Monday 13/7 – part one

Both the night and the morning were similar as those before, with the exception of the cuckoo – and the temperature was also bearable for a bit longer, so I didn't emerge from the tent until after 6:45. There was no trace of cloud anywhere in the sky, and apparently the same applied to the mosquitos, so I sat outside for a long while. Mmm. After a nice breakfast I packed up without haste as the wind slowly increased, and then started the last stage just after 9.

The grass was a joy to walk upon, and as I descended across the south slope of Jorbaoaivi, Visttasvággi sprawled out beneath me, with Unna Reaiddávággi and the peaks beside and beyond completing the view. This was a Sound of Music moment if ever I had one. The lower I got the more flowers appeared, and once I had crossed a rock field at a narrow point it got moister as well, which increased the bloom further. The last bit above the first trees was bushy, and I mostly maintained my altitude around it until I reached open heath closer to the imposing ravine of Vássajohka. Here walking was easy, and in among the trees I could follow natural openings as well as hints of a path between rises and steeper inclines until I once again neared the edge of the ravine.

Starting the descent...

...into Visttasvággi

Flowery

Came from there

Vássajohka's ravine

The rest of the bit down to the peat hut was easy enough, and looking it over it appeared in somewhat better condition than before. There was no one around, although I had seen a couple of people going down the trail a short while earlier. The adjacent bridge had been replaced since my last visit, and was now in the form of the fixed suspension type. On the other side the main Vistas trail took by, and it felt good to walk on a well-trodden path again. The forest was leafy and verdant, but I was surprised (but not dismayed) to find a complete lack of mosquitos within it. Another thing that was largely missing was wind, so it was warm walking in among the trees; the forest was dense in parts, but also opened up every now and then, so there was no shortage of views.

Reaching...

...the hut

Downvalley

New bridge...

...over Vássajohka

Lush forest

After the Visttasjohka bridge it was more of the same, and now I just wanted to get the walk over with. As the trail drew close to the stream I noted that it held quite a bit of water, which was not surprising in the prevailing heat since its sources are largely glacial. During one portion I did actually manage to find some mosquitos, but they disappeared as quickly as they had appeared, and it was back to abundant plant life. The stream from Vássačorrojávri with the waterfall which I had visited in winter was quite swift, compared to the other forest streams, but posed no problem. More greenery followed, and at last I caught sight of the privy building at 11:45.

Next bridge

Swift waters

Open

Back into dense forest...

...before finally emerging at the cottage clearing