Tuesday 17/3

The trail down to the lake was soft and wavy, but out on the ice it was very hard so I stayed on the side, where the wind-packed snow only carried where there were older tracks underneath. A wind had picked up during the early portion of the crossing, but in the middle it was still and warm, and further into Rapadalen the whiteness was slowly lifting. As I approached the far shore the sun was covered by a large cloud, and at once things got cooler. Here the snow was better as well, and close to the Laitaure shelter there were no signs of drift.

The continued trail, however, was wavy almost in the extreme, and I stuck to side tracks where available. After the first uphill slope I turned west across a mire, finding that the snow carried pretty well, and this state of affairs continued also in the forest. Here I had to wind my way between the trees, but I had no problems, and now the sun shone for a while too. I came to the birches at the base of Tjahkkelij, where I proceeded flatly up the lower rises, then turning back south, and finally heading straight up when the trees grew more sparse. Now the wind had returned but so had the sun (at least on and off), and the snow was good for climbing.

Among the uppermost shrubs I turned northwards again, cutting across the hardened slope to a large snowfield on the other side of which there was a small bluff of sorts. I went on above it, rounding the bend of the mountain, which was somewhat adventurous; the snow was very hard and just a few meters below me was a high precipice. I therefore only went far enough to get a good look at the delta from this direction, and after photographing it I backed up in my own tracks until I felt comfortable changing my orientation. I then skied over to a large rock where after a short walk to the nearby crest I sat down at 11:30.

On the lake

Tjahkkelij in all its glory

Nammásj and Skierffe

Eastern Lájtávrre

Parts of Gábllá

Tjaktjavárre

Mini-panorama of the steep upper portions of Tjahkkelij

Possible passage

Going out there

Inner delta

Outer delta

Zoomed-in delta

What lay above

What lay below

What lay on the other side

Lájtávrre again

Tjaktjajávrre

After a short while I discovered that my chosen spot was not properly shielded from the wind, so I relocated a short bit. As I started eating the sunlight started growing in intensity through the clouds, and before too long it was sunny and fair again. I therefore remained seated for some time before packing up, and before leaving I walked a little ways up the slope for another delta look. I then skied back along my tracks the first bit, but out on the snowfield I turned slightly upwards and then maintained my altitude below the rock face leading up to the summit of Tjahkkelij. One can purportedly make an ascent through a crevice there, and looking at the spot from below I concluded that while it did seem possible, it also seemed rather difficult.

In both wind and sun I skied along the smaller rocks strewn about below the cliff, and then these gave way to small trees. I was now rounding the southeastern "corner" of Tjahkkelij, and as I did so the slope grew steeper. I now had a good view of the valley below, and further west the ravine of Jieggejåhkå was an impressive sight. After a short pause I decided to press on just a little bit further, which involved crossing a snowfield where the crust was hard but still broke under my weight, which was not too comfortable. On the other side I came to a small treeless crest in the more and more sharply slanting slope, and this was to be the turnaround point. Before heading back, however, I brought out my binoculars and surveyed the land below me, but saw nothing that moved or even traces from something that had moved – save for a snowmobile track leading from Kungsleden to the few buildings of the old Bårddegiehtje Sámi encampment.

Cliffs

Steep

Full Gábllá shot

More fjelds coming into view

Suobbattjåhkkå and the valley below

A peek of Favnoajvve

The Jieggejåhkå ravine

Looking southwest

After turning I crossed the hard/breaking snowfield a little below my own tracks, and then continued very slightly downwards until I reached another crest offering good views. From there it was tricky getting up due to the tangled vegetation, but once I had cleared the worst of it I kept a constant elevation as I made my way back around the corner. I crossed a flatter area and then started downhill, making long shallow turns at first, and in among the first trees the snow was good enough to allow for simple telemarking. Once among the spruces the sun disappeared anew, and eventually I ended up on my own tracks from the morning.

Out on Kungsleden I saw that it was now getting rather hazy in and around the Rittak valley, and there was also a good deal of wind. Out on Lájtávrre it was evident that this wind had had an effect, and it did not take long until I had to raise the hood against a strong westerly rush. Snow was drifting across the surface rather quickly, but it was still low, and there was also a bit of sun, although up in the valley the whiteness had increased again. I made no haste across, and as I entered the forest the wind suddely died down, only to reappear in somewhat diminished form out on the first mire. As I broke off onto a side track I observed a helicopter at a distance, and it took to circling above the eastern parts of the lake before finally deciding that north was the way to go. Myself I emerged onto the old avenue for the non-extant telephone line, which landed me on the Aktse field in its southeast corner after 15, from where I skied straight up to the cottages.

More of Gábllá and the broken ice...

...of Tjaktjajávrre

Crest view

At a rock

Boarektjåhkkå beyond Jieggejåhkå

Last look before entering the forest

The Laitaure shelter

Part of Gådoktjåhkkå

Mini-panorama over the Gate to Sarek

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