Saturday 15/8 – Monday 17/8

Saturday 15/8 (contd.)

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Cottage view (rainy)

After the initial courtesies Anders showed me the earth cellar into which I put the butter and cheese I had carried from home, and then we sat down on the porch. Soon the girl whom I had seen sitting down at the stream came to join us, and we spoke together for a while before having a communal afternoon tea. Just as we did so a light shower started, but the drops were sufficiently far apart that we did not mind. She was waiting for two comrades who would be joining her for a longer tour, and before long they showed up.

Anders and I then went inside to check out the building; he had already moved out of the warden's room, so I could start installing myself at once. We proceeded to investigate the outbuildings and to bring the boxes containing my food and some other stuff inside. Having done so I finally changed out of my walking clothes and started making myself at home, while Anders continued to pack and prepare for departure. In a light rain two people then arrived from the north, and after a short talk they went out again for a visit to the mighty upstream waterfall. Soon thereafter the two ladies from Låddejåkkå came in, and since they were running low on food we gave them some cans that had been left over during the summer. The rain was now moving off to the east, and the sun's power was slowly growing. While Anders went out on a final cloudberry-picking round I unpacked my own cans and suchlike, and then a father with his young daughter came in.

After dinner it was back to clouds, rain and mist, and I spent some time talking with the women. A single fellow with a very large pack had appeared on the other side of the bridge, but he came no closer for now. I went through some papers and rearranged the drawers, and then the sun suddenly broke through the rain, so I rushed out to photograph the inevitable pretty light and rainbow. I continued going through the on-site material, and after Anders had collected payment from the guests I took over the money box. At long last the guy on the other side walked up, and he turned out to be a fishing Finn who had lived on his craft for several weeks already; now he wanted some information about where and how to go next. A bit later the camping trio from before showed up beyond the bridge, and they walked upstream a short distance before pitching their tent. I scanned the radio spectrum, making notes of the stations' positions, and then listened for a while with a haze hanging low off to the east. The rain was still persisting as I had my evening snack, going to bed at 22:15.

Sunday 16/8

Beautiful...

...morning

Lingering fog

Wisps before Áhkká

The morning was just the opposite, with the sun shining from a clear sky upon a thick layer of fog hovering above Vuojatädno and Guvtjávrre. It was entirely still, and almost chilly enough for frost to have formed. It therefore came as no surprise that all present parties were in a good mood, and I was not the only one to go for a morning photo round. After breakfast the fog started to lift, and Áhkká emerged from its hiding place. I went to check out the two bathing sites – one consists of a backwater beneath a cliff just below the little waterfall under the Sieberjåhkå bridge, and the other is an isolated pool among the rocks right next to the much larger waterfall a short distance downstream.

The guests left one after the other – or rather two by two – and Anders continued his last-minute tasks. While I was standing outside the cottage admiring the view – something I would be doing a lot thenceforth – six people and a dog suddenly appeared from behind the building. Obviously they had come by the path to/from the little Sámi encampment down by the lake, which offers housing mainly to fishermen, and these were no exception, carrying rods and all. Since dogs are prohibited in Padjelanta National Park, the northern border of which is constituted by Sieberjåhkå in these parts, I inquired as to their intentions, and learning that they were headed for the bridges at Sállohávrre I stressed the existence of the ban, leash or not. Still, they chose to commit a direct violation of the Park rules and crossed the bridge with the dog.

The smaller fall

The larger fall from above...

...and from the side

Stream split

The larger one from the bathing place...

...and from a lower...

...cliff

Myself, I started baking bread as I had nothing fresh left, during which the father-and-daughter returned from a visit to the upper waterfall, and they soon departed for Vaisaluokta. Before very long three of the six people gone fishing also came back – with the dog; not surprisingly the great number of reindeer in the area had made the animal go wild, and they had at least had the sense to recognize the inappropriateness of the situation. As I was finishing the last rounds of bread Anders was finally ready to leave, and when he had done so I went down to the closer bath to have a wash; it was very cold and slippery, and now there were enough clouds in the sky to hide the sun for long periods, so no help there.

Having thus become clean again I sat down at a bench outside to have a summery outdoor lunch. Towards the end of my meal the campers came along, and we talked for a while. They wanted to make use of the kitchen, and after relieving them of some cash for this service (my first customers, whoo) I took to carrying stuff around for a bit. I then made a few extra signs I thought were missing, and since it was now rather warm and fair I decided to go for an afternoon walk.

Powdered Áhkká

Outbuilding

Upper bath

Áhkká

I chose to wear the sandals as it was fairly dry in most places, and I did not bother changing clothes either. I started out by walking up onto the little hill behind the privy, from where I followed a path to the nearby reindeer-watching hut, which involved crossing a brook on stones and some careful steps across a mostly stable mire patch. I went on to two old Sámi huts a bit further ahead, of which the first one was in good condition, whereas the second was just a ruin. Around there I made contact with something Anders had spoken about, namely hordes of small flies swarming around my head; they didn't bite, but it was hugely annoying just the same. I went down from the plateau I was on and continued a little ways along a faint path, but when the ground grew wet I turned back. Having passed the modern buildings again I took another path, eventually coming close enough to the northbound trail that I switched over and headed back towards the cottage. At the woodshed I came upon a man and his young son – both fishermen – and I got to answer a few questions before they went on upwards.

Leaving

Cottage and trees

The nearby reindeer-watching hut

Hut of older make

Panorama over Áhkká, the northernmost peaks of Sarek, and the valley between

Hut from the back

Allak

More clouds

Whitened Kantberget

As for me, I passed behind the cottage and took the path leading down to the Sámi at the lake, which at least at the start was dry and easy to tread. Both from my arrival the day before and from Anders I knew that there were more huts further down, and I soon came to the first one, which was not in very good condition. A short distance ahead there was an even worse one, but close by a third hut was not too bad. From there the path ascended into and then out of the forest, allowing for good views over Guvtjávrre towards Áhkká and Sarek.

After the following descent the ground was wetter, but here (narrow) boards had been put out as aids. Just as I was wondering how much further I would have to go I spotted rooftops some distance ahead, and as I drew near the terrain changed to nice meadowland followed by high bushes. This meant that my arrival was rather sudden, and I emerged onto a field of grass only to be barked at by the dog from before, for the trio who had brought it back were sitting on the porch of one of the guest cabins. I spoke some with them and then went over to the residence of the Utsi family, who run the place, attracting the attention of another but much more friendly canine. Maria and Lars-Anders were present, and after a bit of conversation outside they invited me in for tea and biscuits.

At last I had to excuse myself as I felt the need to get back to my own place of business, and I returned to the path along the shore. There were now more clouds again, and as I was walking in shadow at the moment I picked up the pace. When I could see the trail again I spotted a couple of people approaching, but once back at the cottage at 16:45 I found that only the camping trio were present.

Another hut...

...and yet another one

Vájsá-Dujbbe

Guvtjávrre

The outflow of Sieberjåhkå

Áhkká and plants

Áhkká and beach/lake

A nice lake, this one

One of the shoreside huts

Utsi's place from above

Green

On the other side of Sieberjåhkå another two people were making their way upstream, and while I waited for the first two I had seen to arrive a German woman came from Vaisaluokta. The campers left while I had dinner, and the two new arrivals went out for an extra walk. I then turned to radio, since the athletics world championships had just started, and when everything of interest had finished I went out in the fair evening, joining the pair on the porch. When the sun disappeared it quickly got chilly, and even though the view was fantastic I returned inside to claim some money from the lone woman. Almost at once she recognized me from Såmmarlappa, and we talked for a bit.

As I was rearranging some stuff the apparatus used to make imprints of credit cards fell to the floor, and even though it did not appear damaged it did not work as it was supposed to, so I had to investigate furhter. After a number of fruitless attempts to correct the issue I spotted the problem, but in order to fix it I had to take the whole thing apart and then reassemble it, which took some time and effort. Finally I got it right, and although function was restored the contraption was now prone to falling apart if lifted carelessly. Outside there was a marvelous light upon the peaks, but inside the radio beckoned with the upcoming 100 meters finals, and I went on to experience Bolt's incredible world record as related by ecstatic commentators. Having done so there was naught to do but have a light evening snack and then go to bed.

Monday 17/8

I managed to miss the early radio forecast, but caught the local one 40 minutes later. Outside clouds were covering the sky, but in such a way that they did not limit the view. Before breakfast I spoke some with the others and handed over a letter for transport. After everyone had left I made another sign, this time to clearly indicate where to get fresh water, and then prepared for a shorter outing as the weather had picked up.

I left at 10:45, wearing the hiking trousers and the wind jacket, which turned out to be very comfortable. I followed the path the runs up the south side of Sieberjåhkå to the large waterfall, tracing the line of markers symbolizing the northern border of Padjelanta. After a short while I met the two people I had observed going up this way the day before, and soon I found myself at the waterfall. The path took me rather close to the spray, and an impressive thing it was to look upon, with the foaming masses hurtling down the rocks, being split apart by a prominent cliff in the middle of the course.

It was back to cloudy as I picked my way up a short but steep portion leading to the top of the fall, where I stood looking out over the land for a while. The sun was breaking through every now and then, and I removed the jacket before continuing. I now aimed for a nearby rise, passing a somewhat tricky area of low bushes and the like around a small brook, and reached the crest from the north. A single stone served as the inevitable top cairn, and that is where I sat down at 11:45...

The other side

The lake below

At the powerful...

...waterfall

Above the fall...

...Sieberjåhkå runs in...

...a calmer course

Tsågahávrre in the distance

Guvtjávrre from above

Up the valley

...only to cry out at the sudden onslaught of flies, so I applied repellant without delay. I had lunch in intermittent sunlight, and soon a nice wind saved me from the insects, so I could relax for a bit. After about half an hour I started off northwards again, following the stretch of the rise, turning east when the slope levelled out. Here I came upon a cloudberry patch, so I stopped to do some picking. It was a good patch with regard to both quality and quantity, and I pretty much cleaned it out before leaving.

I had not walked far when I discovered a new place on either side of a small bog, which increased my catch somewhat. I then continued up on another rise along Sieberjåhkå, from where I spotted a promising area some distance away, and when I walked over I found yet another nice spread of orange. Having swept also this reserve I went back to the start of the waterfall, and then made my way down close to the gush. The clouds were now breaking apart once more, and the jacket – which I had put on during the break – went off again. I walked the path back down to the cottage, where I found no one at around 14:30.

The last?

The dividing rock from above, ...

...from the side, ...

...and from below

More of Allak

Light on the fall

Sarek over there

Nearing...

...home

I immediately prepared afternoon tea and sat down on the porch with my book, until a lone man arrived from Vaisaluokta. This was Stig, the husband of Inga-Lill who was the warden over there, and he would be staying for another day before returning. We talked for a bit in growing sunlight until he went down to have a bath, and a short while later two more people came from Vaisaluokta, followed by another two of foreign origin (later determined to be Belgian). I went inside and in conjunction with a subsequent payment session the card device fell to the floor again, and this time it broke apart entirely. It was still easy to repair, however, and now I used tape to get it to hold together. Stig had been out on a cloudberry-picking tour of his own, and after some talking with him two more hikers arrived from Låddejåkkå. By now it was sunny and fair, but the peaks to the east remained decapitated.

After a dinner complemented with cloudberries for dessert I looked over the guest stats, and found them to be rather promising; the general word all around was that there had been noticeably more people than usual out and about this summer. I read some more in my book with half an ear tuned to the athletics, and then did some crosswords. The eastern clouds had sunk further but the light was pretty, and it was not too cold. After a snack and the women's 100 meters finals – another good one, but no world record – I was the last to turn in.