AUGUST 16 – ALESJAURE TO KIERON 18 KM
I know in the beginning we said we didn’t want to take the boat. It felt like cheating and we wanted to proudly say we hiked the entire way. Well, our tune changed a little when we woke up that morning. There was a wonderfully inviting boat waiting for us down by the lake. We all agreed if we were to attempt making it to Abisko, we’d have to take the boat.
We caved and took the boat ride to save some time.
Everything was damp and we packed down the wet tent quickly. We rushed down to buy a boat ticket and try to beat the lineup since many had the same idea. A local Sámi man operated the boat and owned reindeer in the area. He was very friendly and answered Paul’s questions as we toured along the lake. The water was a beautiful aqua colour and the crisp mountain air smelled so fresh. There were passengers from Estonia who brought their dog and kids along for the Classic. I was pretty impressed how well they were managing and could tell they were very passionate about the outdoors.
Paul listening to stories from the locals.
We jumped off the boat and started down the trail with our rain gear ready to go. The air was misty and there wasn’t much of a view due to the clouds. We could tell we were descending from the mountains as the landscape was becoming more green. David pointed out a scenic view called the “Lapponian Gate”. The mountains formed a magnificent entrance and of course I thought that was pretty magical. We took some photos but could barely capture the gateway in full.
The mist blocked the beautiful views.
At one point the fog was so thick I had to break out singing “Into the unknown” from Frozen because we had no idea what was coming up ahead. It was a neat experience to climb up over the reindeer fences and hear the helicopter passing by through the fog overhead. We were noticing the helicopter more often now and hoped the trekkers that were getting air lifted out were going to be ok.
Up and over the reindeer fences.
There were extensive stretches of wooden planks to walk on and they were very slippery. I had to concentrate more than usual to keep my balance. Suddenly, David slipped and toppled off the side of the board walk into the bushes! Luckily he wasn’t injured. With all the rocks around, it’s amazing he didn’t land on one and break something. Paul helped him up and offered him a bag of Skittles. We could tell David was feeling a little dizzy and he ate a handful of candy while we all took a rest.
Trekking into the unknown!
Jack was motoring along in the rain in only a t-shirt and a poncho. He also carried an umbrella and from what I could tell, he didn’t seem too bothered by the weather. We were trying our best to keep up with him and for most of this stretch he led the way to the final checkpoint, Kieron.
Trekking through the rain and keeping our spirits up.
This was the most delicious checkpoint. We were offered Swedish pancakes with lingonberries and hot coffee. It warmed us right up while we sat in the rain, on the ground and surrounded by trees. David shared some German hot chocolate with me too and we made a freeze dried meal for lunch. We enjoyed our rest so much that we forgot to stamp our passports at the tent!
Paul enjoys Swedish pancakes at the Kieron checkpoint.
Making German hot chocolate and eating the last of our cheese in a tube.
Many people were setting up camp at Kieron because once you entered Abisko National Park, you could only camp at the designated campsite. So we had a few options to choose from. 1. Stay at Kieron. 2. Continue onto camp in Abisko National Park. 3. Go straight to the finish line! At this point, I believe our decision was influenced by the fact we had been walking through the rain for hours and we really wanted it to end. So off we went with 17km left to go to the finish line!
Resting my muddy tired feet.
AUGUST 16 – KIERON TO ABISKO 17 KM
Abisko National Park was a whole new landscape. Still rocky and muddy but there were birch trees and lots of mushrooms and foliage. I was really hoping we’d be gifted a sighting of a moose or reindeer but sadly we didn’t see any wildlife. This stretch felt incredibly long and Paul and I were slowing down. David and Jack must have got a second wind because we could not keep up and they stopped regularly to wait for us.
David and Jack rest on a rock while waiting for us to catch up.
We carried on like this until we reached the Abisko campground which was only 5km from the finish! While passing through we could not believe our eyes. MAGNUS?! We thought for sure he would have finished by now but he had decided to make camp and finish the next morning. We were stunned that we were going to make it to the finish before Magnus. We realized how hard we had pushed ourselves and Magnus congratulated us on the effort. He was impressed!
Meeting Magnus one last time.
We then made the decision to split up. David and Jack were keen to get to Trekker’s Inn and hopefully see if there were any accommodations available that we could all split for the night. Off they went and Paul and I stumbled along trying to keep our spirits up. We eventually became miserable and mentally drained from the grueling day. Paul sang some marching songs to help keep a constant rhythm to keep pushing on. We saw a few encouraging signs that were only 5km left to go! We had a few moments where we mentally broke down and Paul’s feet were in serious pain. We had to keep going.
Trying to push through and make it before dark.
We passed some really beautiful viewpoints along the river and noticed many hikers resting while taking in the views. I wished we had time to do that too but the day had been too jam packed and it was getting dark. Our goal was to arrive by 9:00pm! We could see some buildings in the distance and a bridge. We knew we were close!
Rocky trail through Abisko National Park.
Beautiful scenery along the final stretch to Abisko.
Every corner we rounded we hoped we were there but there was always another stretch or a hill. We were stunned when we realized we still had to walk up a slope to get to the finish line. There was a really neat tunnel we walked through when entering the park that played cultural music and had murals painted on the walls. There was also a map of the King’s trail that highlighted the different checkpoints and mountains.
A cool art display as we approached Abisko.
Then we saw it. The finish line! Funny enough there was music playing and our song was “I will survive” by Aretha Franklin. How funny! We did survive! We did it! I got a surge of adrenaline and was quite happy but a little emotional that it was over. Paul requested a chair immediately and was not in any mood to celebrate but we made sure to get a photo, our medal/badge and weigh our packs.
Paul can see the finish line!
There was a lot happening at Trekker’s Inn but since we arrived a little later we missed some of the activities for the evening. I had really hoped to have seen David and Jack applauding us along with the volunteers when we crossed the finish line. But they were setting up their campsite for the night since that’s all that ended up being available.
We completed our first Classic!
We eventually found a spot for our tent and cleaned ourselves up. We ran into Jack who was eating a pulled pork sandwich and wanted one too! We found David inside the tent at Trekker’s Inn and enjoyed some music, food, beers and a well deserved rest. I don’t remember too much else from that night. We were both so fatigued but I do recall Paul and David having some heartfelt conversations late into the night. We planned to take the bus back to Kiruna together in the morning. But first some sleep.
AUGUST 17 – ABISKO TO KIRUNA
Waking up was not easy but we got our stuff packed up and I had to drop off our rental tent. It was a really good Fjällräven dome tent just a little too heavy. Maybe next time we’d have something more lightweight. I popped into the museum shop and bought a couple badges but didn’t have time to enjoy the displays or learn anything about the area. Will have to do that next time too! I decided not to waste time waiting in line for a shower and toughed it out until we got to our hotel later. I’ll admit that was tough because I hadn’t had a shower in almost a week! There was a sale on hoodies and Paul and I picked up a couple Fjällräven souvenirs before we ran to catch the bus. The morning just flew by and before we knew it we were headed back to Kiruna.
The view on our way back to Kiruna.
David, Jack and Paul chatted the entire ride back. I watched the scenery roll by and couldn’t wait for a comfortable bed and shower. David had his vehicle parked in Kiruna and offered to drop us all off at our hotels before he started his drive back to Germany. We could barely fit but somehow made it work. As we got closer to dropping off Jack I could feel a sadness that we may not see each other again or for a very long time. He was a great trekking companion and such a solid individual. We exchanged hugs and waved goodbye to our English friend. Next stop, the Kiruna Scandic hotel in the new part of Kiruna.
Jack and Paul stuffed in the car.
David helped us unpack our bags and we took a selfie with him for our memories. We never thought we would make such a good friend in such a short time. Paul invited David to Canada whenever he could make it work and in turn David welcomed us to his home in Germany. We waved as he drove away and rolled into the hotel to recharge ourselves before heading home in 2 days after we explored Kiruna a little.
Saying so long to our new friend David in Kiruna.
Final thoughts
And that’s the end of our first Fjällräven Classic. It was a great experience and we felt hooked after it already trying to decide which one to do next. Something says Germany was a high possibility!
This was our first multi day trek and we were considered beginners. After this experience we gained so much confidence and learned how to optimize the weight of our packs and the importance of quality gear. There were definitely things we wanted to upgrade for next time and things that we were very happy with. Perhaps I can write another post about some of those items to help other beginners out.
I encourage anyone who has ever wanted to go on a big adventure to consider one of the Fjällräven Classics. The support from their volunteers and the community you become a part of are worth it.
Learn more about the Classics here and see you on the trail!
