07-Sep-2002 -- 68Nx18E is located in the north-west part of Sweden (Lappland),
very close to the Norwegian border. The point is in the Scandinavian
mountain chain Skanderna. The northern part of Skanderna is a very
popular hiking area, containing up to 5500 km of footpaths. There are
lots of nature reserve areas, and few roads here. STF, The Swedish
touring club (www.stfturist.se) runs small cabins along the footpaths
here. Everyone can stay in these cabins for a small fee (provided
there is room). The confluence point is about 30 km from the nearest
road, making this a 3-4 day hiking trip
This is my trip to this confluence point:
Day 1, Sep 5 -- Left work at about 5 p.m. and drove from Luleå up to Ritsem,
approximately 400 km. The later part of the road is very beautiful, as
the road follows the lakes Langas and Suorvajaure, part of Luleå
river. The road passes by the Sourva dam, the largest dam in
Sweden. Unfortunately, it had become quite dark by the time I got here
so I couldn't enjoy the view. I arrived in Ritsem at 9 p.m. and got a
room at STF.
Day 2, Sep 6 -- Got up at about 8 a.m. Had a look at the weather. Rain.
Took my car and drove up to Sitasjaure. The road up there is 20
km of very small bumpy gravel road. I left my car at the end of
the road in Sitasjaure, and started walking along a 20 km long
footpath leading up to Hukejaure. In Hukejaure there is a STF cabin,
but that cabin is normally closed for the season at this time
of year. I planned to put up my tent someplace near the cabin. The
rain kept falling all day, so by the time I reach the cabin I was
quite wet.
I reached Hukejaure at 5 p.m., and was happy to find out
that the couple that work here as cabin-keepers had decided to stay in
the cabin two extra weeks. So instead of sleeping in a tent, I got to
sleep inside a warm cabin, and was able to dry my clothes.
Day 3, Sep 7 -- During the night it started to blow. In the morning, it was
blowing 10 to 15 m/s (i.e. gale force winds). Still raining. I decided to stay indoors and see
if the weather would become better. At lunchtime, the wind subsided
somewhat and the rain almost stopped. I left the cabin and started my
10 km walk towards the confluence point. I planned to
go up to the dcp, then turn around and walk the same way back.
Therefore, during my walk up to the point a tried to find a good
spot to put up my tent on the way back. The ground is really rocky up
here, and it had been raining during the last week. All the soft spots I
was able to find was therefore really wet and not suitable for a tent.
I reached the dcp at about 5 p.m. and took some pictures. More on the
confluence point below. Just 50 meters from the dcp I found a very nice
soft and dry tent spot! I thought that tenting at the confluence point
must be the ultimate way to really get to know it!
So I decided to turn in early and put up my tent here.
Day 4, Sep 8 -- The raining ceased during the night. In the morning you could
almost see the sun through the clouds. I got up, packed my stuff, and
took some more pictures of the confluence point. The GPS indicated the
point to be on almost the exact spot as it was yesterday. I started to
walk back towards Sitasjaure. I wanted to walk as far as possible
today so that I could drive home tomorrow during daylight. The weather
was rather nice this day, and I had some sun from time to time. I walked
until it got really dark, and had to stop at about 10 p.m. At that
time I had reached a rivulet that was too rapid-flowing to pass in the
dark. I put up my tent, had some food, and got to bed.
Day 5, Sep 9 -- Rain again. Luckily, I had only about 7 km to the
Sitasjaure and the car. Reached the car at 11 a.m. and started the
ride home. Stopped in Vakkotavare to take some pictures of a mountain
near the road. On top of that mountain is a degree confluence point
for the Swedish grid RT90. If I had more time and the weather would
have been better I would have tried to reach that point. The point is
about 900 meters up from the road on top of a very steep mountain (not
very steep on the back side). The view must be absolutely beautiful
from up there on a sunny day. Drove on home.
The confluence point.
The dcp is located about 500 meters south of the lake
Gearbijavri. The ground slopes from a mountain top in the north down
to the lake. The lake is on the altitude of 938 meters (according
to the map). The GPS says the elevation is 975 meters at the
point. Looking west you can see some mountain tops in Norway. In the
east there are a lot of higher mountains tops on about 1500 meters.