had to wait two more days for the next training session since it was so warm that even at night, it exceeded our training limit temperatures.

By last weekend, it had cooled down to near freezing… But what kind of autumn is this? It’s warm again, so we’ve had to move training to the night or early morning hours. And even then, it’s still quite warm. Let’s hope it cools down as the forecast promises for next week. 

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02.08.2024

Hiking With Kids – An Extract From Our Brand New Newsletter

Ta-da 🤗 yesterday evening it was the time, our first Lappland Nature Dreams newsletter was send. A colorful mix of news, information, tips and tricks and hopefully a lot of personality. You have missed to sign up? No problem, if you do it now, I can still send you the newsletter with all personal insights. In general, we will not publish the whole newsletter on our web page or on the blog because it should stand alone as what it is, an email newsletter. But we will publish some extracts that usually are also blog topics 😉

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So today: Hiking with children – on tour in the Vindelfjällen Nature Reserve

Since long time Raffi had promised Joël that he would go to the mountains with him. We were looking for a tour that could be done in two to three days and that was suitable for a four-and-a-half-year-old child. So we chose Ammarnäs and the Vindelfjällen Nature Reserve, as this is already a fell region on the one hand, but on the other hand it is not so exposed and remote that it would be too extreme.

First of all, we had to pack. The disadvantage of hiking with a child: as an adult you have to carry twice the equipment, because smaller children should carry a maximum of 5-10% of their own weight. So Joël had his sleeping mat in his backpack, toothbrush, cutlery, a stuffed husky, sandals and his rain jacket, and Raffi had to stow the rest. Well packed, they set off…

They set off from the Kungsleden hiking car park in a northwesterly direction. Joël was in a great mood and sang happily to himself the whole time. Of course, they took regular snack breaks because, unlike me, who never consumes the recommended amount of calories on hikes, Joël wanted to eat all the time. But that’s understandable, after all he set a pretty good pace. They went over the Näsberget, past the Näsbergstjärn to the first stage destination, the Mittibergtjärn, about 7 km from the starting point. Raffi and Joël set up the tent a little above the lake before cooking a delicious dinner and making themselves comfortable in their sleeping bags.

The next morning started with a hearty breakfast, of course, before continuing on the steep climb up Vállienjuoná. Joël was highly motivated and didn’t need to be pushed at all. The weather was also in their favor, with great light and not too warm. Once at the top, Joël proudly posed for a photo. After the obligatory snack break, they continued across the plateau. Soon after, the descent towards Stor-Tjulträsket began, which was extremely rocky and sometimes difficult to walk on. Almost all the hikers they met asked in amazement whether Raffi and Joël were really coming down from there and how old Joël actually was. Meanwhile, Joël continued walking, unimpressed 😃 Actually, it was about time to look for the next place to sleep, but the two were so in their element that they just kept walking. Of course, there were the obligatory lunch and snack breaks again, but they weren’t yet ready for a place to sleep. So it happened that they were soon only 2km from the car park… and then instead of looking for a bigger space in the dense forest, they actually walked to the car, a whole 15km day’s walk 😬 Of course, this is not the standard that should generally be applied to hiking with children, on the contrary, even more than with adults, you have to take children’s individual abilities into account, paying particular attention to making sure that they eat and drink properly, are dressed correctly, are not too sweaty and do not walk with wet feet. If you take all of this into account, even strenuous hikes can be really fun and the children will definitely sleep well afterwards 😉

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16.07.2024

A Newsletter from Lappland Nature Dreams?!

Another newsletter?

Yes, I asked myself that too when the idea came up.

  • Aren’t there enough of them already?
  • And don’t you usually delete them unread anyway, even if you originally subscribed to them?
  • And is there actually enough to report that makes it worth publishing a newsletter?

Oh well…

  • There are certainly enough newsletters, but at least I can convince myself that many of our former guests are interested in what is going on with us and especially with the dogs. And those who haven’t been there yet will only get it if they have actively decided to do so, so there must be some interest 😅
  • The next question is probably very type dependent. Personally, I go crazy when I have unread emails in my inbox – they then circle around in my head like unfinished tasks. Therefore, important emails are read immediately and usually answered or processed very quickly because they are then moved from the inbox to the relevant folder. So what happens to newsletters when I don’t have the time or nerve to read them? They will be deleted unread, yes. But I actually always take the time to think briefly about whether I really delete newsletters from the respective sender every time, because then I would rather accept one more possible click to unsubscribe instead of repeating it every few days or weeks having to delete an email. But there are also newsletters that I (almost) always read, even if it’s just a quick scan to see if there’s anything relevant/interesting in them, then they go into a special folder. In this respect, a well-written newsletter might have a chance of being read by the right recipient 🤔
  • The last question can actually be answered very easily or not at all. Of course, something always happens, after all, the world continues to turn every day – and if not, THAT would definitely be worth a newsletter 😂 but seriously, if you don’t have the ambition to report new things weekly or even daily, but rather monthly or quarterly, then there will certainly always be enough “news” or “topics” to fill a newsletter. When it comes to blogging, it always seems strange to me to write something that is no longer completely new but that I haven’t found the time for yet, because that goes a bit against the character of a blog. Because of the different format and planned publication of a newsletter, it would be ok, right?

And what should be in the newsletter? You as potential readers should actually answer that… the ideas range from the introduction of one or more dogs and their individual personalities, to news about the kennel, the introduction of new tours or tour reports from past tours – perhaps from the perspective of a guest, general information, tips and tricks about living with dogs to thoughts and ideas about sustainable and responsible tourism – to protect our environment and our animals. I think there’s no shortage of ideas… just when you take on too much, there’s a lack of time to implement it 🙈 So, what’s important to you? What interests you the most? What’s definitely stopping you from hitting the delete button right away? 🗑️ Feel free to comment on Facebook or Instagram or write us an email.

So only one last question remains: should there be a newsletter, yes or no?

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23.06.2024

Midsummer in Sweden

One of Sweden’s most important holidays is Midsummer, the longest day of the year, the summer solstice 💐☀️🌸

Many tourists want to experience midsummer in Sweden and are disappointed that there are not lavish parties everywhere – apart from exceptions in large cities and tourist hotspots. Many Swedes traditionally celebrate midsummer with their families, often in their “stuga” – most Swedes still have a summer house somewhere where they spend such occasions as well as their four-week summer vacation. Of course there are also midsummer celebrations, including here in Moräng. But it’s not about making the biggest fuss possible, it’s much more about meeting up for fika – for example, coffee and cake, chatting and finally dancing together around the midsummer pole that has previously been decorated with birch twigs and flowers. The most well-known song what the sing while dancing is “små grodorna” and is about little frogs 🐸 just google it, it’s really funny…

Our Midsummer weekend began on Thursday evening with delicious pizza from the stone oven 🍕

Friday is Midsommarafton, the evening before midsummer. On this day, traditionally a midsummer festival takes place in Moräng. Everything in a small, cozy setting, but of course also with delicious fika and the traditional dance 💃 

In the evening we visited friends for a small birthday party combined with a cozy barbecue evening by the lake.

On Saturday, a spontaneous return visit took place, as some guests at the party wanted to see our dogs 🐕 and by the way, we were sitting comfortably by the fire again, because they hadn’t tasted Swedish coffee boiled over open fire yet ☕️

Meanwhile, Michelle made a flower wreath for Maya, who then had to serve as a midsummer photo model. Well, with a few treats, she didn’t think it was too bad 😂

And what else belongs to midsummer? Vanilla ice cream and strawberries, of course.

Afterwards, Michelle and I went on a short trekking tour with Tornado and Zazu to the Glommersberget with a view over Glommersträsk to Vithatten. However, it was difficult to stop because both we and the dogs were immediately surrounded by countless mosquitoes, knots and horseflies. Anyway, the view was still beautiful 🤩 

In the evening we went on a moose safari and thanks to Raffi’s eagle eyes we actually saw a moose cow. In the picture it even looks like she is sticking her tongue out at us. 😉

All in all a very nice, relaxing weekend. 

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16.06.2024

Summer in Lapland

Midsummer is almost here, so it’s time for an update… the traditional end-of-season post was cancelled this year for family reasons, but that doesn’t mean that we aren’t once again very grateful to our guests and partners, and above all to our wonderful dogs, for a great winter season.

And after that?

In May, Joël and I spent two weeks in Germany visiting family. It was the first time in over four years, and for Joël, the first time he had ever consciously been in Germany. He coped perfectly with the trip and the many people, but after a week at the latest, homesickness set in. For me, it got to the point where whenever I was in the house – especially in bed at night – and heard a dog barking, I jumped up and thought I had to go out and see what the dogs were doing, even if I could clearly hear that it couldn’t be one of our dogs barking 🤔🙈

As soon as we got home, things got fun again, because our girls (except for two) had waited until exactly that time to come into heat. But then one came every day or every other day, so we had to think of new kennel combinations every day. Well, now, apart from Blixten, who is in heat for the first time and is therefore a little unsure, all of them are through or at least past the peak, so everything is a little more relaxed again 😊

Rafiki is still the dog we fear most for. At first his knee had developed well after the TPLO (cruciate ligament surgery), but since the end of April you could clearly see and feel instability in the knee. When I first visited Töre about this, they put it down to the fact that the healing process was simply taking longer. At my further insistence and with the support of our local vets from Skogsveterinärerna Arvidsjaur, the knee was examined more closely during a further visit and a meniscus injury was considered. On the one hand, this is not what you want to hear, but on the other hand, it is more in line with our feelings and the results of all the tests at Skogsvet. Nevertheless, Töre wants to wait another two months before having a surgery, so until then we are trying to help him with physiotherapy and hope that a surgery will not be necessary. But realistically, he probably won’t be able to walk in front of the sled next winter either 😔 so if any of you are a dog physiotherapist and don’t have anything planned for the summer… come along. And if a vet is reading this, Skogsveterinärerna is looking for another vet for the team, please get in touch if you’re interested 😉

What else does summer have to offer? This year there was definitely an unusually high number of adders 🐍 – potentially fatal for dogs. Shortly after we returned from Germany, we had four of them right next to the dog kennels within a week. A small, very aggressive one was even sitting in Barolo and Tornado’s kennel. I was in the house when the dogs started barking “strangely”. Usually you can tell very well what barking means. In this case I couldn’t and ran out as quickly as possible. When I stood so that I could see all the dogs, I couldn’t tell at first. They were all calm (clear in retrospect, because I was there after they alerted me), no sign of a fight, moose or other wild animals around or anything like that. I was just about to go back to put on proper shoes when I noticed that Tornado was staring at something and Barolo had hidden himself in the hut. When I got closer to their kennel, I saw the snake sitting aggressively upright between the door and the food bowl. At first I wanted to let Barolo and Tornado out to get them to safety, but since the snake was sitting so close to the door and looked like it was about to attack, I didn’t want to take the risk of it attacking them as they pass by… or slithering into one of the neighbor kennels. On the other hand, it was impossible to go into the kennel alone to get the snake out without the dogs coming closer. So I quickly called Raffi, who was at the neighbor’s at the time, to help me. I then went to the back of the kennel to distract the dogs while Raffi was able to take care of the uninvited visitor at the front. Afterwards I spoke to Patrick from the reptile rescue center in Polch to see if there was anything that could keep the snakes away. But apart from a waist-high smooth wall with no corners, nothing is really safe. Nevertheless, we are currently trying a snake deterrent, a device that is stuck into the ground and vibrates and makes sounds. The sounds actually scared me off. Because when I was cleaning the dogs after Raffi had installed the part, I suddenly heard a “rattlesnake”. I was a bit confused until I realized that it was this thing, because there really shouldn’t be any rattlesnakes here 😂 Since then, we haven’t had a snake near the kennels, but that’s not very significant, because it was much colder and rainier afterwards. And today I almost tripped over one with Barolo and Joël, right on our training route. At the last second, I was able to pull Barolo and Joël in the other direction and the snake scurried away into the bushes. As far as I’m concerned, it can snow again, I’m sick of reptiles 😏

But summer isn’t all bad… apart from the fact that there will soon be delicious berries to pick again, it also offers the opportunity for shorter and longer husky trekking and photo tours, as well as training for the next season. So if you don’t have any plans yet or are in the area anyway, feel free to browse the homepage to see what suits you best.

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01.02.2024

Ethics and Responsibility

Today it is a serious topic without beautiful pictures of happy dogs in the snow and sunshine, northern lights or what Lapland makes so special.

Because unfortunately Lapland – or more precisely the sled dog scene – also has dark sides. Many tourists who have always wanted to do a sled dog tour and especially those who have only recently had it on their bucket list since it has been “in” are not aware of all the pain connected with this business. Therefore, a little bit of clarification should take place today to create awareness and perhaps give one or the other sled dog a better life.

How do I get on it now? Two occasions are currently very present. On the one hand, Länsstyrelsen, the authority which is responsible for the controls of the sled dog kennels, has confiscated several dozen dogs in recent months due to violation of animal welfare regulations. Not for the first time, but currently it is growing again and affects well over 100 dogs. Who should all of them adopt? I don’t know it. On the other hand, our Rafiki is just undergoing a surgery because of a cruciate ligament fracture, where the veterinarian’s clear statement was that most owners rather take the decision to put the dog to sleep than to pay an expensive surgery with an uncertain outcome.

But now one step at a time. In contrast to Finland and Norway, Sweden has a very strict animal welfare law.

First, in Sweden it is prohibited to keep dogs on a chain. You can think this is positive or negative. In Norway, we ourselves got to know a perfect example of chain keeping, which in my opinion showed no disadvantages with regard to movement or social contacts and also has other advantages. However, we also got to know the opposite, too short chains (which were quickly extended before an announced kennel check, which was only possible because two thirds of the dogs were on tour) and no free run at all. Since the concrete design of chain keeping is often not sufficiently checked (can be?) and many kennels in the area of ​​mass tourism only look at profit, a ban on chain posture seems quite positive.

The regulations in Sweden are also very extensive in terms of kennel design. The kennel (in this sense not the complete kennel but the kennel where 2 or more dogs live) must be relatively large, there must be isolated dog huts with straw, wood chips or a similar surface or a dog stable, the dogs must have permanent access to fresh water in summer, they have to get free run daily, etc. Even if you might argue about some details of the regulations the approaches in the sense of animal welfare are definitely positive. Furthermore, there is a duty in Sweden to register every dog ​​with the Jordbruksverket and also apply for a permit for the kennel if you have more than ten adult dogs or are working with dogs (one is enough). But here we also come to a fundamental problem. I know very few musher beside us, that have registered their dogs, so that it is probably not known how many sled dogs there are at all. However, it is even worse that very many – unfortunately also many immigrated mushers – do not register their kennel, which is why it is of course difficult for Länsstyrelsen to control them if they are not even known. Now you could object, if nobody complains, there is probably nothing to complain about. But isn’t that too easy? Does every neighbor know what exactly the regulations look like? And why shouldn’t everyone have to stick to the regulations?

There is a similar problem with the big kennels that do not have so many dogs themselves and only take up mushers with their own dogs for the season, often of course with too little space for all dogs and avoiding the responsibility, to care for the dogs that make money in winter even in summer.

It gets even worse when you know that there are kennels in Scandinavia that “produce” puppies specifically for the winter so that their guests have something to cuddle with and take great Instagram photos. Not only is it better to have puppies in spring/summer, the worst thing is that these “photo puppies” are sometimes not even raised any further. There are cases where they are simply „eliminated“ after the season.

This doesn’t just happen to puppies, but especially to old and sick dogs or those who perhaps don’t work as hard or are no longer wanted for whatever reason. Unfortunately, in all three countries it is legal to euthanize or shoot dogs that you no longer want without medical reasons, as long as the dog is not tortured during the killing. Can you imagine that? As long as the dog is cute enough to take photos or pulls the sleigh on which paying tourists sit/stand, they are allowed to live, but when they only cost money, they get rid of them! What kind of world do we live in? Is business really more important than life?

Of course, we have often heard that sled dog tours are so expensive. Yes, they are not cheap. And I also come from an environment where many may never be able to afford such a vacation. It’s a shame, for those who are really interested in it. Nevertheless, you have to be aware of how many weeks a year a sled dog earns money and how many months a year it costs more or less only money, be it food, water, the equipment of the kennel, veterinarian, electricity, etc. Don’t forget one to one and a half years until the sweet puppy starts working and the years as a pensionist, which can be five years. Roughly speaking, a dog may earn money a quarter of the year in two thirds of his life, it costs the rest of the time. But does that justify us to make it an object of a “cheap holiday”? Definitely not! Our dogs are our family and they shall get whatever it needs. We would like our guests to participate in this life with our dogs. Yes, that costs. And we understand everyone who cannot afford it. It is also completely ok for us if someone goes “to the competitors”, because we don’t have this competitive thinking. But we just want to ask everyone who wants to do a sled dog tour – regardless of whether a few hours or several days – have a look at where you book, ask questions, about everything! Think about: Ten “Flagship Oldies” cannot be right if you have 300 running dogs, unless there is a plausible and practicable re-homing program. Even if you book through tour operators – which is totally fine – insist on more information. Because unfortunately not all tour operators think and ask enough themselves neither.

And now we let’s talk about Rafiki. This crazy sweet dog was actually scheduled to run at the Metsjövidda Fjällrace. Unfortunately he was injured at Christmas. Fortunately, not on tour with guests, so neither a guest has to blame him/herself, nor do we have to ask ourselves whether it is really good to let guests drive dogs. No, it’s banal, he simply jumped down from the hut – like he did 100 times every day. And probably landed badly. At first we thought it would go away after a few days, because apart from a slight limp on the first day, he immediately went back to running and jumping like a madman and showed no pain whatsoever when we examined him. However, when he was standing, you could see that he wasn’t putting his foot down properly. When things didn’t get better after a week, we went to the vet and the test was done under anesthesia: the cruciate ligament was broken and needed surgery. Not many vets carry out this surgery, but there is a specialist who is “only” 200km away from us. Well, we’re in Lapland, so it’s not that far. We then went there for a preliminary examination in the second week of January. The vet explained to me how the operation would go and that there was no guarantee for working (sled) dogs that they would be able to work again. Many dog ​​owners (especially from hunting dogs) therefore prefer to have their dogs euthanized rather than spend almost SEK 50,000 on a surgery with an uncertain prognosis. That’s just the way it is in Sweden. Hello? So we’re back on topic. Rafiki is three years old, an absolute “happy dog” and he should be put down because he now costs money and maybe doesn’t earn any more? Yes, of course these costs, which don’t even include rehabilitation, tear a big hole in our budget. But we know that after such an operation a dog can walk and run normally and is not in pain. It must not matter at all whether he pulls a sleigh again later or not. We didn’t doubt for a second that Rafiki would get the surgery and of course we hope that he recovers well because he’s already going crazy when the others go on tour and he can’t come with them. And if not? Then he’ll just become a cuddle dog! Apart from the fact that he is also a perfect photo model 😉 At this point we would also like to take the opportunity to thank some of our dear guests who supported us with a contribution to Rafiki’s operation, THANK YOU 🙏

And finally: every musher is responsible for his dogs, but if tourists also question more critically how the dogs live, at some point it may no longer be possible to offer mass tourism at the expense of the dogs. I wish so and I know that we have fellow mushers who feel the same way and guests who support us. But we’re not there yet. Therefore: don’t look away! Ask questions! Act!

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19.01.2024

Metsjövidda Fjällrace

We are back in racing 😃

It’s almost ten years ago that Yvonne started to work with sled dogs professionally. At that time she was mainly training race dogs for long distance races. And even if she also had some nice tours with guests those of you who know her also know that being out with the dogs alone for hours and hours is what makes her really happy. Of course, the last years when we started to build up our own kennel there were no possibilities to even think of racing. But when we got the invitation to take part in Metsjövidda Fjällrace organized by long distance world champion Petter Karlsson it was no question that we would love to do this. 

Initially we planned to take part with two teams to give a lot of dogs new experiences, one team on 320km and the team with the younger dogs on 240km. In autumn we could more or less train according to these plans but when the snow came it got more difficult. Even if it was very cold for relatively long periods already in October and November we still had crazy much overflow on the lakes the whole December and rivers were not frozen. So a lot of trails were not possible to drive and when we wanted to do long trainings we had to repeat the same trails all the time and rest was often in the kennel. 

Anyway until Christmas we were quite sure that everything will go like planned. But suddenly we had to think new. Rafiki started to limp, independent from training or tour, probably after jumping down from the dog house. We checked him and couldn’t find the reason, it looked like he had no pain and he was still running and jumping like crazy. But when he stood still you could see that he didn’t have weight on his back right foot. And since it didn’t get better after a few days we went to the vet in the beginning of the new year. The diagnosis was a chock. He has a fracture of the cruciate ligament. One of the most complicated surgeries on dogs with unpredictable future. When we were at the specialist vet clinic for the pre surgery examination they clearly let me know that most owners decide to put the dog to sleep instead of paying a lot of money for a surgery with an unknown result. That is of course absolutely no option for us. So, now we are waiting for the surgery, which is planned for the first of February, and try to keep Rafiki as calm as possible. But he is crazy, even if he lives inside now and is on the leash when we go out, he wants to run and jump. But of course, he was out of the team for racing. 

At the same time our main leader Barolo started to eat very badly. Probably because his partner Ruby was in heat and they couldn’t be together. We could try whatever we want, he didn’t take it. And of course he was loosing weight. So, it was questionable if our most important dog could start at the race. 

Then right after New Year we got a week with temperatures down to minus -40°. Not only that we spent our time fighting against freezing water pipes and trying to keep the house warm – that means not to be under +10° inside 🥶 – with those temperatures it was also not possible to do more long training runs. 

So, we had to think about our race plans. It was even in question if we can race at all but since we trained a lot and were really looking forward to it we decided that we want to start, at least with one team.

Since Rafiki was out we decided to fill up the team with Ruby who was planned to be the leader of the yearling team and Max, at the moment the most promising dog of the five yearlings. We also decided to shorten the distance to 240km so that it is manageable for Max too.

On Saturday we finally set the team together: Barolo and Ruby as main leaders, Max and Mavas as the promising youngsters, Timon, Pumba and Zazu as the always happy dogs and Luna and Stella as motivators and little engines in the back. 

So, the weekend we spent with cutting and packing snacks, preparing booties in the correct sizes for exactly this team composition, check and pack all the equipment, etc. 

On Monday we drove to Slussfors were it was cold, -29° and it was promised to be cold – and windy – also the following days. I was a bit afraid on how my feet and fingers will manage. But anyway, I couldn’t wait to go on the race. Of course, for us it was not a race in the sense of being fastest but to give the dogs the possibility to gain a lot of new experiences. 

The start of the race was on Tuesday at nine. Since it is a race among friends there was not a strict starting order, everyone could start as soon as he or she is ready. But if you plan to go not too fast of course you let the teams that you know are going faster start first. So, I went out with my team ten minutes after nine.

Right from the beginning it was an amazing trail, going a bit uphill through the forest and after the first road crossing along some lakes and rivers. In the beginning I passed a few teams and were passed by others, e.g. by Petter who I had supposed to have started before me 😂

The weather was cold but not too cold. I forgot to put a thermometer on the sled but I guess it was -20° or a bit below. There was some wind, but ok at this time. The trail was going up into the mountains and after a while I was alone with my team. The teams in front had some distance to me and also the teams behind, so I couldn’t see anyone and just enjoyed being out with my dogs in such a beautiful area. Of course, you couldn’t see that much of the mountains because it started to snow and was windy but anyway it was great. On one of the mountain tops we passed I tried to film with the GoPro, but since it was cold, it went off immediately. My phone was so deep in my clothes to be protected from the cold that I couldn’t reach it without stopping, so unfortunately I don’t have a lot of pictures or videos of the race. But I have the memories of it in my heart 🥰

My plan was to do a break after 60km before we had to pass a 20km long lake. Before the race Petter told me, that it might be cold down there so that it might be a possibility to rest a bit earlier. I realized a bit too late that there were a little cabin at about 55km where I saw Malin and Lars resting. For a short moment I thought about stopping earlier but since I didn’t feel cold at all I decided to stay with the original plan. The downhill to the lake was a bit like a rollercoaster, really funny trail. When we arrived at about 13:45 there were two teams resting but already in the preparation to start again. I snacked my dogs, put the booties off and made them beds of hay. Then I boiled some water to make a real meal for them. Since it was still in the beginning of the race they were not so eager to take the snacks but everyone was eating something. Some dogs prefer dry food, some meat or fat, some take it with water, some tip over the bowl as soon as they get it. Every dog is individually but as long as you know them and find the correct way for every single dog to make them eating it’s fine. Relatively in the beginning of our rest Malin and Lars were passing and the dogs stood up but after that they took a nap. We had a nice 3,5h rest and indeed it was not that cold. While I was preparing the dogs with booties two more teams passed. We left our resting place at about 17:15 if I remember correct. I supposed that the run over the lake will be boring and slow because usually our dogs are not that fast on lakes – except if you have frozen overflow. But they were extremely motivated running with 15-17km/h. So, after a while we came to the two teams that have passed by before we were out again. Usually Barolo passes a team without interest in the other dogs but this time it was not that easy since there were girls in heat in several teams. During the race it more and more turned out that he was distracted by all these new experiences, new dogs and probably most by the females. So, after having passed the lake we went much slower on the up hill parts because Barolo‘s nose was on the ground all the time 🙈

After a while I got a phone call from Angela, that one of the mushers in front of me has lost a snow hook and that I should be careful not to run over it. After having not seen it for quite a long time I was almost sure that I had passed it already and relaxed a bit and where not searching anymore… and suddenly there it was. I put it on my sled so that no one else had the risk to crash into it. 

During the evening the wind and snow got more and on the open spots the trail started to be blown over. Not that it was a problem, because mostly the trail was marked and I had it on the GPS too, but weather got worse. When it was about 5-10km to the checkpoint Danasjö at 120km my GPS was a bit strange and I was not sure if it’s actually showing the right trail (it was always zooming out when I tried to see details). So I somehow managed to take out my phone and checked if I am close to Danasjö. And also saw a message from Angela that due to the weather and upcoming storm the trail is changed (originally it would have been the same way back). But while driving I was too stupid to understand the message. Let’s say, I understood that the trail is changed but not where it goes on. So, I was just hoping that it was meant to be changed after the checkpoint not on the way to it 😉 but it was not that far anymore and after a while I reached Danasjö, I guess around 22:00 or 15 minutes earlier maybe (sorry, I have forgotten the exact times). Again, the dogs got snacks, food and hay and could sleep for a while. Luna was the only one – again – who doesn’t want to lay down. Later on, I discovered that it was the dog coat she was not comfortable with even if she has slept with it on tours already. During the break I tried to get half an hour of sleep myself but I am very, very bad at this and couldn’t turn off my had. After another 3,5h we were starting on the next stage. As said it was not the same way back but an 80km loop coming back to Danasjö and after that half of the loop and going home. Since 80km at once with a part over the mountains in the second half seemed to be a bit much I planned to do another break after about 40km.

The start of this stage was quite ok. After a while you have two bigger lakes again. Not comparable to the 20km from before but anyway some kilometers over lakes. But even here the dogs did a good job and the speed was fine. After the lakes there are some kilometers on forest roads and that was really boring. I had to change the leaders to keep the motivation up. And of course it didn’t help so much that I got a bit tired myself 🥱 so, we went on and after 50km we stopped for another 2,5h rest. After having taken care for the dogs I took my extreme bivy bag and rested on the sled, trying again to get some sleep. If I remember correct it was around 8 when we started again so it was getting daylight again what made it easier for me. Now the next mountain part was waiting. We were a bit slow uphill but constantly moving on, so all in all totally fine. On top of the mountain it was a lot drifting snow and wind but on most parts you could still guess the edges of the trail. Here it was not marked, so to be sure to stay on the right trail I was constantly checking the GPS. But the dogs did great. First Ruby was showing Max how to find an overblown trail, later Barolo took over from Ruby. The last 12km of this stage back to the checkpoint the dogs recognized that they know it and went fast and motivated. Here we met six teams that have started out from the checkpoint and again some passings were not perfect due to crazy dogs 🤣 but we reached Danasjö in an extremely good mood and highly motivated to go on. For a moment I thought about skipping the break here and maybe do it later on the trail, because even if we now had completed 200km I knew that it will be a bit more than 40km back home (I estimated about 50km, in the end it was 59km). So, I gave the dogs another 1,5h break before we started again. 

They started good but already after a few hundred meters Barolo and Max didn’t want to run further together. First I tried to change the lead completely but in the end it was Barolo in single lead who brought us further. I did a snack break before the two lakes and after that put Ruby back to Barolo. The snow was more now but still possible to find the trail. The next snack break was on a boring forest road and there the dogs were not so motivated to go on but did it. Unfortunately only a few minutes later, short before the next lake, my headlight battery broke down (probably because of the cold the upper part with the cable got off the battery itself), so I suddenly had no light until I picked the extra battery out of the sled. And this time the dogs used to roll together and sleep. I gave them a lot of extra snacks what they took really good but anyway I was forced to give them a break. I checked the GPS and saw that it shows exactly 240km. Maybe the dogs took the distance too seriously and haven’t understood that the changed trail was a bit longer 😉🙈 By the way, also my phone battery got empty even if I had charged it in between and tried to hold it warm under several layers of clothes. So, I was a bit nervous about my GPS. Since it was so cold it showed only one of four possible lines for the battery immediately after you put in fresh charged ones. Until this part of the race they had anyway lasted long but after one light battery was broken and my phone off, I was afraid to also loose my GPS because the weather got worse and I was not sure if it will be possible to see the trail or markers on the next lake and further on. 

After about three hours Petter who was on the last part of the 320km came and passed me and behind him the dogs were eager to run again. So we did the last 20km together and reached the finish line short before 23:00. I can’t imagine a better support for me and the dogs 😉

The dogs did a great job over the whole race. Especially our yearling Max did great, learned to eat during the race and was still happy at the finish. Of course that applies also to the „Rangers“ Timon, Pumba and Zazu. Even after the finish it seemed that Pumba just want to go on. But of course all are superheroes, running through difficult conditions in an area they have never been, meeting many new teams and dealing with so many new experiences. It was a great training and preparation for the future. 

I am extremely thankful that I got the chance to take part in the race. It’s such a nice area that you are passing and it was absolutely great to experience this together with our own dogs. A big, big thank you to Petter and Angela for the invitation, organization and support. 

And of course, I am also thankful, that Raffi was my handler, trying to make sure that I eat and drink enough and possibly get some sleep. Not an easy task with me, I know 🙈

Now we are looking forward to the rest of the winter season and already make plans for the next year. 

As written I have almost no videos or pictures from the race but you can see a short reel on our Instagram account. 

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21.12.2023

December – a Month Full of Joy

Today is the shortest day of the year, so why not do a short recap of the actual month?

December started with a half day tour with guests we already know – or at least one of them, because she was our first guest in autumn 2022 and last winter guest 2023… seems that we do something right, if someone who was initially a bit afraid of the cold can’t resist to come back again and again ☺️

The same day our first week tour guests for this winter season arrived. And we really can’t complain, more nice guests for us and the dogs. And I guess also the guests will not complain… trails were still a bit bumpy and difficult but already on the first tour they could combine a sled ride with a moose safari 😃 later on they experienced real winter with temperatures below -30°, exactly on the day of the overnight tour. But one thing they forgot before it got warmer again: to throw hot water in the air… so we did it for them some days later.

The next days we used – beside more preparation for the season – for longer training runs with the dogs. At least when it was possible. Partly we had a lot of overflow on the lakes, then it also got very warm again. But the first 120km run was no problem at all, even for our yearlings. On the last 1km before we reached the kennel, my dogs started to go crazy, barking, screaming and pulling so hard that I had to use the metal brake to control the sled. And while I am writing this text, Raffi is out with “my” team, so the team that I will run at Metsjövidda Fjällrace, for another 180km training.

But let’s come back to December, the month of the dark. Not for us! Yes, it is the month with the smallest amount of daylight hours, but the colors of the sky are just magical. We had sunrise/sunset for several hours each day, we were blessed with polar stratospheric clouds – that are much less common than Northern Lights – several days in a row and we had spectacular Aurora Borealis. There are no words to describe the beauty of Swedish Lapland.

Tomorrow we start our Christmas and New Year tours for external guests that are staying in Arvidsjaur, and on Sunday our own Christmas guests will arrive and enjoy a week (plus some days) full of adventures and new experiences.

So, last but not least, we want to wish you all a wonderful Christmas time. Forget the daily stress and commercial pressure on these days and just find your calm and enjoy the time with family and friends. And after that: have a great start into the New Year 2024. We hope to see you here with us next year 😊

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14.11.2023

November-Update

It’s now been three and a half months since the last post and a lot has happened since then… But as always, there is rarely time to devote to the blog. That’s how it is right now in the middle of the night as I write these lines. But before the winter season really begins what is in two weeks, you should get another update.

So, let’s try it chronologically: anyone who follows us on Facebook or Instagram will not have been able to avoid getting to know our puppies. On August 13th Lumene had three puppies, Tornado, Chinook and Blixten, actually in that order. The dad of the gang is Storm, our new addition from April. And yes, this litter wasn’t planned. Unfortunately, we didn’t know that Storm was digging his way between cages to female dogs in heat. But whatever, the combination was very interesting genetically and Lumene was such a great mother back in the “Lion King” litter that we had no doubt that everything would go well this time too. And so it was. The puppies were very large at birth at 470g to 510g and were therefore agile. That changed a bit after two or three weeks, when we thought that they would definitely climb out of the box soon, but they were rather sluggish. But that was probably because they were still too heavy for their legs. This time the choice of name was almost obvious, on the one hand because of their father Storm, and on the other hand because of the stormy and thundery weather shortly before their birth. We first thought about the Swedish words for lightning and thunder – Blixten and Åska. But then we decided against Åska because we didn’t think it was suitable for guests. Because if you don’t know the Swedish alphabet, you probably read Aska or hear Oskar, both of which are kind of stupid. So we chose Tornado instead, appropriately the same word in Swedish and German. The name for Chinook – a wind in the Rocky Mountains – was chosen by our friends at Korpkullen Huskies, to whom he moved when he was just under nine weeks old. Blixten and Tornado are now three months old and currently live with Rafiki, whom they can terrorize with their stormy nature. But they are still too small to come up on the hut, where Rafiki loves to lie and relax and observe the surroundings.

What else has happened: on the first weekend in September we were in Rovaniemi, the first time together away from our kennel for a day and a half. There we visited the sled dog symposium, which was held for the first time… and of course Santa Claus with Joël 🎅🏻
The symposium is of course not comparable to the one in Kiruna, but there were still some interesting and inspiring lectures and the opportunity to exchange ideas with other mushers. The most influential thing for the rest of our autumn was our conversation with Petter Karlsson, world champion in long-distance racing and, among others, multiple winner of the Finnmarksløpet. We almost worked for Petter a few years ago, so we had been in loose contact for a while. We now had the opportunity to talk to him and his wife Angela about, among other things, building our own kennel and the idea of perhaps racing again… and we promptly received a personal invitation to take part in the 320km long Metsjövidda Fjällrace organized by Petter and Angela. Who could resist that? But first we had to do a bit of organizing. Because just two or three days before the symposium, we had promised regular guests an overnight tour, which would have been exactly the day after the race. Luckily, their friends, who will also be there, hadn’t booked their flights yet, so we were able to move this tour backward a week. At the same time, a friend who is currently with us has agreed to look after Joël and the remaining dogs for the duration of the race. So we were able to plan to take part with two teams. Funnily enough, just two or three days after the confirmation, guests from last year asked for a tour this very week – although we thought the date would be quite practical at a time when there wasn’t so much going on 😂🙈 but so did these guests were flexible and are now coming after the race… so we hope that everything goes as planned and that we can finally get a taste of racing again in mid-January. The race is absolutely not intended as a race for our dogs, but rather to gain experience, practice checkpoint routines in “real life” and get to know the atmosphere of a race. Accordingly, the strategy will be very restrictive and only focused on creating a positive experience for the dogs, regardless of the time we need. But more on that later.

Of course, we had already started training before the symposium, but now we are working even harder towards a goal. Because let’s be honest, just to go on tours, the dogs wouldn’t have to train according to a set plan in August and the training distances that we do now wouldn’t be necessary either. So you could make your life easier – since there’s always not enough time for everything anyway… But you should also know what you’re doing something for. We want to make dreams come true for our guests, as our name suggests, but that doesn’t mean you can’t pursue your own dreams. so, we are happy to accept the additional pressure we put on us ourselves.

At the end of September we had our first guest for autumn training this season. I would say that despite a few tours and stays at other kennels before, he was still able to learn a lot 😉 During a training overnight stay in the tent, our (older) puppies, Maya and her siblings, were able to practice what it’s like to sleep on the stakeout on a tour for the first time… and four out of five mastered it confidently. Only Max somehow didn’t feel like it. Not that he was jumping around at the stakeout or anything, no, he just wouldn’t stop crying. And since Raffi and Joël had joined us for dinner, we decided to postpone Max’s exercise until another time and he was allowed to go home. But he was just as unhappy alone in the cage… so Raffi quickly put Nala to him. After some wild playing, there was actually peace at some point. By the way, Max is now a perfect dog during breaks in training and lies down to relax, not always, as our dogs often think they’d rather keep going, but at least he’s one of those who is basically calm for the time being.

So here we are again at training… which has been happening on white ground for about a month now. So far so good. However, while it feels like it’s snowing a lot all over Scandinavia, here it’s either moving southeast or northwest and we still have just a few centimeters of snow. So while everyone is happily posting pictures of sledding, we are still training with the atv. As much as I want to go sledding, it didn’t make sense from a time perspective if it was only possible with a small team, because then I would have to essentially clone myself in order to train all the dogs according to the plan. So I’ll probably have to be patient and freeze on the atv… because there’s no shortage of cold and you feel it much more on the atv than on the sled 🥶 But what won’t you do for your dreams 😉

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30.07.2023

What is Time? – or: my short time-out on the Kungsleden

What a question! Everyone knows: 60 seconds is a minute, 60 minutes is an hour, 24 hours is a day, etc… Yes, but have you ever wondered if we measure time in the right unit? Is every day, every hour of our lifetime equally valuable? Before we lived them, potentially yes. But when we live them, don’t hours and days often take on an entirely different meaning? Why do we say “time stands still” or “time flies by”? Maybe because we often use the time wrong? Have too high expectations? I don’t want to exclude myself from that, on the contrary, I’m someone who lets the time – or rather the clock – stress me out very often because I can never switch off, but always have in my head what there is still to do , so that I often can’t really enjoy the really nice, relaxing moments. So what do you do about it? Waste time… or say it more friendly: you use it consciously, not because you have to do something important, but because you decide to do something time-consuming. In my case a hike on the Kungsleden, together with my favorite dog Zazu.

Already the planning was time-consuming, but in a positive sense. First I had to decide which part of the Kungsleden I wanted to walk. Since there are 24 other furry friends and a husband and child waiting at home, I only have about a week. Well, really crazy people run the whole trail in 15 days, but I do not only miss the time for that, I also don’t have the physical constitution. Ok, so from where to where? I already know the area around Abisko and Nikkaluokta a little and think it’s really beautiful, but since I needed to go in July – Raffi has vacation and the dogs aren’t in training yet – the northern entrance was ruled out from the start. Because there are so many people out on the trail at that time that you could easily feel transported back to the time of the migration of peoples. Ah yes, by the way, the Padjelantaleden would have appealed to me too, but dogs are forbidden there, even on a leash. So, next consideration Hemavan – Ammarnäs. This part is divided into six stages by the STF (Swedish Tourist Board). 78km in six days? Sorry, what? At the Marka24 in Oslo nine years ago – phew, how time flies 🙈 – I walked 80km in 23h. And this is where my typical me came in again… Shouldn’t I go as far as Kvikkjokk, or at least Jäckvik? That would then also go well with the bus arrival and departure. And what do I do if the daily stages only last three to seven hours, I don’t have cell phone reception to work, and mosquitoes are annoying me? It actually took a while before I decided to really only walk Ammarnäs – Hemavan. One reason was the high temperatures at the time of planning. I was afraid that too much sun would be bad for me and Zazu, especially if we were going relatively far. And of course then came the self-doubt a la “I’m not fit enough to walk 35 km a day”.

So, after the route was determined, I started planning the equipment… and since I’ve had back problems for a long time, I naturally wanted to carry around as little weight as possible. At first I briefly thought about only sleeping in the Biwi, but that would be stupid for Zazu in the rain and in the afternoons when the mosquitoes are annoying, too. So I needed a tent that is lightweight but still has some room for Zazu. When that was done, the next pieces of equipment and clothing came under the magnifying glass – or rather: on the scales. I hadn’t decided which shoes to take until the day before the tour. Raffi swears by mountaineering boots, but since I’ve never gotten along well with high boots, they were not only eliminated because of their weight. But the decision was still Goretex hiking shoes or the 130g lighter running shoes. Due to the predicted rain, it ended up being the Goretex. Whether that was a good choice, more on that later. Next, the food was prepared and weighed on the exact gram. You should get a lot of energy for little weight. Of course you could now say why spend so much time for a few grams more or less. First of all, a few grams quickly add up to a few kilos in the end and secondly, I’m a planning nerd 🤣 for me, planning a tour is almost exactly the same as carrying it out in the end. That’s why I used to plan vacations and moves, and I still help our family today when they fail to find the most sensible travel connection. Of course, our guests have also benefited from this already.

Now that everything was packed, we could start. At first I wanted to take the bus to Ammarnäs, but in the end Raffi and Joël drove me there. Since the first stage is only 8 km and the bus would not have arrived until the afternoon, we also left later in the day. Quarter to two Zazu and I both had our backpacks on and were ready to start. The description said it was going steeply uphill… a Swede must have written that 😅 I was prepared for a steep climb, but it was actually very fair. You probably can’t compare Sweden to the Alps… We hiked through the forest and as soon as we saw the first bridges over rushing streams, it was clear that these wouldn’t be Zazu’s favorite parts of the trail, which is why there are no photos from the bridges. A little later the vegetation became sparser, instead of trees there were now almost only bushes… and cloudberries. But I hadn’t seen any ripe ones at that point, so I thought you’d probably never see ripe cloudberries by the side of the trail because the tourists who don’t know them probably always pick them too early… but more on that later. After a last small climb, the Aigert hut came into view. We walked once around the lake and then looked for a nice spot for our tent. We spent the rest of the afternoon taking a short walk to the viewpoint above the hut, cooking food and… doing nothing. What a waste of time you might think and for a moment I was inclined to write the first part of this blog post, but then I thought there will be time for that later. And this doing nothing without thinking about the next tasks is much more valuable than an hour on the sofa, when you only think that you better have to do something the whole time. Those people who can really relax while watching TV, for example, can be happy, but I have to be out of reach of work in order to get it out of my thoughts – at least temporarily… Later in the evening first a bird made Zazu crazy and after that Zazu made me crazy. Since the weather was still nice, Zazu slept next to the tent attached to a tree until a cheeky bird sits directly above him and chirps incessantly. No well-tuned singing, no, an annoying beeping. When a few drops of rain fell a little later, Zazu was allowed to come into the tent. What can I say? With Zazu in the tent is about the same as with Joël in a 1.80m wide bed, for me there are 20cm at the edge 😬 I don’t even know how Zazu managed it, but at some point he was lying on my sleeping mat and I next to it.

The next day was the longest stage with 19 km. It started with a slight climb all the way up to bold fells, from where we could enjoy the view to the surrounding mountains. In between there were some downhill parts and it became clear that such a full-grown sled dog might not always be so practical. Because when Zazu pulls, you have to stand against it quite a bit to not fly. The other way around when we met people, because as soon as he saw someone, he stopped pulling and wanted to hide. At some point he started to walk more beside me than in front of me like his dad Ranger, which is more or less possible on the fells, but was really annoying in the forest area that started again with paths only two feet wide. About two kilometers before the finish we had to cross another bridge over a roaring waterfall, so I almost had to carry Zazu. The last two kilometers were really a fight, who is running in front, because side by side was not really possible – but Zazu is just stubborn. Arriving at the Serve hut, I quickly set up our tent, because it was teeming with mosquitoes and small flies. Zazu didn’t want to go out anymore and when it rained he slept so well that he even forgot to push me off my sleeping mat.

The next morning we were both up early and so we started the next stage before 7 a.m. First it was a bit uphill, then mostly flat through more or less dense bushes. Due to the previous rain, the trail was very muddy and sometimes the wooden planks, which are supposed to bring you through the swampy passages with dry feet, were also under water. So it didn’t take too long until I had wet feet despite Goretex. In addition, I discussed – what felt like 90% of the way – with Zazu, whether he was walking in front or behind me, but he only switched between right and left, but there was no space on either side 😬 In the end the trail was downhill through the forest to Tärnasjö , where we reached the hut in good time before lunch. Of course we could have just taken a break and then continued hiking, but instead we decided to have a good time in the hut. The “dog room” was in a separate cabin that we had all to ourselves. So we could hang up the tent and Zazu’s backpack to dry. I washed some clothes – taking a quick dip in the lake on the occasion – and took clothes and shoes to the drying room in the main cabin. In the afternoon we alternately relaxed in our hut or at the lake and on the way there we also nibbled a few ripe cloudberries, which line the way from the hut to the sauna and also to the beach. Ah yes, I also cooked in between, but somehow I wasn’t hungry the whole time. Actually, my backpack should lose weight every day because food comes out, it did, but not to the extent calculated. Apart from muesli bars, for which I had planned a re-supply in Tärnasjö – but didn’t need it – I still had so much to eat that I could easily have extended the hike for a few more days…

Although we didn’t get up until an hour later the next morning, we still started ahead of most of the others. Before that I got my things out of the drying room, but my shoes were still not dry even after about 18 hours in the drying room. The decision whether to goretex or not will definitely be different next time 😉 The stage to Syter first led through a long flat birch forest, interrupted by some open swampy areas. After a while you come to a great beach where we could enjoy the view of the mirror-like water and the reflecting mountains in the background. After about two thirds of the way you reach the Tärnasjö bridges, several suspension and wooden bridges to change the side of the lake. Still not Zazu’s favorite, but since the water underneath was still, it was a little easier to master. After that it went steep uphill for a short time, but the view back to the lake landscape definitely makes up for it. It continued flat over the fells with a great view to the opposite mountains, some of which were still covered with snowfields. Shortly before we reached the Syter hut, it started with some raindrops. I was considering if it’s worth taking out the rain jacket and covering the backpack, but you never know 🤔 and it was good, because the last 500m – if not less – it poured like cats and dogs. And since the weather forecast – there was cell phone reception on Syter – also announced thunderstorms for the evening, we spontaneously decided to stay in the hut instead of camping. Otherwise everything in the tent would have been wet immediately, because Zazu shouldn’t have stayed outside in the rain. And trying to rub him dry in the pouring rain is also a rather pointless endeavor. Hence the luxury version again. Incidentally, later sun and rain alternated, but the announced thunderstorm did not materialize.

Before we continue, I would like to share with you a few thoughts on the subject of time that came to me during the obviously not so strenuous stage – if you can still philosophize on the side 😅 What is the importance of time for us? That is certainly very individual, but do we ask ourselves the question at all? Everyone talks about “work-life balance”, a phrase that is used a lot when it comes to working in a large law firm – but not only there. Does the work-life balance really always depend on how many hours we work? Isn’t it more important what we do with our free time? If I only work five hours a day and sit around the rest of the day trying to figure out what else I want to do, do I really have a better work-life balance than someone who works 12, 14 hours but then pursues his hobby for three hours that totally fulfills him? What is work and can work be fun? Of course, work should at best be fun, but even a great job has tasks that aren’t that great… that’s why you get paid. If work is always fun, isn’t it a vacation that you would have to pay for yourself, or at least a hobby? The question comes up automatically with a job like ours, doesn’t it? Of course, nobody should work themselves to death – not even for money, but shouldn’t we rather focus on making better use of the available time than on work? It doesn’t matter if it’s five minutes, an hour or a whole day. Tackle the long-awaited meeting with grandma right now, not when there is a whole weekend to spare. Cancel the mandatory brunch on Sunday with a large group of friends in order to sleep long, read a book or do nothing. Free yourself from social constraints, from the definition of time as others see it. I’m certainly miles away from always using my time sensibly – another term: who decides what makes sense? But realizing that you have to find your own meaning, your own way of counting time, is perhaps a first step. Although I’ve wanted to do this hike for a long time, I thought about going until the very end before the start because I can’t do so much else in this time what have to be done. I’m glad my stubbornness prevailed. Not because I can’t think of 1000 things to do along the way, but because I have time not to do them…

And then day 5 came. On the last stage – or actually the last two – time caught up with me or maybe my typical way of dealing with it. Actually, the route is divided into two stages of 12km and 11km with a stop in Viterskalet. But since you had cell phone reception on Syter and could check the weather forecast, I was tempted to combine the stages. Because even for the last day thunderstorms were announced for 2 p.m., which I didn’t want to sit out in the tent in the mountains. But I didn’t want to spend the night in the hut again. And then maybe there was also the fact that I found the previous stages relatively short and two even shorter ones at the end would somehow not have been a challenge. So when the weather forecast in the morning still predicted thunderstorms, I decided to walk through to Hemavan. The only problem was that there would be no bus going to Arvidsjaur that day and Raffi would have to pick me up from Lycksele later. I had already checked the bus connections for the next two days, and the bus left in the (later) afternoon, so it was relaxed anyway if you started around seven. Said and done. First we went up the hill. Following an intuition, I thought I would use the existing cell phone reception here again to check the exact departure time of the bus… and was then a bit surprised that it was supposed to be leaving at 1:20 p.m. Ok, so I had a little over 6 hours for the route, could do it. If necessary, I could also camp in Hemavan (and stay somewhere inside during the thunderstorm). So first we crossed the hill, where the downhill passage in particular was very muddy and I had to ask Zazu several times not to pull like he did. Somehow he probably had the feeling that it should be the final stage. After 4km we turned off into a long valley, which was lined left and right by – by Swedish standards – high mountains. Also known as the southern entrance porte on the Kungsleden, this U-valley is relatively easy to walk. You cross countless smaller watercourses, which are sometimes wider, sometimes less wide. In order not to slip on the wet stones, you shouldn’t walk too fast. The valley stretches almost to the next hut. At its end you climb a small hill and from there you can already see the Viterskalstugan. There we allowed ourselves a short three-minute break… we were quite well in time, it was just after 10 o’clock. So we had made our way here in the lower end of the specified period of time, even if we – of course – took time to take some photos.

The last leg to Hemavan is said to take three hours so it wasn’t looking too bad. The stage is not strenuous either, as you first cross the fell at the same height for a longer period of time. But here, too, there were more watercourses, muddy spots and smaller rocky ups and downs that you should approach carefully if you don’t want to risk injury from a stupid slip or sprain in the last few kilometers. Relatively quickly we reached a signpost that pointed out 5km to Hemavan. So we were very well on time. A 4km signpost followed and from here we met a lot of people, some with small children, and I thought that they were already hiking nicely walking up to here. I was a bit irritated that despite the alleged only 4km left, the ski area was not yet in sight… that was not too long in coming and offered me the explanation for the many children on the mountain: the lift was in operation. There was also a new signpost with kilometers: 4km to Hemavan… although the last one was more than a kilometer back. I began to have doubts as to how far it really was to the end of the Kungsleden, which was the longest way down into the valley. There would have been shortcuts to get to the bus stop faster, but I didn’t want to take them. Maybe the mileage was just an average. And from the end of the Kungsleden I also had to go to the bus stop. Although I had signal again in the ski area, I didn’t want to google the route so that I could concentrate on the route and the people. Zazu is super nice with everyone, but since you never know if someone is afraid of dogs, we always stepped aside when we met someone. The last part of the way took quite a long time and there it was again, the time pressure. In theory, another night in the tent wouldn’t have been a problem, but missing the bus by 5 or 10 minutes would have been kind of annoying. Exactly 12 minutes before departure we reached the end (or the beginning) of the Kungsleden, where we of course had to take the obligatory photo. At the same time I googled the way to the bus stop: 19min 🙈 ok, we’ll try. We were able to shorten the first two serpentine turns, but after that it wasn’t really clear which way to go. It seemed as if a large number of the houses were newly built and the course of the streets had changed or Maps was just inaccurate because it constantly showed us between the houses and the walking direction was not reliable either. But since you sometimes go in one direction and sometimes in the other direction on serpentines, it was not so self-explanatory where we had to go. Time was running out and we weren’t quite on the main road when the bus should have come. A few meters before that, hikers asked us if we wanted to catch the bus and I thought they would say that it was already gone. But the opposite was the case and so we hurried the last few meters to the bus stop. A minute later the bus came. Being not in time doesn’t always have to be a bad thing. I am definitely a person who values being in time very much, but in this case the bus had adjusted to my time, which I was very grateful for.

It was Zazu’s first time riding a bus, but he did it with flying colors. We took the bus to Lycksele, where Raffi and Joël picked us up. When he got home, Zazu went to his kennel with Max, where they played wildly. Two must have missed each other. But about an hour later the dogs were noisy again, unlike when Zazu and Max are just playing. And who is that sneaking up to the house? Zazu (who hasn’t moved into his new, hopefully escape-proof kennel yet) seems to have figured he’d rather sleep with me… well, today’s exception is the sofa. Kennels will be swapped tomorrow 😂 By the way, Max wasn’t happy about it and cried because he missed Zazu (which he probably never did in the last few days). A little later the dogs were restless – and loud – because the moose were visiting… so you had them back quickly, the usual background noise of 25 dogs 😉

In case you’re wondering if my last day wasn’t counterproductive to the previous days, when it was all about deceleration and the importance of time: no, not at all. Because for me it was an incentive to run against the clock. I enjoyed it and it was a very good use of my time. Now I have a little more time at home for all furry friends.

If you are interested in the tour now… we will also offer it for guests next summer. I started writing the text “live” during the tour. Only the last two stages are still missing 😉

Uncategorized

20.06.2023

“Med naturen runt hörnet” – Why We live Where We Live

Until now it was mostly German or Swiss media that wrote about us, now our first Swedish interview was published.

The magazine AJR is completely new and covers stories and information about business and development in the region. It was established by our municipality Arvidsjaur and the title is the abbreviation for the airport here that itself has a big impact on the region and business activities. With this magazine Arvidsjaur wants to show what possibilities one has in the municipality but also highlight and appreciate the hard work of all entrepreneurs. We are happy to be a part of this first edition and hope that it spreads the spirit of Swedish Lapland even further than just within the municipality.

Since I know that most of our followers don’t speak Swedish, I will translate the text for you. Probably next week the magazine will be available online and a tiny bit later also in English. But maybe you don’t want to wait… 😉 Nevertheless, before I start with the translation I would like to take the chance to say something more about Glommersträsk, the village we belong to.

As you might know we live in a small village called Moräng and this village belongs to Glommersträsk. Not only that we have the nicest neighbours in Moräng that you can wish for but also Glommersträsk has deserved to get a bit more attention.

So, maybe I have to explain first that we mainly use the word Glommersbygden when we want to talk about the village itself but at the same time about the surroundings with even smaller villages like Moräng, Järvträsk, Brännberg, Svedjan, etc. Compared to Germany Glommersträsk is quite small with just a bit more than 200 inhabitants. Anyway, we have kindergarden, school until class 6, a shop with all you need like food, work tools, garden or car stuff, pharmacy and even alcohol as local station of Systembolaget (the only shop in Sweden where you can buy alcohol – light beer not counted), café, restaurant, fuel station, atm, and so on. Beside Lapland’s beautiful nature itself we have trails for hiking, cross country skiing, dogsledding, snowmobiling, we have an ice hall in winter and an outdoor pool in summer, numerous lakes for swimming, fishing or other water sports, we have great spots for watching Northern Lights or enjoying endless summer nights. We have entrepreneurs who live for the business they do… and most important: we have great people loving this place and working hard on its future.

Four months ago this idyllic picture was in acute danger. Since Arvidsjaur couldn’t find a legitimated teacher for our school they took the decision to immediately (about a week later) start driving the kids from Glommersträsk to school in Arvidsjaur – what is 45km ONEWAY, even more if you live a bit outside! It was not the first time that there was pressure on the school to be closed down, but this time it was real. We took meetings within the group of businesses in Glommersträsk, that of course are also affected by a closing of the school, and with all inhabitants. Due to the initiative of two locals a teacher could be found who jumped in until summer and saved the school from immediate closing. But that was no long term solution. So, how could we solve the problem?

In March we set up a project group, named „Glommersbygdens framtid“ (means the future of Glommersbygden). Nine dedicated women – meanwhile we are ten – decided that we won’t give up, we will safe our school. But out of this first aim it turned into the strong will to make whole Glommersbygden even more attractive, keep it alive and get more people to move here. So, it’s not only that we are still working on the school topic, beside this we invent houses and properties so that we know there are open spots if people are interested to move, we do a lot more marketing especially on Facebook and Instagram, we build a new homepage or better two – one especially for moving here, one for all who search for information about what to do, what is happening, where to find things, etc. We do activities for people from Glommersbygden and visitors – the first big one was on 6th June when it was Sweden’s 500th birthday, Sweden’s National Day. And of course, we try to convince all people from Arvidsjaur municipality that Glommerbygden has the potential to grow.

In the meantime the pressure against our school was even bigger since Arvidsjaur had asked a kind of revisor to do an inspection about the equality of education here compared to schools in Arvidsjaur. The report was far away from an analysis according to academic principles and did not anyhow compare anything, nevertheless the school committee had proposed to close down our school latest at the end of the year. But with the help of some engaged politicians that we had already convinced of our project it was possible to prevent such a decision. Yesterday the municipal representatives decided not to follow the proposal. But that doesn’t mean that we can stop working. They set a number of kids our school needs to have from „Förskoleklass“ to class 6. If we lay under this amount the school will be closed. That means for us that our work has just started, now it really counts to make it happen that people come and live here, first of all family with kids.

Why I write this here? Not because I think that everyone who reads this should immediately move here. First of all it’s a bit the same idea as with the AJR magazine: I want to tell about our project group because it’s worth that many people see how much work the group members put into this, voluntarily in their free time, all of us beside having kids and/or jobs. And maybe someone has a good idea what else we can do to reach our goals or can help him-/herself or knows somebody who is looking for a place to start a new life or just share what we are doing to reach even more people.

If you want to follow us on Facebook and Instagram look out for „Glommersträsk“, „Flytta till Glommers“ and „Relocate Lapland“. Our new web page with more information is www.relocatelapland.com, feel free to take a look 😉 and if you want to contact us you can write an email to boiglommers@hotmail.com.

Thank you for waiting so patiently for the translation and great thanks to my team members in the project group for all your great work and thanks to everyone else helping us to reach our goals!

Med naturen runt hörnet – with the nature around the corner

Family Illien moved to the little village Moräng in autumn 2020. Yvonne comes from Germany, Raphael from Switzerland, but it is here in North Sweden where they want to live.

Side text „Tips“: recommendations 

Make compromises > it can be difficult to find the completely perfect place for the perfect price. Think of what is most important for you, and act.

Language > To learn Swedish has helped us a lot and is really appreciated by the locals.

Main text:

Yvonne and Raphael always liked to be outside in nature and met 2015 in Finland when they both worked with sled dogs. They moved around after that, to Norway and Kiruna, until they spend a year in Germany in 2019, when Yvonne was pregnant. When Joël was four months old we travelled up north again. It was planned to travel around some months, visit friends and check different places since we wanted to start our own business, says Yvonne. With a baby and two dogs they started to look closer on different properties in Norrbotten and got interested in one property in Moräng, a little village in the southeast corner of Arvidsjaur municipality. We visited the house end of June and moved in in September, says Raphael. But to move was not completely without concerns. They think that there are many prejudices and biased opinions against sled dog businesses. That it why it was always important for them to have a good relationship to the neighbours and locals. The perfect place for sled dogs can often be too expensive or also too far away from everything else we need. Independent why you move and if you have a business, you should think about what is really most important and out of that find a compromise, says Yvonne. There are living several people in Moräng, and all were nice and helpful to family Illien. We have neighbours quite close what can be challenging with the business we have because we don’t want to annoy anyone, of course. But it works really fine and our dogs are really quiet, says Raphael. The dream property would have been a bit more away from a bigger road and neighbours but they also emphasise how important it is to match the facts with the needs. Even if they live in the countryside, they have it close to much. Just this place means that we have it close to the airport, train station, school, supermarket, and other service. We save so much time, both private and in our business, since we have everything so close, says Yvonne. Raphael also thinks that having it both, live in the middle of nature but have it close to most, is something that makes family life and work easier. If we go out on our yard, behind the dog yard you find moose, beaver and other animals. It is a nice and quiet little village with very nice neighbours. Guests get a very good experience here, because a lot of time can be spend with what they are coming for instead of long transfers.

Exactly like their own lifestyle they will give the guests a relaxed and family like experience. They can have three guests at a time today but want to go up to four guests. For this they need some more dogs. We have another niche for our business than many other sled dog companies. We offer mainly longer tours, often one week or even two. This is another type of guests compared with these who do only a tour for few hours, says Raphael. Beside the property (in Moräng) they have also bought a separate house for guests in Glommersträsk that is nearby. The guests appreciate to have some time to experience the surroundings on their own, to se and get an image of people living here and how it is to live here. It is another form of community in a small place, and guests like this. If they are here others often know that it’s our guests and welcome them. That leads to the fact that guests feel themselves seen and appreciated, says Yvonne. Raphael and Yvonne think that it is important that guests get in contact with the locals, maybe buy something and contribute to the local economy in several ways. And our guests like the supermarket here so much, Finnbergs. The guests often tell that they have met Ove who works there. This is also something we really like with living here, many contribute to a good hosting of our guests, says Yvonne.

The biggest difference between the life now and five years ago is, of course, son Joël, but also that they have a home. We do not longer live out of a bag. Now we really have a home. If you have been somewhere you come home. It is a big difference compared with before when we didn’t know where we will be in the next season, says Raphael. Even if it’s long to their families in Switzerland and Germany do they think that it’s easy to travel there, or for their relatives to come up north. We have the airports close by, both Arvidsjaur and Skellefteå. To the train station in Jörn it’s just 30 minutes to drive. We know that we want to live with sled dogs in the north, that’s the lifestyle we want to have. So, we will stay up here, says Yvonne.

Beside building their own business both work for other companies what works very good and reduces the pressure while establishing ones own. To build up this kind of business is expensive, with food, equipment and continue building what is needed. Since we work with animals it’s recurring costs, so in winter I spend a lot of time with guests, but otherwise we both work full time at other places. But taking into account that we started during the pandemic it looks like we have been coming quite far with our business, says Raphael. No one of them had previous experience in starting an own business, but this part of the process experienced they as not that difficult. A part of it may be that both of them have learned Swedish, and Yvonne has a background as a lawyer. So, I am used to interpret laws and rules. Additionally, we had experience from working in similar businesses, we had a business plan and really clear what we want to do. And we are soon there, says Yvonne. Since they moved during the pandemic it was difficult to get a connection and meet people, especially to train Swedish. In our opinion the most important with moving is that you speak the language. With this you are also accepted within the local community faster, says Raphael.

The winter is the most intensive season, spring is really relaxed and summer is mostly the time for construction projects and preparing the next season. They think that autumn is a fantastic season and also the time with most potential to expand for guests. Already in September the Northern Lights season starts. There is always something here that you think guests should experience. So, in deed it is season all year round, says Raphael and Yvonne agrees. Except living a life with family and dogs in focus, the drive is mainly to get guests experiencing the magic in nature. Raphael has guided many guests and experienced their reactions closely. In Sweden and up here many people are used to live close to nature and are out there. But the guests that we have, mostly from Germany and countries around, can come from a big city without experiences in nature. They come here, sleep outside in a tent, in the middle of the forrest, under the Northern Lights. They have never before experienced something like this. This is an experience they will never forget. And also not me, even if I have experienced it before.

Side Text: Fast with Yvonne

Nice People: Specially with our kind of business we were concerned how it will be with neighbours, how they will react on us, but everything went really fine. We have so great neighbours, and for us it’s important with god relationships.

Close to much: Some people think if you live on the countryside it’s far to everything, but even if we live in the middle of nature, we have it close to most we need. It saves us much time in our everyday life.

Friendly community: Many people here contribute that our guests have a good experience, they feel themselves seen in a totally other way than at a bigger place.

Uncategorized

31.05.2023

How Far Would You Go?

While I was thinking of posting the question where you live to create a map how far around the world we have spread the beauty of Lappland already I realized that my question is so much deeper than planned. 

My idea was to ask where you are, how far it is to visit us and if you can imagine to take this step – if not already done. And then to tag a friend who lives even longer away from us asking the same question. 

But then my thoughts started to reflect my own answer. Of course, not the answer how far I would go for visiting us, but for letting my dreams come true. You know, our slogan is ”when dreams come true”. 

When I decided to quit my job as a lawyer to move to Scandinavia and work with sleddogs everyone was saying that this is such a tough and brave decision. And I was always thinking that it’s not brave, it’s just logical. I followed my heart. But now – 9 years later – I slowly start to realize that it might have been harder than I thought. Was it brave?

Do you make plus and minus lists before a tough decision? I have never done this before. And I hadn’t planned to do it in this case either but since so many people gave me the advice to do I did it for the first and last time. The special thing with this kind of list is, that – of course – there are points more or less important. So it’s not only the amount of plus and the amount of minus to take into account but also the weight of every point. Honestly, I don’t remember what was on the list but I definitely know that it was much more minus than plus. Some examples: you quit a job that is very good paid, that is safe, that you are good/successful, you have a great reputation; you leave your family and partner; you leave your friends; you leave your cozy apartment; you give up your hobbies like sports and swimming (hiking doesn’t count because I still do it); you give up a safe life. And the plus side? I remember only one thing: you live your dream. Of course, you can split this to have more points: plenty of dogs, beautiful nature, real winter, work outdoors, authentic lifestyle, … But honestly, does this prevail all the minus points? For me it did. The list was worth nothing because the decision was already made, from my heart ❤️ 

So, indeed, in that moment it was not a brave decision. It was easy for me, maybe more difficult for my family, partner, friends and colleagues. 

And now, 9 years later?

Have my dreams come true? Honestly, that’s maybe the most difficult question. 

Yes, since almost three years we have our own house, we have built up our own little kennel, we have established a company and do tours with guests. We have wonderful dogs, nice and helpful neighbors, beautiful nature around us, a lot of snow in winter, northern lights and midnight sun, wildlife, berries, … an endless list. Of course, we spend time on training and tours, many of them creating memories for a lifetime. 

But? Every medal has two sides. We both do jobs beside our life and work with the dogs to finance food and equipment for them, we spend by far too much time for that work. We are far away from our families, haven’t seen most of them for minimum three and a half years. Many friends from former times we have no or not much contact anymore, we just live in another world now. We work like 24/7, of course, also we need sleep so it’s a bit less than this, but if you criticize work-life-balance in a big law firm than you should not look at us. We cannot go on holiday together. We have absolutely no security. We are calculating all the time if we really can effort to have this business, this life and maybe that’s the point I struggle the most: the question if all this makes sense, if it’s worth all this. Would I change back if I could? It would be so much easier to have a safe job, a safe income, a safe life. But do you know? Something would be missing. It’s hard to find words for that: it’s kind of freedom, kind of piece, when you are out with your dogs, silence around you, endless snow, just the beauty of nature. 

So, maybe that’s the answer. Of course, it’s not always everything like in paradise, but it’s our paradise and what we make out of it. 

Back to the question of courage. I think, I have found the answer. It was not brave to go, to start this adventure; but it is brave to stay, to fight for your dreams to become a bit more true every day. 

And I am happy whenever I can transport this feeling to our guests. Letting them take part in our life with our adorable dogs, showing them the beauty of Swedish Lapland. Let their dreams of unique holidays come true. 

What about you? How far would you go?

© Lappland Nature Dreams, Raphael & Yvonne Illien, 2020
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