Abiskojaure - Abisko
- Distance: 15km
- Duration: (with breaks): 4h 00min
- Elevation gain/loss: 10m/115m
During the last night on Kungsleden, I could barely sleep. It wasn’t due to the excitement of finishing an awesome hiking trip. I was the cold, bloody cold.
The whole night I tried to keep myself warm but to no success. I would wake up every 1-2 hours thinking how I wish the night was over. I didn’t care about sleep anymore, I just wanted to get away from the cold. Therefore the first sunlight was more than welcome, let’s get out of here!
I forced myself to cook a warm breakfast realizing that no way I’ll do that once I start moving. I needed those calories as Abisko was still 15km away. If yesterday I was packing my stuff fast, today it was the next level, I jammed all my gear into the backpack within a couple of minutes, fighting with my fingers from getting numb.
Only when I moved to pack the tent, I found ice under the top layer, which was frozen. Beautiful streaks of ice, making my tent somewhat stiff to pack. Craaaaazy. No wonder I felt so cold tonight, it was below zero degrees.
As I rushed out of Abiskojaure, I saw that not only my tent was frozen. All the grass fields around me were covered in a thin layer of frost. While it was damn cold, the landscape also looked pretty cool with all the purple and blue tones. A quiet morning was only disturbed by the creaking sound of my walking.
Once the sun was above the hills towering the trail, the frost disappeared and I could finally enjoy the last hours on Kungsleden. White peaks were hidden somewhere behind me and soon the well-known birch forests surrounded me, indicating that I’m close.
A few openings next to a river allowed me to glimpse back at the mountains, looming majestically in the far distance. I felt both sad and excited. I absolutely fell in love with the nature of the Arctic Circle. At the same time, I could not wait to be inside, sleep in a proper bed and take a long warm shower.
Just before Abisko, I passed a gorge with plenty of day hikers around it. Not many long-distance backpackers in the area. The phone signal came back as well after 5 days of silence. I guess I’m back to the civilization 🙂
What a relief it was to find the famous Kungsleden monument/map, leading to the Abisko tourist center. The monument had all the Kungsleden points and main landmarks mapped in a single row. I walked alongside it from Abisko all the way to Kvikkjokk, where it all started.
Once at Kvikkjokk board, I realized – this is it. I walked 193km from Kvikkjokk to Abisko. Nice. Now off to a warm lunch, this girl is hungry! 🙂
Day 10 tips
- Once you left the gorge, it might be a bit confusing where to go. I headed to the parking lot and crossed a road to the other side. There I found the famous Kungsleden board.
- If you finish the trail around lunchtime, Abisko Fjällstuga has a great lunch deal: you pay a fixed amount and get a warm meal that can be refilled together with a drink. Both vegan and meat options are available.
Šaunuolė!!! Tu tokia visapusiškai stipri, didžiuojuosi, džiaugiuosi tavimi! Jeigu tokios nuostabios nuotraukos, tai ką kalbėti apie tikrus potyrius!
Ačiū, mama 🙂