Tuesday 17/8 – Sunday 22/8

Tuesday 17/8

The clouds descended during the night, and in the morning there was a full-on fog. The prognosis for the next day spoke of very harsh conditions, and I received a call from Lunndörren saying that the two people who were supposed to come from that direction wouldn't, instead opting for the safer route straight down from there. For the moment, though, the clouds were lifting somewhat.

As I was preparing for window washing a trio from Anasjölägret walked up, and while we talked their two neighbors followed. The first group then went down to Anarisstugtjärnen to cast, while the others aimed directly for Lägertjärnen. Once I was alone again I set about washing the windows of the guest cottage, while outside the clouds were very low and mists drifted past, but the wind was weak and put up no challenge.

After lunch I went out to pick more cloudberries, walking straight over to the mire at the outflow of Anarisstugtjärnen which I had only half covered last time. The first ones I found had grown somewhat pale, but further out on the mire they were considerably better, and I steadily weighed down my vessel. The ground was rather wet, but I had the boots on this time so wasn't bothered, and the mists which kept moving past were light and brought no actual rain. As I was finishing up the clouds lifted a bit and it got lighter, and I took the opportunity to pick a bit of blueberries along the water path as well.

Setting out

On the mire

Still quite a few of these

Company

Light spots

Outflow

Southern waters

Having returned inside for a while I heard sounds outside, and found the fishermen trio sitting out on the porch; they had caught a respectable brown trout in Anaristjärnarna, but no more, and after a chat they walked back down to the fishing camp. I made more jam with my own fresh catch, and when it was almost ready two people walked up to (and into) the cottage from the west. They turned out to be German campers, one of whom spoke Swedish, who had come from Lunndörren and would now continue a ways towards Vallbo due to the promised heavy rain.

The clouds were still lifting, and now I could almost see all of Åreskutan. After dinner another trio arrived from Vallbo, and they opted for a campsite in among the trees plus the use of the cottage facilities once they were made aware of the oncoming weather. The sunset was a pretty one with flaming clouds and there was only a weak wind blowing, but shortly after I had gone to bed it increased in gusts.

Wednesday 18/8

It was a starry night, and I even spotted a small shooting star, but when morning broke it was foggy and very windy. After breakfast a light rain started and the wind increased further, so it was very rough outside given that it was also fairly cold. Another phone meeting followed, this one quicker than the last, and I started preparing the paperwork involved in the upcoming warden switch.

In the afternoon my room had gotten chilly enough that I finally fired up the firewood heater, finding it somewhat tricky to control the air flow on this particular model. Outside conditions hadn't gotten any better – far from it – and the trio had decided to stay for another night; their tent stood at a sheltered location and so could bear the elemental onslaught without problem, but one of them still opted for an inside bed, which was fine since there were no reservations for the coming nights.

Just then two people appeared and walked briskly into the guest cottage; they had started at Stalovielle this morning and much regretted not staying put, as they had had a day of nothing but hardships. They were now wet and cold enough to be quite visibly shaking, so while they crept out of their wet clothes and got a fire going I went to fetch hot drinks and fresh water, wearing all rain clothes of my own against the incessant rain and wind; the surface in the water hole had risen appreciably, and there were large puddles on the path over there. Once it was clear that they were in no acute need of further assistance I turned my attention to dinner activities.

A bit later I sorted out the economics with the new arrivals, who due to the lack of reservations could luckily also be admitted without further ado. The weather actually took several further turns for the worse as the evening progressed, and it was still something of a challenge just being outside by the time I turned in.

Thursday 19/8

The wind continued in force throughout the night, but the rain had stopped. The morning was a cold one, but visibility was good – at least at the start, for later in the forenoon a light rain got going and then gradually increased. I started another fire and spent the time preparing for my departure, or just relaxing with radio, crosswords and reading.

After lunch I checked in with the others: the trio had decided to stay for another night in the same configuration, and although the duo had already resolved to spend the day drying all their stuff they now felt that even that wouldn't be enough, so they were in for three nights in total. The wind had gotten worse and there was rain on and off in irregular patterns, but even so the trio made a valiant attempt at fishing.

A single hiker arrived from Lunndörren, having walked without pausing due to... well, the obvious, and even though it hadn't been the easiest of stages he still thought it was alright. Most interestingly it was now Grönan which was the biggest obstacle – the same stream that had not been in existence at all when I walked up. I gave him a bed in the larger room with the duo and then proceeded to have dinner and dessert.

Swift water source

The clouds were lifting in part, and there was even a bit of weak sunlight seeping through, which really howlighted how fast the clouds were moving. It was therefore not a surprise that the gales almost knocked me off my feet at times when I was out, and waters in the tarn were higher than ever, almost drowning the larger island. As it was now getting cold again inside I fired up the heater and then went up to check on my guests; the new guy was also of a mind to take a rest day, but would decide on the morrow. The clouds had pulled shut again and the wind was bad enough to cause groans in the timbers, but at least the rain had stopped when I put out the lights.

Friday 20/8

In the early morning the groan-inducing gales were still at it, together with some more rain, and visibility was bad. After breakfast it grew lighter, however, with some weak glimpses of the sun. The trio would be leaving once they had eaten and packed up, and the single guy had indeed booked another night. I continued with my own preparations while the rain kept at it, and then made another fire against the chill.

Bathing spot

The afternoon saw more of both drifting mists, rain and wind, but the sun kept paying brief visits. Alexandra had managed to secure ATV transport for her pack with the fishing camp operators, and I was given the opportunity to request (limited) restocking of missing items. When the sun returned I had a quick wash down in the tarn, which despite the conditions felt rather good, and just when I was done a dense haze enveloped everything.

A single hiker was approaching on the Vallbo trail, and since half of the cottage was now vacated he got his own room. I started packing up my stuff and continued doing this and that that needed doing. Outside the sun was asserting its presence more and more, but things were very far from stable.

Mists and clouds continued to drift past in the still rather strong wind in the evening, and I spent the time quietly inside. Another round with the heater followed since the wind had a considerable chilling effect, but as I was drifting off to bed it seemed to finally be abating, albeit slowly.

Saturday 21/8

While the next morning was windy, it was far from the levels recently felt. Some mists and low clouds also remained, but above a fair bit of sky could be seen, and there was some sun here and there. All the guests were readying for departure, and once the place was empty again for the first time in days I caught up with maintenance, which took a fair amount of time. The weather was steadily improving, but there were clouds around the peaks and the wind was cold. I waited for a bit longer and then went out for a final day tour at 11:00.

Go to day tour report »

After a pleasant wash in the tarn I welcomed the first guest of the afternoon, who had come from Vallbo and was to walk a bit further towards Lunndörren; he had just covered the full length of Kungsleden in 14 days and was kind of still used to that kind of tempo, so I suggested the Hällån tributary as a good goal for the day. I proceeded to have afternoon tea while some rich showers came and went, and when it was time for dinner it was mostly sunny again.

I could see a number of people approaching on the Vallbo trail, the first of which was a camper who decided to spend the night indoors, and made a reservation on the spot. The other people I had seen had erected a tent beside the trail a kilometer or so away and never came by, but later on another three people did arrive, also being overnight guests. It was now rather cold again so I fired up the heater and prepared for the switch the next day, being the last to turn in for the night.

Sunday 22/8

I woke early and couldn't get back to sleep. It was cloudy, windy and cold, but there was no rain. I continued packing up and preparing this and that and mostly moved out, utilizing the interior storage compartment as a stopover. When the trio had left I did some work in the guest cottage, and then said goodbye to the camper who was soon also ready to leave, for I was about to leave myself to meet the transport and help carry Alexandra's luggage.

It was after 09:30 when I departed, walking briskly in light clothing, which made the start appreciably chilly due to the wind. It was still mostly cloudy, and some light mists passed by, but there was no actual rain. Walking was more pleasant in the shelter of the forest, and the condition of the path was OK considering the heavy rains of the last days. I reached the ATV road in half an hour's time, and had to wait for a while before a sound in the distance resolved into the approaching transport.

Passing...

...Sönner-Långtjärnen

Across Anasjön

Light and cloud

ATV road in sight

Transport appears

Lighter

Said transport brought five fishing guests and a number of items of Alexandra's in varying sizes and weights, and as the transport trundled on I started transferring some stuff into the rucksack I had brought. When I was almost ready to leave Alexandra herself showed up, having run after the transport under her own power, which had taken less time than she had expected. As such we walked up together, me carrying half the pack, and conversed as we went. Eventually she let me press on ahead, and the higher I got the more the sun made itself known, and I was back up at 11:00.

The camper had left by then as expected, and there was no one else present. I gave the facilities a quick once-over and then Alexandra arrived, taking up position in the smaller guest room while I finished cleaning the warden's room. First, though, I went down to the tarn for a final bath of the colder variety, and then had lunch while Alexandra looked through her stored provisions outside. A couple of people arrived while I was eating, so Alexandra tended to them, and once I had mopped up inside we went for a tour of the premises while the floors dried. It was now quite fair but still windy, so I was glad to have my down jacket readily available. We then switched residential positions and I formally relinquished my wardenship.

The rest of the afternoon was spent either adjusting my pack or talking with Alexandra, while the weather steadily improved. I also took the opportunity to make the outdoor table more level after it had suffered damage due to a rotten leg earlier, and the result was at least as good as it had been before (which wasn't stellar, but still). Two people were approaching on the Vallbo trail, and I met them out at the table while Alexandra was preparing dinner for the two of us; they were campers who elected to use the now well utilized sheltered spot in among the trees before heading towards Lunndörren on the morrow. Dinner was now done, consisting entirely of fresh foodstuffs of various kinds, which was a welcome change for yours truly.

Fair

Repaired

Fresh

More talking followed as well as photo rounds in the nice but cold and windy evening. I turned in earlier than usual since I aimed for an early start the next day in order not to feel rushed to catch the taxi-bus from Vallbo, so this was to be my last night in Anaris.