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Typical free camp site in Sweden

Crossing the Arctic Circle for the first time

Reindeer in Lappland

Goteborg

Morjarv

65 Kilometers to Lilla Elra, Sweden. Through Frederickshavn, then by ferry to Göteborg, Sweden.

Awoke at dawn (4:30) to a clear warm morning. Cruised the ten km into Frederickshavn, where I met my first beggar (actually he looked pretty well off). I gave him 2 kronors. Took the 3 1/2 hour ferry into Göteborg and arrived about 12:30 to a very hot, very fast paced city of about half a million. Most of the city core had open air malls which were jammed with people and it was difficult maneuvering Burton through the crowds. 

I had lunch at a park near the center and struck up a conversation with a man named Borgret. He was in his late 50's and a self-proclaimed "autodidact". He was reading Wittgenstein and told me that his father was a dogmatic Marxist and that he became an anti-dogmatist after reading Bertrand Russell. Wittgenstein, he said, was neither dogmatic nor anti-dogmatic but un-dogmatic. I never did quite catch the difference. He also said that he was unable to find some of Noam Chomsky's books in Göteborg because the "powers that be" think his ideas are too radical. While we were talking, three separate very odd characters came up to talk to him. One was barefoot, shirtless, tattooed and carrying a guitar. This guy walked away and started a very loud argument with a nearby bystander. A beggar also came up and Borgret gave him money. He told me that when he worked for McGraw Hill in the 60's as a salesman they gave him the name "Bob", which he still uses. He was waiting for his sick leave pension to come through ($500 a week!) and then was going to move to Holland to be with his children. A real nice talk with a genuine eccentric.

As feared, the prices here are even higher than Britain or Denmark. I have yet to find any cheap foods (at least in Denmark Blue and Brie cheese were reasonable). My staple energy food--Mars Bars--are up to $1.75! So it looks like I will have to bite the bullet. The less I think about this the better.

I spent much of the afternoon in a frustrating search for the bicycle touring book which I thought was named Svenska Boken.  I was amazed to discover that nobody at any of the bike shops or book stores had ever heard of it, and knew nothing about any cross country bike routes (it later turned out that Sverige Leden, the cross country bike route, crosses literally right in front of these very same shops!). So I might have to do what I had definitely not wanted to do, chart my own route from large scale map that I had with me.

I set off from Göteborg about 5:00 just hoping to get out of town and find a quiet forest to pitch my tent. Unfortunately, the road I selected was like an interstate highway (very heavy fast traffic but an 8 foot shoulder) and there were no suitable places to stop for almost 40 km. I finally found a tourist bureau that had a few unoccupied bungalows on the property, and I pitched my tent in the mowed area between them. Tonight will be my first chance to test Allmän's Rätt (the Swedish right to camp anywhere so long as it does not disturb the peace of others).

Today's cycling was tough, even though the terrain was flat and the winds calm, because of the pervasive noise and traffic on the highway. Also, I am beginning to wonder if I will ever meet any touring cyclists. For awhile today I felt myself filling with despair and feeling that I was sinking into madness. But I sensed that feeling was precipitated by the heat and the road conditions, and believed it would dissipate once I found a quiet spot to relax. My senses were right, as I am feeling fine now.

110 Kilometers to a hilltop near Tisselskog.

Feeling great tonight! I am at a terrific campsite on top of a rocky hill surrounded by ponderosa pine and cottonwood trees. Went through an incredible variety of terrain today. Some reminiscent of western Oregon (fir forests), eastern Oregon (ponderosa pine), Minnesota (cottonwoods and lakes) and North Dakota (completely flat cultivated land). The terrain changed radically every few kilometers. Right now I feel as though I am high in the Rocky Mountains even though I am probably only a few hundred feet above sea level. Very nice cycling on smooth empty roads and trails. One bike trail through the forest near Vännersborg was particularly beautiful. All of this despite a 20 mph headwind, which affected me adversely only in the open flat spaces.

I started the morning off with the 20 km freeway stretch into Trollhätton. There I tried to find the tourist bureau, but could find none, so I went to the city hall and spoke to a worker there named Ulf Adolphson. He was very helpful and spent more than an hour with me tracking down a bookstore where I could find Sverige Boken. Finally, he found a bookstore which did carry it, and so I went and bought it for 190 SKr. I thought it might not be worth it, but now I am certain, even though it is in Swedish. It has mapped out bike routes for the entire country, and, if today's routes are an indication, it has done a fabulous job. Most of the roads I was on today can't even be found on normal maps. The scenery has been spectacular and the cars almost non-existent.

I tried to find a used bookstore so that I could get a Swedish/English dictionary but found out that the nearest one was over 100 km away. This was the case even though Trollhätton and its neighbor Vannersbörg each have populations of over 50,000. I think this is a real indicator of the kind of wealth in Sweden. Consumer products are abundant and everything is new. There are no "second hand" stores of any sort, so far as I can see. The downtown mall in each of these cities was crowded and bustling--huge open markets were taking place in both malls. I did see a few down and out people, but generally the atmosphere exudes health and wealth. Also there are thousands of good looking women riding bikes! Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) my sex drive has all but disappeared.

I spent about 100 SKr ($18) on food today, and find this to be somewhat remarkable. Careful shopping has gotten me a few dated bargains.

My attempts at Swedish have been frustrating, to say the least. I may have to give up my plan to speak Swedish whenever possible. Almost everything I say (which is usually simple and context related) is met with a blank stare, so I repeat it in English and it is understood. I think the Swedes are just not used to hearing Swedish with such an odd accent.

I've gotten the sponge bath down to a science. Can now bathe myself with about half a bottle of water at my campsite. This way I am able to avoid uncomfortable stickiness in my sleeping bag. I still have to wash my hair in sinks along the route--not difficult as the public toilets here have hot water.

Well, I am feeling content as a cow, and its time to crawl into the cozy confines of my tent and sleeping bag.

163 km to a forest spot 5 km north of O Amtervik.

A pre-determined long riding day if conditions permit. Another very hot day, especially in mid-afternoon. Varied terrain again with more hill climbing. A lot of the terrain was similar to eastern Oregon.

Stopped in Åmal for breakfast and found a quaint little village on the shores of Lake Vänern. While eating in the city park a man came up to me and proceeded to give me a history of Åmal. It seems that the four identical mansions which encircled the park were 300 years old and unique in Sweden. He said they had, at various times, been the residence of Swedish kings and that the last famous Swedish duel occurred here (fought between residents of two of the houses).

Later that day I stopped for pommes frites in Edsvalla and the owner of the cafe came over to my table to talk to me. He was a Kurdish refugee who had been in Sweden for 10 years. He said that he and his Finnish wife were the only non-Swedes (except for two adopted Thai children) in the entire town. As a result he felt isolated, especially since he found the Swedes to be cold and unapproachable. He said very few foreigners ever came through the town and that was why he was interested in talking to me. I stayed at his grill bar for a couple of hours chatting with him and waiting for the heat to abate.

I am now in an area of forestry and mining and the towns have a frontier edge to them. Lots of young males driving around at high speeds blasting rock music. I stopped in a museum and read that this area experienced a massive emigration to the United States in the 19th century due to the collapse of the small iron works and timber industry. It also said that this area had previously (1700's) been settled by Finns.

When I woke this morning there were thousands of swarming gnats around my tent. Since there were about 20 actually inside the tent who were not bothering me, I assumed they would be harmless. I was wrong. When I got out of the tent they began attacking me unmercifully. So, I put my gear together in record time and sped off on Burton. Aside from this gnat attack, I have noticed that I seem to be entering the mosquito zone. I have not been able to stop in the forest the past couple of days because of this problem.

Felt extremely dehydrated and grimy this morning. It seems no matter how much I drink, I cannot quench this thirst.

Tonight I am camped next to a mass grave of cholera victims who died in an epidemic in 1850. Beside the grave are two enormous anthills, each more than four feet high and literally alive with movement.

117 km to a lakeside site near Rammen.

I stopped early because I wanted to bathe in the lake near here and relax for a couple of hours. What a mistake! I am now trapped in a sweltering tent surrounded by swarms of buzzing mosquitoes. I already have dozens of welts on my legs, so I don't want to risk death from blood loss. I'll just wait until it cools down. Who would have thought that I would hit this kind of a heat wave (high 90's?) in early June--it is almost unprecedented according to the people I have talked to.

There was some beautiful cycling today, mostly reminiscent of high altitude Rockies (without the climbing). There was a series of lovely lakes, one of which I swam in and washed my clothes, sleeping bag and tent. I stopped in the towns of Munkford and Hagförs and found them typical of the people-friendly towns I have encountered all through Sweden. All of these towns give the impression of being set up in the midst of a park. There are benches and grass everywhere, and no fences (since there is no law against trespass, apparently fences are unnecessary). Every village has a central shopping area in which cars are not allowed. Generally, one large building will house all the government functions, as well as a sports arena and impressive library (I spent a couple of hours in Hagförs' library (a town of 7,000) and found it to be far more impressive than Eugene's library). There are bikepaths everywhere, and most of the population clearly travels by that method within the towns.

There is evidence that Sweden is moving toward a cashless society. For example, most gas stations do not have attendants--it is self serve by inserting a card. Few of the phone booths accept cash (again, a phone card is required). In Göteborg I noticed people paying in restaurants with a debit card--simply push the card through the machine and the bill is paid.

Tried to call Mike Strandberg (a world traveling cyclist whose number had been given to me by Jon) in Vänbro but found that none of the public phones would accept cash, so I went to the tourist office and the woman there allowed me to use her phone--unfortunately, no answer in Vänbro. The librarian was very helpful in tracking down his address, which turned out to be only 80 km from Hagförs.

My last 25 km of cycling today was on a gravel road through swamp/lake land. The water in these lakes is extremely dark, almost black. I think that much of this land is peat moss. It certainly gives the lakes a striking and unusual appearance.

Only spent 90 SKr today on a diet of apples, bananas, bread, ham, cheese and cookies. Been bargain shopping!

223 km to a forested site north of Enriken.

A day of incredible, ecstatic riding! My longest mileage day (140 miles) ever, and I could have gone on for hours longer. It was calm, partly cloudy (beautiful cumulus clouds) with temperatures in the 60's. Absolutely perfect cycling weather. The terrain was flat or low hills (1 or 2% grades) along innumerable pristine lakes and through all types of forest. Very few towns today and the ones I did hit were very small. The conditions were so perfect that I rode 92 km before breakfast!

The 40 km stretch between Fredericksburg and Sunninsjö was particularly blissful. Even though it was a series of gradual hills it felt downhill the whole way. I felt at one with my bike--like a well-oiled machine. I rode cadence for very long stretches and this clearly helped. I stopped at several of the lakes along the way and bathed or swam (the water was warm), and also had my first extended Swedish conversation with a couple that I met at one of the lakes.

I woke at 2:00 a.m. this morning to water pouring on my head. It was a 5 minute cloudburst which allowed me just enough time to put up the rain fly, cover my bike and get 10 more mosquito bites. I've discovered that the only way to deal with the mosquitos is to cover as much of my body as possible when setting up or breaking camp. So I put on my coat (hood up), gloves and long pants, regardless of the temperature, and work as quickly as possible. Fortunately, the mosquitos only seem to be a real problem in the woods. They don't bother me in town or while I am on the road. The decision to do long miles today was partly dictated by the mosquito problem. Since camping means being imprisoned in the tent, I might as well ride until late.

Cycling in Sweden is like cycling through a gigantic national park, with a fraction of the traffic. Because of Allmän's Rätt there is a fundamental difference from cycling in other countries in that I don't have to set a destination--i.e. I can simply ride until I feel like stopping and then find a spot to camp. This can usually be done within a kilometer of making the decision, as the countryside is primarily forest. Notwithstanding Allmän's Rätt I still try to find a spot which is hidden from view.

One of the things I've noticed about Sweden is the almost complete invisibility of the police. I've seen one or two police cars since I have been in Sweden, and the only other police I saw were bicycle cops in Göteborg.

155 to a forested spot near Dellenberg Hotel, Delsbo.

Another clear, calm and warm day. Had a big problem with food today as it is Pingstra Dagen, a national holiday. Cycled 67 km to Bollnäs and found no grocery stores open, so I bought some chocolate at a gas station and bit the bullet by eating in one of the expensive grilled food stands. Then I set out in the heat of the day and rode another 70 km to Delsbo before I found a convenience store open. This route included a very difficult 10 km stretch of steep hills and gravel, during which I was not only famished but out of water. At Delsbo I gorged myself (more grill korv med pommes frites, as well as more chocolate) and became sick to my stomach. So I sat in a churchyard for a couple of hours to recover.

About 10 km down the road I stopped at a gas station and asked if there was anywhere around where I might be able to watch the NBA championship finals (Blazers/Chicago) to be played that night. The clerk was very helpful and called a local hotel for me and I talked to Sara, the hotel manager. She told me that they had the sports channel on their tv and that I could come and watch the game, for free! So I biked the 5 km to the Dellenberg Hotel, which is actually a convalescent center for injured and elderly people that rents occasional vacant rooms to travelers.

Once I got there I discovered that they only had the Eurosport, rather than the Screensport channel and so I would not be able to watch the game after all. Sara was very apologetic and friendly, and we had a nice long talk. It wasn't long before I was the center of attention for most of the guests, and I was peppered with questions about my adventures.

I was extremely impressed with this convalescent center. It was more like a luxury hotel located in a park-like setting alongside a lovely lake. The center itself was clean, modern and spacious; there was a huge smorgasbord set up for the quests (I was invited to partake but refrained). Sara said I could camp on the center grounds and so I have set up my tent in a forested area about 100 meters from the hotel, and I am now sitting in a large woodshed while I write this.

I've really got to plan my food stops a little better from now on as there are big distances between the villages here and the store hours are uncertain. Most of the gas stations have "groceries", but usually this is limited to chocolate and potato chips. The lack of food, and the uncertainty of the next meal, made today's ride extremely difficult despite beautiful roads and scenery. I did manage to go swimming twice today and that was wonderfully refreshing--the lakes seem clean, although there is often a unknown yellow scum along the shoreline.

Met my first Swedish cycle tourists today, unfortunately going the opposite direction. They were a Swedish couple from Stockholm doing a two week tour from Sundsvall to Stockholm.

Went to sleep about 11:30 with the western sky in a very pretty sunset--awoke at 1:45 to discover that the sky was exactly the same! What I am seeing, as I approach the Arctic Circle, is a prolonged sunset-sunrise with no period of real darkness.

127 km to the grounds of Philadelphia Society Youth Hostel in Starreviken.

A day of absolutely enormous mood swings. Rune, the hotel night manager, had invited me to breakfast at 8:00 today. I had considered not going as I love early morning cycling, but I wasn't able to drag myself out of my sleeping bag until well past seven (I was lying back and enjoying myself because there were no mosquitos at this site) so I went into the hotel. It was a spectacular smorgasbord breakfast consisting of a variety of breads, soft and hard boiled eggs, roast beef, corn flakes, juice and cheese. I absolutely gorged myself, as this was the first opportunity I'd had in Sweden to eat fresh, healthy foods. I talked at length with Rune and a Stockholm couple who were guests at the hotel, before finally hitting the road.

For the first 60 km I was in a great mood, singing "Tom Dooley", "John Brown's Body" and "Don't Think Twice" almost the whole way. The road was empty and smooth, the scenery all forest and lakes. I kept thinking that, despite the down periods, I had never been so happy for such a sustained period as I have been in the past 6 weeks.

About 30 km from Sundsvall the road began to deteriorate, turning into a minefield of axle breaking bumps, cracks and potholes. I hit some of them pretty hard and was afraid I'd done damage to Burton, but everything seems OK now. There were several very steep climbs coming into Sundsvall (the steepest I'd encountered in Sweden) and I was tired, hungry and cranky--it had been 90 km since breakfast.

Sundsvall itself was both physically beautiful (a harbor town surrounded by high rock formations) and clearly an industrial city. The town was pretty well shut down for the holiday but I did find a Gatukök open (it seems there are only two fast food outlets in Sweden, Gatukök and Syballa--both are overpriced and serve tiny portions), and ate a grill korv med pommes frites. On the way out of town I found a grocery store open and so stocked up for the night.

For some reason I felt uncomfortable in Sundsvall. People in industrial areas (even the relatively clean and modern industrial areas of Sweden) seem more angry and aggressive to me. There were lots of loud motorcycles, cars and music--a lot of young males not yet "civilized" by women. I saw a lot of broken glass on the streets and bike paths, a first for Sweden, and when I was exiting the city I discovered that many of the Sverige Leden signs had been taken down or damaged (another first; I had been astounded at how few of these critical signs were missing).

As I was on the edge of town I witnessed a motorcycle accident when a rider apparently lost control of his bike and hit a curb. He flew over the handlebars and his body whiplashed around a street sign pole. The impact was so intense that I actually thought he might be dead. But he jumped up almost immediately and ran to shut off his motorcycle, screaming obscenities the whole time. A very bizarre scene! Several people stopped to assist him, and so I just continued down the road, wanting to get out of this place and into the comfort of the forest and my tent.

But the gods were not with me on this day. I still had 25 km of urban and semi-urban cycling to do and, for the first time, my maps let me down. They were clearly inaccurate for this stretch and my confusion was not helped by the missing road signs. So it took me three very frustrating hours to negotiate my way out of the maze. My mood had gone from an euphoric high to a maddeningly frustrating low. Finally I got through the industrial area and stopped at this quiet youth hostel, which is apparently closed, set up my tent on their lawn, and am now snug in my sleeping bag. I feel warm, cozy and protected from the mosquitoes. I am feeling very high again.

I've noticed that every store in Sweden (gas stations, grocery stores etc.) sells pornographic books and videos openly on display, usually in the places designed for compulsive shopping (i.e. right by the counter where people stand in line to make purchases). For those who think pornography leads to violence against women, they should compare crimes against women in Sweden to America. I would be surprised if Sweden's crime rate is even a quarter of that of the US.

147 km to a spot by an abandoned cabin 5 km east of Ramsele.

I am writing this at Ramsele (a town of 1,200) while I wait for a few hours before finding a camping spot. I am completely at ease in the smaller Swedish towns and cities. They are quiet and friendly and the people are either a little curious or they leave you alone completely. Every town seems to have a library (even towns so small they don't even have a store!), a park or parks, many benches, a church, and a sportshall/community center (Folkets Hus). There are no pubs or bars (I'm not sure where people get alcohol--apparently they drive many kilometers to the larger towns). Sweden appears to be the logical extension of the middle class bourgeois system. All people are middle class and look and act similarly. There are no poor people and no evidence of excessive wealth. There is no evidence of vandalism. It appears to be a wholly rational society devoted to the best interests of the people as a whole.

I met another cyclist today going the other way. His name was Jan and he was about 50, wearing cut-offs, tee shirt and bandanna. He was carrying his dog Nina in a basket on the front of his bike. Jan was on a week long tour, one of many he says he does every year. He couldn't figure out why I wanted to go to the Arctic Circle, but said he had met an American woman last year who was doing the same thing (maybe only Americans can appreciate this kind of symbolism). He said that there was a town of 60's style hippies in this region but that he wasn't exactly sure where (later, when I went to the Ramsele Konsum store I saw a couple that would have fit right in at the Eugene Country Fair--it was shocking and made me realize how homogenous the Swedes really are. This couple really stood out). He also told me about all his women (a weird trait I have noticed in a lot of older Swedish men. Borgret did the same thing).

The riding today was on a major road and so was relatively flat, fairly smooth and slightly uncomfortable due to the truck traffic. There was no shoulder although the road was fairly wide. Again, it was primarily through forest, and Ramsele is the only town I encountered. This is clearly a logging area, but does not have as much of a red-neck feel about as American logging areas.

It was clear and calm all day, but cooler than the past week or so. In fact, according to the youth hostel manager, it was 3 degrees centigrade this morning. Apparently the hostel was open all along but there were no guests--and I was walking around naked on their lawn! He did not bother me during the night, probably because I had Allmän's Rätt to camp where I was. We conversed for some time in Swedish which made me frustrated because there quickly comes a point where I can't understand any more. Unfortunately, most of the people who have come up to talk to me (generally older people) do not speak English and so we can only have abbreviated conversations. I do wish that I could communicate better so I could learn more about the people and areas I am going through.

138 km to a forest spot near Siksjö.

Arrived in Lappland early this morning. I slept fitfully, probably due to the fact it never got dark. I kept waking up every hour or so feeling I'd just had a bad afternoon nap. It is very bizarre how the sun goes down--it is low on the horizon by 6:30 (you would expect it to be dark within an hour) but then it just sort of stays in position and slides horizontally along the skyline. I should have thought of that this evening before setting up my camp into the sun. I feel like I am in a sauna and can't get out due to millions of swarming mosquitoes and gnats which have encircled my tent.

Probably due to my lack of sleep, I had a tough time getting going today. I was on a major road most of the day but there was almost no traffic (10 cars per hour) so it was OK. The terrain was almost all forest, very few farms and only one town, Åsole, which I spent all afternoon at. I went to the library and had the librarian make copies of more songs I can sing while riding ("If I had a Hammer", "I am a Rock", "Eleanor Rigby", "I'll have to say I Love you in a Song"). The librarian was very kind and copied them for free. She also encouraged me to speak Swedish (even though she spoke English) and I asked her a lot of questions about the town and the library. I was extremely impressed with the library, as I have been with all Scandinavian libraries. She told me that they had 45,000 books and that there were two other libraries in town (all this for a town with a population of 2,500!). Everything seemed brand new and they had an impressive collection of magazines, tapes and videos.

I am now munching on Göteborgs Dubbla Kex Med Vaniljcreme (oreo like vanilla cookies) which I have become absolutely addicted to. I am eating about a pound a day of them. I spend a lot of time shopping for bargains but my diet has consisted primarily of day old bread (half-priced), cooked ham (often on sale), greve' or some other cheese, bananas, apples, pears, oranges and vanilla cookies. With this totally bland diet I can keep my budget down to about $25 per day. It will be nice to eat what I want again, but it would cost me about $50 a day here. I have been having an insatiable appetite --everything I bring to the campsite is consumed, even if it is intended for the next day.

157 km to a lakeside site 10 km west of Torpen.

Another warm, sunny day, although a 10 mph headwind came up in the afternoon. Relatively flat, or low grade hills, through forest. Only a couple of small villages and no farms. As I head further north the trees seem to have become more stunted and sparse, particularly in exposed areas. Saw my first reindeer today, which made me realize how few animals I have seen in Sweden. I never see any road kill or hear foraging sound when I am camping. I've seen no rabbits, chipmunks or other animals that one would normally see in this type of terrain. Another thing I have noticed is that the insects are not so polite in Lappland. In Sweden I only had a problem while camping in the forest; no problems at all in towns or while on the road. Here, the insects are everywhere, which makes it really uncomfortable to stop and relax. I chose this site tonight because it is located so the wind comes right off the lake. Nonetheless, it took only a few minutes before I was engulfed in gnats.

Here in the sanctuary of my tent I've been thinking about my need for sanctuaries while touring. In some places they are almost impossible to find (i.e. Ireland) while in Sweden they are abundant--parks, libraries, benches and churches especially. These are the places you can sit down to relax, read or meditate, and they are absolutely essential for good touring.

Spoke to the librarian in Lycksela (pop. 11,000) and was told they had 120,000 books and seven librarians--almost as good as Eugene. The town also had a large swimming hall, gymnasium and theater, as well as numerous parks. Swedish towns are wonderful!

It did not even come close to being dark last night so I slept poorly, waking up every hour or so.

I've become a real curiosity piece the farther I go north. People are astonished that an American would be up here. They are even more astonished when I tell them that I have bicycled from Göteborg. Apparently Sverige Leden is not a well traveled trail by long distance cyclists.

Well, I'm feeling fresh and chipper after a bath in the lake and it's time to eat. For once, I am well-stocked for food tonight.

161 km to a hilltop outside Norrfjärden.

Warm (80's) sunny and calm today. Only one town of any size on today's ride and that was Boliden, my breakfast stop. Otherwise the rest of the day involved cycling through thinning northern forests and stopping at tiny villages. At the end of the day I went through the unusual village of Ojebyn.

Boliden had a typical Swedish people-friendly feel to it--I really love these places. Ojebyn was completely different. It had a large number of rustic old log cabins that had a Siberian feel to them (straight out of "Dersu Uzala"). It was almost startling because all the other Swedish towns I had been in had a distinctly modern, designed feel to them. These haphazard log cabins and houses were contrary to any sense of order and therefore appeared very un-Swedish.

There were few lakes along today's route and no gas stations/toilets, so I had a problem keeping clean. This problem was exacerbated by a couple of extremely dusty gravel roads. The resulting grunginess contributed to an anti-social attitude today. I did not want to speak Swedish (it is quite an effort to always be trying to converse in a foreign language if your skills are so limited). I just wanted to be by myself, on the road or in a park. The heat was also a problem--it was warm from the minute I woke up and it got very hot by mid-afternoon. It was tough, dehydrated cycling at that point.

I got my first real taste of the infamous biting gnats today. I was coasting into Fallförs when suddenly a swarm of black gnats engulfed me. Their sting was painful, more like a bee's than a mosquito's. As soon as I crossed the bridge where this incident occurred, and started up the north side, the gnats were gone. I hope I never see them again. I presume these are the gnats I have been told about which will cover a sandwich and instantly turn it black.

Generally, the mosquitoes are much worse in Lappland than in the rest of Sweden and I am becoming frustrated and exhausted by my inability to escape their wrath. It's no fun to have to put on every piece of clothing, when it is sweltering hot, in order to put up the tent--and then being imprisoned in that tent until morning. Perhaps insect repellent would be useful (I doubt it, however) but I can't tolerate the sticky feeling.

Saw some really odd birds today. They look like dodo birds with long thin beaks, and have a loud and distinctive sound. I also saw my second car accident today. Two cars collided broadside at an intersection, throwing one of them in the ditch. Both cars appeared totaled, but nobody seemed hurt. In this case, as with the motorcycle, it is likely that the accident was caused by one of the drivers being distracted by the weird looking bicyclist pedaling by.

In my rush to put up my tent tonight I lost one of the stakes and so will need to search for it in the morning. Please, please freeze up tonight so the mosquitoes will calm down. I had the foresight to bring a coke can tonight so that if I need to urinate during the night I can do so in the can.

155 km to a field 7 km south of Morjärv.

Some absolutely spectacular cycling today in warm, partly cloudy weather. The section from Boden to Morjärv (76 km total) had a tail wind and excellent, relatively flat roads. I was able to go full tilt, as fast as I could, the entire way. I was like a machine! Ah, the wonders of joyous cadence cycling; sometimes you get into a rhythm and if feels as if you are effortlessly flying. Uphills are as easy as downhills. Your whole body is in perfect synch and you want it to never end. Ecstasy!

Amazingly lush forest on the route today. I thought I was through with that since I am so near the Arctic Circle. But this forest was even thicker, with far more undergrowth, than the southern forest. I had a peculiar meeting with a herd of reindeer on the road today. As I approached there were 5 or 6 adult deer and a couple of calves wandering on the road. I slowly went up to them and started to ease myself past them when the brush along both sides of the road came to life. There was an entire herd of reindeer and I had started a mini stampede. Fortunately they all headed away from me or I could have been in real danger. One lone calf continued to walk in front of me and I was quite concerned that one of the cows would come out to protect it. Eventually, it wandered off the road and I continued on my way.

I stopped at the Alvik ICA store and, after speaking Swedish to the owner, I was invited into the backyard for coffee. There, I ended up talking to most of the town--in Swedish to those over 40, in English to those under. I learned that there was a big celebration going on in the area and that there were a lot of Swedish-American in Luleå for the celebration. They recommended that I go there, but I thought better of it. I ate my fill (cookies, roasted sausage, biscuits, coffee and juice) took some pictures of the people and went on my way.

Boden, the largest town on today's route, was a military town and I did not have a good feeling about it. There was a group singing songs for Jesus in the mall, but otherwise the place was quiet. I went shopping at Åhlens and was surprised to find that store prices in the large town markets were higher than those in the villages. The Swedish names for the foods that I buy at Konsum, ICA (pronounced "eek a") and Åhlens: greve ost, kokt skinka, bröd, vanillja creme, apel, apelsin, paron, bananer, jordnötssmor, jordgrubber, hushallost.

I've developed a set routine for camping. First I find a site which is hidden from view and exposed to the wind. Once I find the spot, I put up my tent as quickly as possible, covering myself first with my jacket, gloves and long pants if the mosquitos are bad. I then dismantle my bike packs and toss them in a heap in front of the tent. Next, I open the tent fly, toss everything in, jump in and zip up the door. Then I kill the 20 or so mosquitos that have usually managed to get in (my tent is a blood stained mess), blow up my thermo-rest, pull out my supper and sit back and enjoy. It is impossible to describe how wonderful the blandest food can taste in these circumstances. It's almost as good as sex. Tonight's menu consists of jordnöts smor på bröd (peanut butter sandwiches), bananor (bananas) and vanillja creme kek (vanilla oreos), as well as my indispensable coca cola. When my meal is finished I lay back, roll a cigarette, and write my journal while savoring the exquisite nicotine high. When I'm done with that I settle back and relax with whatever book I am reading at the moment. It is an extraordinarily simple existence, yet just as extraordinarily rich in its impact. When I am in the tent I am both content and happy.

CONTINUE ON TO FINLAND