Day 50 and it is starting to feel warm during the night and that is perfect since the zipper on my best sleeping bag broke in the night.
During the night 100s of ducks gathered in the area having a loud meeting in the night so I was awake when the rain started so I got up my tarp and tried to relax a little more.
We get started on today's lap and the wind is perfect 9(13)m/s from the south and we are finally heading towards my favorite direction, north!
Good speed, lots of seals popping up but there are also a lot of shallow rocks that you don't see until it is almost too late.
See full route her MapShare (garmin.com)
We found a nice beach at Kolboda where I set up camp and checked Ymir for damages and my old fix from last year has come loose so tomorrow will be a reparations day in the sun ;-) To make the damaged area dry I use some rice and tape before I eat and fall asleep!
I open my eyes and it looks like the sky and sea are on fire just before the sun comes up, a magical view! I take some photos and fall back to sleep....
I start making breakfast, root vegetables and eggs, ginger and chilli tea, good for the soul and body.
I also made my first attempt at repairing the damaged area on Ymir but I forgot to add hardener so I removed and added again. Not a perfect fix but it will last, hopefully all the way to Finland.
It's a nice and warm day so I go for my first swim of the year and have a nice yoga session while it dries.
During the day I get the news that the trio in front of me have ended their attempt at the red ribbon after they found Henrik Österlund lifeless in the sea. I have a lot of respect and admiration for Henrik for making this journey at the age of 68 year. I hope I still can kayak from border to border at 68 with good friends.
I have by this time also goten the news that Joakim also has ended his attempt so no one in front of me to chaise after anymore.
Tonight is football night so I download NRK radio, pop some popcorn and lie down in my hammock and enjoy Norway playing against Slovenia, which ended 0-0.
We started the morning with another swim in the sun, a perfect start! A nice paddle tru Kalmar and had a bee that used me for a short rest, I love bees and they are always welcome for a rest.
We made it to the magical Lindö and I set up my camp at the pier for the night.
At day 53 i get up before the sun again, i start eating and pack down camp and we start the next lap before 6am, I am almost out of power so i have memorized the route to Påskallavik 45km away, and we make it almost all the way before the wind turns from south to east. I get to charge, shop and enjoy a waffle in the local cafe. After a nice rest we get back out in the water and find a nice camp at another island.
I just set up my camp on the ground again for the night.
Today I slept a little past the sunrise but it dont take long until the sun warmed up my sleeping bag to the point I had to get out, I am not complaining when that happens! During the night I got some company, a moth had gone to sleep on me :-)
I took the chance and started without my drysuit in the sun but after hours I had to make a stop and put it on due to dark clouds and wind. After 30km it was time to stop and set up camp so I could pop some popcorn and listen to Sweden vs Norway, for the second time on my trip Norway beat "big brother" Sweden! a perfect end to the day. Norway-Sweden 3-2
Day 55 and we are back to shifting weather with dark clouds and strong winds, today's tactics will be to jump from island to island and use them to get as much cower as possible. We ended the day after 47km with rainbows and a really nice sunset! There is almost a full moon now and the days are getting shorter and shorter every day and the sun is just down for 6 hours now :-)
Another day of dark clouds and shifting weather, we start today's lap at 1130 and by 1300 I am seeking emergency shelter from the wind and lightning strikes that are too close for comfort.
I have taken shelter in a boat house at Sundholmen and use the oppertunety to eat a little. Then suddenly I hear a voice telling me to leave before they call the police, I look up and see a camera facing me.
I try to show the man behind the camera that I am hiding from the weather but he just tells me that the police are on the way to the island. My next move is to call the police and explain the situation, I ask if I have the right to use emergency harbor in this case and she tells me that offcorce you can!
She can't see any calls about me, but if they show up just explain yourself like you do now and you will be fine, i say thank you and goodbye. A short time later I hear a boat coming in full speed against me and the guy is trying to look as seius and big as possible, he tells me to move on! I explain my rights and I explain that I will move as soon as the weather allows me. He tells me ok but I can tell that he is not happy about it but he leaves me alone. We get going again as soon as I don't see any lightning within 42km for 30 minutes.
We don't get far due to high winds so we chill until it calms down and instead we continue into the night. The sun goes down to the north east and up again 6 hours later in the north west so we have the sun in front of us as we am heading north, and we have the full moon behind me in the south! a strong energy tonight
A perfect night to start kayaking at night as we kayak into day 57, It looks like there will be more of them according to the wetherservices.
And just as the sun came up, we headed into land and set up our camp for the day.
While i am preparing for departure a kayaker stops for a quick talk and it's Lennart, one of the trio that was doing the red ribbon but had to end their attempt after his friend passed away, it was good to see him out in his kayak and a nice talk.
We started again a little after 2100 and just around midnight we were half way along the Swedish coast and we are on day 58.
Lots of clouds tonight so it gets really dark and I only see the moon for a short time when it is going up, nice and calm between the islands but as soon as I move outside it gets a little wilder but it probably just feels a little wilder since it's so dark.
I keep going for a couple of hours after the sun came up and after 61km i found todays camp zzzzzz
I wake up with a strong headache so i try to cure it with green curry, tea, self massage and more sleep zzzzzzz
Next time I wake up it is 15 minutes into day 59 and I feel ready for the next lap, I eat and pack down and start a little past 02.
A really nice and calm night with the moon shining down on me and he followed us for a while after the magical sunrice, no power left so that photo is only in my mind ,-)
We made a stop after 35km when we got to Nynäshamn harbor.
I found a super nice and serviceminded woman that helped me to charge my equipment while I got a shower and washed my clothes.
I am super grateful for all the help along the way! After 5 hours on land we started another lap of 22km and we found a nice spot on an island. While I was setting up my camp I spotted a military boat keeping an eye on me for around an hour before they got bored and left.
Day 60 and we are right outside of Stockholm, lots of people out in their boats and we had two situations where the captain didn't see where they were going and one of them went at high speed so I had to take action not to get hit with both.
Always assume that others don't see you and that they are stupid drunks,that is the safest way to kayak!
At the last part of the day we had a nice wind in the back so we just surfed into the next camp.
It's been nice warm days and nights lately but during the night I woke up cold and needed to put on my super underwhere from Brynje and got back to sleep, I woke up again around 06, getting nice and warm with the sun hitting me and I am hungry!
So i make myself some oats and fall asleep again, wake up, eat, and sleep one more time.
Low on power today so i just let the body rest until i start feeling nice and fresh at 1900 and around 2030 we are on our way again ready for another night kayak!
Only 950km left to the border and 25 days left so this should be within reach.
A little choppy in the start but it calms down as we kayak into the twilight and day 62.
The night started out with no clouds but during the night the sky got darker and darker. After we have passed a marathon in the night I start looking for a camp and I find my spot at Svartlöga where I sleep and relax with a favorite episode of Joe Rogan with Graham Hancock and Randal Carlson.
I love this trio, I actually started listening to Joe when i heard that he had a talk with Graham. I recommend you all to do deep dive in all three of them! It will change your outlook on past and future.
I am struggling to fall asleep again but a little past midnight I get some hours.
At 05 I woke up again full of energy and started preparing for today's lap.
A nice warm and soft wind in the morning so I took the chance and went out without my drysuit on my first lap to Graddö where I hope to charge and shop.
I took a short swim and wash before i go into populated area.
When i get there i find i kayak shop and there i meet Gry that let me charge my equipment while i shop and after we have a couple scoops of ice cream in the sun while we have a nice talk, Charlotte also join us and she also joined me for the first part of the second lap of the day.
We just kept going until we passed 50km for the day and found a new camp for the night.
Day 64 started as a rainy day so i chipped a little longer and made my root vegetable and eggs.
Around midday it started to clear up and I started packing down my camp and started on the next lap.
Another good day and we did another day longer than a marathon before we found a camp site and I am planning to give the body a full 24 hours rest.
Day 65 and we are having a resting day, i hope to stay on land for a minimum of 24 hours, it's been 12 days and 490km since my last 24h rest so it is time to be strict with myself and give the body a little time to rest.
It would have been a perfect day to kayak with temperatures from 19-24 and the sun is shining!
It's so hot that it was time for me to cut off some winter hair and go for a swim when it got hot.
A perfect day for kayaking but also for chilling ;-)
As always a big thanks to my team! Norse for the magical kayak Ymir, LevelSix with the amazing drysuit Odin, Silva for Navigation and keeping equipment dry with drybags, Aquabound sendt me their paddle Whiskey that now is my Nr1 paddle!
And last out Aktiv.no that have equipment from all mentioned above! Thank you all!!
See full route her MapShare (garmin.com)
Lots of Love
Joachim the ShibbyTraveler