In brief: shaky start, shaky end and a fantastic middle portion. The day of my arrival was nice enough, but then started a prolonged period of dreary weather, which gave rise to a peculiar duality. On the one hand things felt a bit stressful at times when the weather showed no signs of improving, and opportunities for good day tours were uncomfortably far between (especially now that the assignment period was not too long in the first place), and on the other the calmness of cottage life quickly settled upon me as a counterbalance of sorts. Still, during this period there were several really good days which allowed for several really good excursions, so I can't complain.

Then followed an incredible stretch of fair weather that was almost too good; many were the guests that came in fatigued and soaked with sweat – and many were those who were much invigorated and enamored by Sturebadet shortly thereafter. As for myself, I exercised a self-imposed hiatus during the height of the heat due to having burnt my shoulders on the way back from Gåsen, but this actually suited me rather well anyway. See, rather than joining all the others in panting and perspiring all day long, I could lie by and in various meres and enjoy the fairness to the fullest. I was especially pleased to have discovered the two "bathing meres", which I in all modesty dubbed Dytjärn and Vytjärn, respectively, for obvious reasons (Mudmere, Viewmere). And of course I harbored no ill feelings whatsoever towards Sturebadet either...

What's more, with the completion of the Gåsen visit I had accomplished all the things I had made mental notes on doing while studying the map beforehand, which added to my feeling of contentment with regard to doing nothing, and I felt that anything else that followed would just be a bonus. Also, while I'm on the topic of weather, it was a somewhat strange experience to be on the sidelines of the passing thunder cells for so long – not a drop of rain fell in over a week, and all anvils in sight seemed intent on not coming near the cottages, even when they had ample opportunity to do so.

As to the cottage site itself, I found it very good on its own merits. First of all the buildings are in good shape indeed, and are easily maintained. This is certainly much due to the fact that there are not too many visitors, despite the strategic situation of the place at a crossroads – one can reach it by trail in a day's march from no less than six starting points. No, the vast majority of people stay off to the west, on the Jämtland Triangle and in Helags; quite a few also find their way to Gåsen which had been filled to or above capacity several times, but once "on the other side" so to speak the numbers decrease drastically. Still, statistics showed that more people were on the move in this area as well, and it was definitely more than in Såmmarlappa last year, but still nowhere near what would have started to feel demanding.

Another difference to my previous cottages was that now I had an actual phone, and could therefore both reach people and be reached myself, which could be counted as both a blessing and a curse. Finally, this was the first time that I had more than one guest cottage to take care of, but given the most reasonable numbers this was never a problem; the old cottage was hardly used at all.

Turning to the location as such, it has the curious property of having bare ground below and woodland above, which makes for very wide views from the cottages – the complementary difference to Nallo is striking. For it is so that the fjelds of Jämtland are of mostly different character than those of northern Lapland – here the great distances are horizontal rather than vertical, and one need not climb very high at all to get staggering far-reaching views, which I got to do on several occasions. Hitherto I have usually placed my tours and suchlike later in the summer and autumn, so this was a bit new to me. For one thing the multitude of flowers and high herbs was a fresh and welcome experience, and it was nice just roving through fields and forests full of life.

A slight drawback is the mosquito presence, which a later start largely does away with, but I must say that it was much better than feared. Much of this probably has to do with the attributes of the location, with its openness, dryness and exposure to the wind, and for quite a long time at the beginning there was hardly a mosquito to be seen. I must also mention again the hill system of Roupe, which got to be this period's answer to The Slope in Nallo: a spot quickly and easily reached with little difficulty, but which offers much in the way of vistas and overall sensation.

And thus another amiable wardenship is ended, and I have no plans to "exit the business" any time soon. I have in fact already started thinking about the next winter season, but the season in progress is far from over yet. I am presently biding my time since the weather forecasts as I write this are anything but favorable, but I do intend to leave for at least one more longer tour before too long. Loose planning is underway, and now that I have satiated my desire for the immediate area for a while, I once again look northwards...

Finally, as a little bonus, here are some photos from the last morning in Vålådalen: