Kaitumjaure had long been on my wish list of places for wardenship, and not having worked as a warden for three seasons I had hopes of finally getting it this time. I didn't – not at first – and it looked like it was going to be a fourth straight season without a cottage, but then circumstances conspired to grant me the opening period in – Kaitumjaure! Naturally I jumped at the chance, rushing to get provisions and other heavy stuff out before the snow melted. The latter turned out to be a complete non-issue in that regard, for it was a very late and slow spring in the fjelds this year, despite an unusually early arrival of warmth here in Östersund.

I therefore began to grow a bit anxious about just how difficult it would be to get out there in the first place in the middle of June, and kept a close watch on the Kebnekaise webcam. Things looked up in the last few weeks, but I was still prepared to wade a fair bit in the higher reaches along the trails. Also, this was (to my knowledge) the earliest starting point STF has had for their fjeld facilities, so the coincidence was a bit on the ironic side.

Before starting the trek, however, there was the usual meet-up for all wardens starting at the same time. In the interim STF had reorganized its cottage arm, so that now the pool is managed locally by the fjeld stations. Kaitumjaure belongs to Abisko, so that is where I went for the meeting. There were some known faces, others I knew only by name, and others were new – also as usual. Up in Abisko there wasn't a leaf to be seen, and the higher peaks were all white, but it looked like conditions were better than they could have been.

Here, then, follows an abridged account of the events during the five weeks I spent in and around Kaitumjaure, with and without snow, illustrated by the usual range of pictures. Day tours have been placed in their own reports, which are linked to from the relevant pages.